shoulder pain

[bowmaster12]

im not asking for medical advice but i was wondering if anyone has ever got pain in their bow arm shoulder from shooting?  I htink it may be related to somethign else but the last few times if shot i get a pain in my bow shoulder could this have to do with shooting at all in your opinion?  thanx

[thewal2]

Well,

I hurt my draw shoulder from over practicing...I thought i tore my rotator cuff but I only sprain on muscle in my shoulder and one in my arm...

Take some IB profin if you can and let it rest...I lost 3 weeks of shooting practice during that time...now I occasionally still have pain but not to bad...I have not let it 100% heal yet.

Go to a sports med doc to make sure you are not going to hurt yourself more by shooting then do what he says and all will be good!

[bobman]

I find if I shoot every other day I recover well my concentration is better and I am stronger. If I am at all sore I will sometimes rest two days before shooting again.

I'm 58 years old and pain free since I started getting smarter about my body and giving it a chance to recover.

70 lbs bows and I rarely shoot more than 26 arrows in a day 12 rounds of two arrows each.

I go for quality not quantity my shooting is much better and I am a hunter not a target archer. I've been shooting instinctively since I was about 8-9 years old so I dont need a lot of practice just regular practice in small doses.

I also do a lot visualizing shots without a bow in my hand sounds corny but I think it helps me.

If I was you I would put the bow down for atleast two weeks and not pick it up until all the pain was gone so it heals. Then rethink your practice routine.

Just my opinion

Hope it helps

Bob

[bad arrow]

Don't mean to be an alarmist. But depending on your age you may get that checked out.  Heres my shoulder pain story: I had severe shoulder and joint pain (I'm 51 and was in great health) starting last year. Told the wife and doctor within a year I won't be walking. They found nothing, said it might be athritis. In September I started having severe upper chest pains(only when I exerted myself) and was talked into going to E.R. Nothing showed on the EKG but after the dye test I had 99% blockage in the main artery and 75% in the secondary.Ended up with two stints and a week stay in the hospital. They said I would'a been dead by the weekend. Anyway the good news....no heart attack and no damage to the heart. I've had no severe pain in any of my joints now. Shoulder hasn't hurt since (knock on wood). You said you think it may be related  to something other than shooting a bow so thought I'd share that with ya!....Phil

[nutmeg]

Don't ignore it and hope it will go away. Have it checked out. I know from experience. Rotator cuff surgery and recovery sucks.(nut)

[greyghost]

Originally posted by nutmeg:
Don't ignore it and hope it will go away. Have it checked out. I know from experience. Rotator cuff surgery and recovery sucks.(nut)

Times 2.

[Bowwild]

In December 2008 I was carrying lumber on my left (drawing side leftie)shoulder. I hurt the shoulder -- tore a tendon 50% lose.  I had been trying to teach myself to shoot recurves again at the same time this happened. The pain was very bad and worse when I did certain things with the shoulder. MRI's and MD visits resulted in 7 months of very light, at-home rehab with bands and 3# weight and only 2 shots from a 20# bow per MONTH.  I didn't think the rehab was working at all. Then one day in early August the pain just disappeared. I haven't had any since.

I try to warm up before I shoot a bit by quarter drawing and half-drawing my bow a couple of times before full-drawing.  I'm 56 .

[Rosco1]

Just got my non draw arm checked and the doc found 2 tears in the rotator cuff via MRI... That pretty much explains why it hurt for me... And yeah, I'm sure shooting didn't help.

As for you, time to take a trip to the doc. If nothing else it will give you peace of mind.

[guspup]

Full tear in rotator cuff, surgery April 1st, and was ready for opening day here October. Have it checked out....... if it's a tear it's a bit of a recovery... but I'm glad I had it fixed.

[TooManyHobbies]

Bone spur impingement, both shoulders. Left in '07, right in 1/'10. Physical therapy sucks, but back to shooting the 'curve. Get it checked out. IF surgery is needed, do it right after the season ends so you're ready for next year.

[BRONZ]

I'd be more than happy to answer questions if you can be more specific about describing your symptoms?  Location, type of pain, etc...  Feel free to pm me.  

I also agree with the advice, "don't ignore it".  If it is something that is an ongoing problem, it's worth looking into.

[Don Stokes]

Shooting too much bow too often can do it. I overdid it one day at a 3D shoot about 15 years ago, and had to lay off for a month. At the time I was shooting 100 arrows a day or so from a 65# bow. If you're shooting high draw weight, you may need to cut back a few pounds. I shoot 50 most of the time now, and still can't shoot every day without getting sore. I'm 62.

[LKH]

I have had both shoulders worked on for bone spurs and next Friday they will do my left (bowarm) for rotator cuff.  Not looking fwd, but it's gotten so bad that shooting is almost more than I can bear, especially the first shot.

Get it MRI'd.  Hopefully it will be something therapy can help.  It took care of mine for over a dozen years.

[bowmaster12]

thanx for the advice guys bronx when i have more time ill shoot you a pm unfortinatly i cant have an mri due to a prior medical issue and having a metal coil placed in vain by heart so one tru way to get things looked at is surgery already been told that any kind of explority surgey is 6-8 months recovery thats from a baseball shoulder problem i chose not to have fixed has hard as it is im going to lay off shooting for awhile and see what happens

[straitera]

2-3 months ago I hurt my left shoulder lifting weights. It really hurt deep to shoot my heavier bows but I did anyway almost daily. Now the pain is nearly gone, I'm at full draw, & learned a good lesson, for me that is.

[besmo]

I've been shooting with a sore draw shoulder for about 15 years.  I lowered my bow weight from 65 to 55 and I use ibproferon and aspecreme and I can keep on .

[finkm1]

Last year I put a post on about my shoulder pain and received a lot of great advice. Last winter I could not draw to shoot. after seeing my doctor, having a MRI and seeing a specialist, I was diagnosed with shoulder impingement. After physical therapy I could shoot my bow. I still had a slight pain all summer but could shoot. With winter setting in here in Michigan the pain is coming back. But with doing the exercises and stretching I can keep the pain to a minimum and can still shoot. Getting old just plain stinks !!!!

[Don Stokes]

Originally posted by finkm1: Getting old just plain stinks !!!! [/QB]

I had to admit this week that I just can't shoot my bow well enough with bulky clothes and stiffness in my joints from the cold. My normal judo practice shot from the stand before climbing down hit a foot to the right (read gut shot), and most of my shots going back to the house were off the mark. I hung it up until spring. This is the first year that it's affected me this much. Maybe if it warms up before the season is over...

Until then, I guess I'm hunting with the smoke pole. Can't miss the rut!