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Do you have pain when you reach into the cabinet for your favorite coffee cup?

Do you struggle to lift your arm to put on deodorant or wash your hair?

Are you limited with your arm motions due to pain?

You may be struggling with “shoulder impingement”.  What does that mean?

Well, the shoulder is a complex structure made up of bones, muscle, tendons, and ligaments.

The bones involved are the humerus (even though shoulder impingement isn’t funny!), the collar bone (AKA – clavicle), and the shoulder blade.  Yes, the shoulder blade (or scapula) must be included when you are discussing the bones of the shoulder.  See, the shoulder blade has to move or else the rest of the bones and muscles can’t move correctly.

Also, there is a bony part of the shoulder blade called the acromion.  This part of the shoulder blade makes up the top part of your shoulder.

Put you hand right on the top of your shoulder. Do you feel that bony part right at the edge of your shoulder?  Just before your hand falls of the shoulder.  That is called the “acromion process”.

The acromion process is super important because it creates the “top” of the shoulder.  The humerus makes up the “bottom” of the shoulder.

In between the acromion process and the humerus is an open space.  What is in this space?  Several things!

1. Tendons – these attach muscle to bone. The muscles are on the shoulder blade and attach into the humerus.
2. Ligaments – these attach bones to each other. There are tons of ligaments in this area attaching all those bones together.  They can get tight and hold the bones too close together.
3. Bursa – these are sacks filled with fluid. They are found in between muscles and bones.  Bursa help keep the muscles from scraping on the bone.  But, when they get inflamed they can get too big.  This is called bursitis.

The tendons, ligaments, and bursa are all together in the very small space between the shoulder blade and the humerus.  Normally, this is fine and we can do everything we want.  However, when one of them starts misbehaving or gets swollen, trouble ensues.

You start to have pain when you are trying to lift your arm up.  Initially it may just be a little bit of pain and you can move through it.  Over time the pain increases as you try to continue reaching for your coffee cup, put on deodorant, wash your hair, or grab the cookie jar you put up high to keep the kids out of it.

Then you have a full blown shoulder impingment.  It gets to the point that any time you reach your arm up it becomes painful.  This is very limiting to all of your activities and frustrating to many people.

The great news is that there is an easy solution that doesn’t involve pain killers, expensive procedures, or even surgery.  It’s called Physical Therapy.

We look at your shoulder and figure out what started the problem in the first place.  We then develop a plan to eliminate the shoulder pain and restore normal motion in your shoulder.  The final step is giving you some exercises that you can do to help your shoulder move better.

Don’t worry, the exercises are never painful and we make sure you can do them at home!  Unless you don’t want to.  If you want to come into our clinic and do your exercises then we can do that too!

If you are suffering from shoulder impingement please know that there is help.  You can access Physical Therapy without having to see a doctor.  We can tell you if what you have is shoulder impingement and develop a plan to get you back to a pain-free life.

What’s the first step?  Simply click here and fill out a short contact form.  We will be in touch to get you on your way back to your favorite coffee cup in no time.

We are all familiar with the usual course of treatment when we are dealing with an injury or chronic
pain. First, we go see our Primary Care Physician (PCP) who recommends pain medication and muscle
relaxers. We take those for 4-6 weeks and go back to the PCP when the pain is not any better. The PCP
then orders an X-ray which doesn’t show anything and we are referred to a specialist. It takes a couple
of weeks to get in to see the specialist. Meanwhile, the pain medication is not eliminating the pain and
is upsetting our stomachs. The specialist recommends either surgery or avoiding the activities that
cause pain. This is the assembly line of the modern medical system that leaves many people feeling
frustrated or hopeless.

Did you know that you could bypass this system?

In Washington State, you can see a Physical Therapist directly to deal with your pain issues. You do not
need a prescription. You may even be able to go in for a free consultation to get all your questions
answered and see if PT is right for you.

Don’t I need an MRI?

What if you could avoid the cost, hassle, and exposure of having an MRI? Research has proven that
what shows up on MRI’s is often not correlated to what is causing your pain. Often the pain is caused by
a movement dysfunction that an MRI cannot see. Physical therapists are experts on movement
dysfunctions. They are able to “see” areas that are not moving correctly and help to get them moving
pain free.

How do I know if Physical Therapy will even work?

Often the art and science of Physical Therapy does work, it is the mode of delivery that doesn’t work.
Traditional PT’s in an insurance based model are forced to see more patients in less time. They are
compensated for using things like ultrasound, E-stim, and ice/heat. In this system, the insurance
companies decide how much treatment you get instead of you and your therapist deciding on the best
plan for you. Insurance companies often dictate the schedule you are seen on which may not be the
optimum for your body or for your lifestyle. Having 2-3 PT treatments per week can be a strain on your
already busy schedule.

All of this restraint has caused Physical Therapy to get a bad reputation.

What other options are available to you if you don’t want to take medication, you don’t want surgery, or
you have had a bad experience with Physical Therapy before? You can take matter into your own hands
and pay out of pocket for an experience that is custom tailored to your unique needs.

You want me to pay for Physical Therapy?

Yep.

Here’s why – people will see a chiropractor, massage therapist, and personal trainer in an effort to
manage their pain and move forward with their lives. Physical Therapists are specialist in movement
disorders and have training to move stuck joints, release tight muscles, and teach you specific exercises
to help your body heal. We will also offer you loads of education on how to keep yourself healthy and
pain free in the future.

Here’s how – at PT4EB we spend more time with you. Most sessions are one hour. You are given our
complete attention for that one hour. We usually only see people once per week for 6 sessions and
then we spread sessions out. Often people require a total of 10-12 sessions. During and after your
treatment, we can check in over E-mail if you have any questions. Traditional PT clinics blow through
your 12 visits in 4-6 weeks. This is long enough to get you feeling better but not long enough to make
real changes in your body. The real changes you need for long term results. This costs you more in the
long run as the problem comes back.

Since the insurance companies do not decide on your course of treatment, we are able to spread your
visits out. We are able to give you undivided attention. You have time to get all your questions
answered. You have complete access to us both during and after your treatment for any questions that
come up.

Many times sessions can be paid for by submitting your claims to your insurance company. Please let us
know and we will provide you with a superbill – the paperwork needed to submit your claims. We also
accept Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) and Health Savings Accounts (HSA)

People often come to our clinic as a “last resort” after exhausting their other options. They refuse to
have surgery which is the only medical option provided to them. People are tired of taking medication
because they realize that it only masks the symptoms. They are frustrated, disheartened, and
sometimes depressed over their lack of activity. The biggest question I hear is – how come I didn’t find
you earlier?

Are you curious if this model is right for you?

If you are local to the Maple Valley area, please feel free to give us a call. We are happy to answer all
your questions or have you come in for a free Discovery Visit to see if we are a good fit for your needs.
Please click here to fill out a brief contact form (link to contact form).
If you are not local please feel free to give us a call. We have a network of other providers throughout
the US that we can connect you with who hold these same values.

Your health is at least worth a conversation, right?