Is arm pain/fatigue typical?

[karlaosh]

Many of you have described back pain post-surgery. I've been having back pain but I've also noticed that it's mainly brought on after I use my arms.

If I sit in my recliner and hold a paperback for a few hours during the day, for example, my back hurts disproportionately later in the day. And my arms themselves ache, as if I've been playing tennis all day.

Since I started figuring this out, I've been careful to avoid any kind of arm/back strain. I was never lifting anything heavy, but now I'm also avoiding any kind of minor straining or isometric stress. Yet even a few simple activities elicit arm and back fatigue. (Typing this thread will probably cause me some pain, for example.)

Has anyone else experienced this? How long does it last? I'll be 3 weeks post-surgery on Wednesday.

 

[jeffp]

Oh yes! The arms and front chest muscles were/are among the worst of the whole thing. I'm about 3 months out and still have aches in the arm muscles. It take only a short time for the muscles to lose strength and so long to get it back. I'm a whole lot better than 3 weeks out of surgery, but not up to where I was before. All I got is time....

 

[coryp]

Many of you have described back pain post-surgery. I've been having back pain but I've also noticed that it's mainly brought on after I use my arms.

If I sit in my recliner and hold a paperback for a few hours during the day, for example, my back hurts disproportionately later in the day. And my arms themselves ache, as if I've been playing tennis all day.

Since I started figuring this out, I've been careful to avoid any kind of arm/back strain. I was never lifting anything heavy, but now I'm also avoiding any kind of minor straining or isometric stress. Yet even a few simple activities elicit arm and back fatigue. (Typing this thread will probably cause me some pain, for example.)

Has anyone else experienced this? How long does it last? I'll be 3 weeks post-surgery on Wednesday.

Hello,.

13 days post surgery and still in some pain. My main issues have been back (upper and around the spine) between the shoulder (under the wing) and up to the neck. This has been my achilles so far, my triceps were throbbing the first week becasue of the way we are forced to walk (if brings all the blood and in turn they ache). This has subsided slightly, and is tolerable. I am not taking any pain meds other that to sleep (vicadin) I tried to get off them all together 2 nights ago (big mistake) but I could not sleep more than 1 hr at a time.
I think that the reason for pain (it is muscle pain) is that your body is now in recovery mode (kind of like after doing a serious gym workout) and it takes a few days to get back to normal. In this case it takes more than a few, as you increase your activity levels (WALKING, cooking, etc etc) the pain will reoccur until your body is back in normal shape.

Just will yourself through the daily pain and you will heal much quicker. I am now walking 2 + miles per day, cooking, helping to clean up, carrying groceries (10lbs max per arm) home from the market. I know I am not even close to back where I was but it is encouraging. I put a BBQ together yesterday!!!!!!

My wife has taken me off the back and call list!!

I am not superman in anyway and beleive me I pay if I overdo it (last night I could not get back to sleep after waking up at 4am, tooooo sore).

Today I had a massage (which helped) and will continue the trend later this week.

Take care

 

[tobagotwo]

I wouldn't completely avoid movement, or the pain will likely linger longer. The pain does become less in a few weeks for most people. The phrase "move it or lose it" still applies to an extent, within the limitations of reasonable caution.

However, you just want to move things, not stress them or put pressure on them at this point, especially this close to the surgery. A sports reporter, curious about Satchel Paige's incredible longevity as a baseball pitcher, once asked him how he kept himself so limber. "Keep the juices flowing by jangling around gently as you move," Satch admonished. I think he was onto something.

Best wishes,

 

[Georgia]

The back and shoulder pain were the two things that my painkillers didn't touch post-surgically.

Massages three times per day will take care of this. It's a really common complaint - they pin your arms together behind you during the surgery to have a good look, and those muscles REALLY don't like it.