Dislocated shoulder rehab advice

[mwalker]

I dislocated my shoulder in September playing rugby and again 10 days later trying to climb on it. Been seeing a physio and rehabbing it pretty hard in the hopes of tightening it up and preventing it from coming out a third time. I've never had it dislocate before but I'm told that if it comes out a third time it's surgery time.

 

Most of the exercises my physio has me doing are to strengthen/tighten my delt, bicep and tricep (as well as all the rotator cuff ones).

 

Anyone have any specific exercises they would recommend that helped them get their dislocated shoulder back in shape for climbing? How long were you off?

 

thanks

[alexbaker]

Wow I actually think I have a useful response here:

 

I have dislocated my shoulder several times. One time it was out for well over an hour.

 

It has been nearly seven years since my last time. No surgery! Give it plenty of time to heal right and do the exercises your doctor told you to do. I gave mine a solid 2 YEARS of rehab before going back 100%. I still have to be careful and know my limitations. The moral of the story: take your time, do it right, no surgery. I climb a couple days a week, with plenty of hard (for me) bouldering.

 

Alex

[dennyt]

Had surgery on my left shoulder 3/2008. Dr. Pedegana with Orthopedics International, did a great job (arthroscopic). PT with Pioneer Physical Therapy - those guys rocked. I think I was out of my sling in 6 weeks, and climbing about 10 weeks post surgery. Full range of motion, I've had a couple partial dislocations because of a hill-sachs lesion (dent in the head of the humerus from 10+ dislocations), but nothing tore.

 

For specific exercises, they had me do:

Internal & External rotation on a cable machine or rubber band

"Baseball throw" internal & external rotation with a cable machine or rubber band

Bench rows

Pushups, Pullups

 

I was never one to lift weights, but they told me I had to keep this up if I was going to keep climbing. I feel solid now, even stronger because of the weights. Get on it!

 

Oh, and don't blow your feet with a sinker hand behind a flake, like on reptiles & amphetamines. That sucked.

[bonathanjarrett]

You need to seek the advice of a specialist, not someone on this forum. Without knowing the specifics of your case, it is foolish for anyone to give you advice regarding this matter.

 

I have had two surgeries for a repeatedly dislocating shoulder. The first surgery failed in large part due to the fact that I was given "generic" rehab advice, because there was not attention paid to the details of my particular case and physiology.

 

As much as I would like to offer you advice regarding the rehab that I went through, the exercises that I was given, and the timeline that my recovery was based on, it is irrelevent to what you need.

 

Don't screw this up, because shoulder instability in the long run can be at least a pain in the butt the local crag or even fatal in the mountains. Seek a professional who can give you advice specific to your case.