swimming with an injured shoulder

So, you have no clue what it is, but you're all hot to recommend a treatment?

To the OP, what caused the original lesion? Was there an injury, or an overuse kind of thing? I'm assuming that you opted not to have surgery initially to fix it?

Couple possibilities (And this is just stabbing in the dark, I'm not a doc), is that the original tear of the biceps tendon has healed with some adhesion in it, the tendon actually detached and then reattached in a different spot, or that the initial tear really never quite healed.

The PT might help or hinder depending on the original recovery and your daily activities since. I'd go back to the artho doc you had and get a reevaluation, especially since you are starting a really high stress activity for the shoulder, and since you are having pain post activity related to it.

John

I have what they think is a slightly torn labrum in my right shoulder (the MRI didn't pick it up but the doctor is pretty sure that's the problem).    I had impingment pain when pulling, but worse during recovery with my arm out of the water.  I also had  pain with everyday things like putting on a jacket or loading luggage on the overhead bin on a plane. 

At first I decided to take a week off from swimming for recovery.  That didn't help, so I extended the swim rest another week, then a month, then two, then I saw a sports medicine doctor who did an MRI and recommended physical therapy.  He was planning to operate if the PT didn't work.  I ended up doing PT for a couple of months, then continued on my own.  I was out of the water for 6 or 7 months (would have been less if I had been smarter) before getting back in in January.  No operation.

I built back up in the water slowly.  First just once a week and built a bit for a week or two.  Then twice a week and built.  Now I'm back with the Masters team and can swim hard two to three times a week fairly hard with no major issue.  I have to concentrate on good rotation and high elbows during recovery to avoid the impingement pain.  I don't do fly anymore.  I couldn't do backstroke without some pain until last week; I'll do it in only 25 meter increments now until I feel more confident.

As you know, a torn labrum doesn't heal.  You just have to strengthen the muscles around it so the shoulder ball doesn't float around in the socket which causes the impingement pain (or something like that). 

Do the physical thereapy again - it helps a lot for swimming!  Also, have someone check out your stroke.  Some errors in technique (crossover) can make things worse.  Keep on doing the PT even when you get over this.

I hope this helps a bit!

Brian    

Slightly different perspective here.  I am 13 weeks post-op after having my slap tear repaired.  Injured it last June in a bike wreck, two weeks before participating in IMCDA....Long story short, I went all summer in denial and continued to train and race.  Finally threw in the towel in October when it got to the point where it was keeping me awake at night.  Tried all of the non-invasive treatments and had an MRI that was negative.  It wasn't getting any better so my ortho went in for a look and, sure enough, torn labrum.

I was back in the pool for the first time this week and it already feels better than it did all last summer. 

Here is my story I hope it helps. Sorry it is so long.

 About a 15 years ago I started feeling weakness in my shoulder joint. This was a bummer because I was an OW swimmer & surfer. After a year of different doctors I finally got a diagnosis of a subscapular nerve impingement. By that time my shoulder was popping and I had a depression in the back of my shoulder where a muscle should have been. I had it surgically repaired, the popping stopped but I never regained strength so I left swimming behind. A little more than a year ago I decided to get into triathlons and OWS. I started back reconstructing my stroke with an exaggerated high elbow recovery and catch. I was slowly recovering when I got slammed on the bottom body surfing in Hawaii (I made a stupid mistake - I new better). The only diagnosis they could come up with at the time was a possible spiral fracture of the scapular (negative MRI - mm).

 My arm was in a sling for a month. I looked at it one day and I could not see my bicep or tricep. Out of the sling it came. Every night I would lift my arm with the other one, place it on my dresser and bend my knees. When I took it out of the sling I could only raise it to my waist. One month later I finally could raise it over my head without pain. I had 5 weeks to begin and complete my training for Alcartraz.  I spent the majority of time training for the swim. Being a distance freestyler gave me a great advantage but I had no speed. Just a strong steady swim.

 I went on to complete 5 more tris and 2 open water swims. Didn't matter the distance; 750m or 5K. I only had one speed but good enough continue to do very well from a triathletes point of view, but not from a swimmers. I came to the conclusion that if a few swimmers take off at the start I could not go with them. Instead I dropped straight into my stroke and watched everyone else fall back after 50 yards. Ultimately half of the breakaway group would fall back and I would pass them, but I could never catch the lead swimmers. My best swim results in a tri were 2/73, 3/328, 10/249 and 11/450. My OW swims were not so successful.

So just because you have a shoulder injury it doesn't mean you can't work around it with the right help and training. However, because of the weakness, and the super-floatation of the 5mm legs on a wetsuit, I have a hell of a time sighting. I just can't lean on that arm. Ultimately you have to decide if it is something you can live with. If not surgery is an appropriate choice, but there is no guaranty.

I went to a shoulder specialist and he was more concerned with the shoulder weakness than the pain I still have. I suspect a torn labrum, but I continue to swim. I still can not do short fast swims (sets under 200yds) without aggravating it to the point of being in pain and unable to swim for a few days. While I am set to go back to my ortho, I am not willing to give up this season and if something can be done, I'll wait until the fall before I agree to something invasive. If I give up tris and I wanted to go back to OWS seriously, I would definitely get surgery if it would help.

Now if only I could learn to bike and run. I am definitely MOP in those.