Total Shoulder Replacement, anyone gone through this

[Scott Brandstetter]

I am scheduled to have the surgery Sept 1 and have read everything I can on it but nothing from a woodworker. Would be interested to know how long until I can create in the shop after surgery. Would be interested to hear anything quite frankly. Not looking forward to it but I'm at the point where I wake up 6 times a night in pain and never get a good nights sleep. Had two prior surgeries and just not much between the bones anymore.

[Erik Loza]

I have no answer except to wish you the best of luck with it. I have a somewhat bad left shoulder that I am hoping will not get like yours as I get older. Will suck if/when it does.

Erik

[Jerry Thompson]

Scott,
I do not know about replacement but I had my left one "Cleaned Up." It was painful but the pills helped. Take the pain pills as pain needs to be mitigated. Do not ever, ever, miss physical therapy sessions. The group I went to believed in no pain because that was not going to help recovery. I went to PT three times a week for 6-8 weeks and did exactly as the instructed.
I am pleased with the results.
You will have an incision whereas I only had small holes for laparoscopy. So I do not know how that affect a person.
No I don't know when you will get back in the shop.

Gerald D. Thompson, RN

[Jack Lemley]

Scott,

I had rotator cuff surgery about 7 years ago. Six inch incision. The tendon was completely separated. I had the worst pain I have ever had for about a week following the surgery (I had my right hand amputated when I was in junior high along with multiple other surgeries over the years and nothing compares). Don't be afraid to use the pain pills. Like Jerry said previously the P/T is a must if you want to gain full range of motion etc. Good luck!

Jack

[Pat Barry]

I had rotator cuff surgery last September. It was at least 4 months, maybe 6 before I had full range of motion again. My strength didn't get back to normal until about 6 - 7 months. I did the PT for the first 3 months. With a total replacement I can only think you will be hurting for quite some time. Sorry, I hope it turns out well for you. On the other hand, my bride has had both hips replaced and the recovery was much smoother for her. They had her up and walking the next day. Pain pills got her through the first week or so.

[Scott Brandstetter]

Thanks for the replies and the good wishes. I've had two surgeries on my right shoulder for rotator cuff and then another for cleaning up the left over mess, about two years later. Nothing left to do except the replacement unfortunately. I have had one surgery on the left as well. I plan to do every single thing the dr tells me to do.....not to mention I have a wonderful wife that won't let me skip a step. Thanks again for the responses. Have 4 weeks to get a lot of things done before I'm shut down. I will be watching and staying on top of the projects as I recover. Maybe this will be a good time for me to help others new to woodworking while I heal up.

[Larry Frank]

I have not had that surgery but have had back fusion, hip replacement, and major surgery on both wrists.

The number one thing is to be nice to your wife as you will need her.

Keep up with the pain.

Take a new look at what you do in your shop. I started scroll saw work as it is easy on my body.

Most of all good luck to you.

[Thomas Canfield]

I have not had any shoulder surgery, but wife has had rotator cuff surgery on both shoulders, and then later had later had the right shoulder replaced. She said the replacement was an easier recovery than the rotator cuff surgery. Her range of motion and use are pretty normal now, but it does take time and therapy for recovery. I have seen some others around and it seems that the surgery and recovery process are getting better. Good luck.

[Scott Brandstetter]

Thanks Thomas, I need all the positive messages possible. Glad your wife came through as well as she did. I think I'm at a point in my life that i'm ready to slow down a bit and get away from the "heavy lifting", if that makes sense. My current shop is roughly 1000 square feet and have all the tools I could need. My son just moved into his first house and it came with a dedicated shop, approximately 25 x 25, and I think I'm going to move my tools to his shop, sell my house and move into a condo with a basement. Hope to spend time traveling with my wife and when I feel the need to create, think I will focus on more intricate items like rockers, humidors, and delicate boxes. At least that is what I'm thinking.

Again, thanks for the response.