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Pain in drawing shoulder?

I've been bow hunting since 2013 and have generally shot my bow between 65 and 70 pounds. I'm a youngish (33 years old) guy and up until recently I have had strong, healthy shoulders. Within the past month or so I have developed a little bit of pain in my drawing shoulder. It's fairly minor, it comes and it goes, but it is somewhat of a concern and I don't want it to develop into anything worse. I know I should be resting it, and I have gone a few days at a time without shooting my bow. I usually end up getting the itch and picking the old girl up and shooting it and then my shoulder starts to flare up again. Any tips from you guys who have experienced something similar? I have been taking an anti-inflammatory (Aleve) which seems to help some. I know I could lower my draw weight, but I would prefer not to mess with my setup if I don't have to. I do plan on dropping to 60 pounds or even 55 at some point in the future. I know the most important thing I can probably do for my shoulder is rest, but how long might I look into resting it?

See a doctor , coming from a guy thats been dealing with right shoulder problems for 12 years and finally had it operated on 3/23

X2 Pope125 , I put up with torn rotator for 10 years before surgery and been pain free for 5 years now .

Put the bow down for a couple months, let it heal, especially if nothing else is aggravating it, start shooting 60 pounds come mid august, I've been shooting for 30 years now Im 45 now and in the last 10 years have been practicing rotator cuff preservation, I only shoot 3-4 weeks before a hunting season , post season the bow gets put away to collect dust, shoulders have never felt better!

Take care of your shoulder. I developed similar problems in my early 30's from years of shooting recurve/longbows of 60-65# pull weight along with many years of playing competitive softball. Rest and shooting a lower pull weight should help but will not cure your problem if you have damage. See a doctor. In extreme cases, a person may need to go to shooting opposite handed.

See a doc and he'll likely suggest a good physical therapist along with some rest. Rest and strengthen that shoulder and follow your doc's orders. You've got a lot of years of bowhunting in your future, be smart now to insure you can enjoy them!

Yep, go see a doctor! Next thing you know you be waking up in the middle of the night with your hand numb from the forearm down... Get it taken care of early and it will be way easier and faster to heal!

Scar.

I'm 35 now. 2 years ago I had the same issue. Was shooting a lot, 1 month out from an elk hunt, and had some pain. I told the doctor rest wasn't an option, as I had an elk hunt coming up.

He diagnosed an impingement, they did an injection, and I haven't had trouble since, to that degree.

I prefer to sleep on my right side, and occasionally have pain, but usually rest fixes it.

Just go see a decent PT, seeing a primary care physician will do little for the most part, could also see an orthopedist but 99% of the time they're just going to send you to PT anyway; just skip a step and go to the source. Majority of states have direct access, go see a PT and get it taken care of. Most chronic rotator cuff tears started as something minor and can/should be treated conservatively, go get it looked at before a tendinopathy turns into a tear.

Shoulder injuries do not heal themselves. Get help.

Jessie, I am in the same boat is you buddy. I'm 33 years old and just started having shoulder pain about three months ago while shooting my bow. I have been taking ibuprofen when necessary and before shooting to help with any kind of flareup. Probably doing more harm than good by just masking it though. I'm going to go have it looked at soon But if anything major is wrong I don't want to have it worked on until after September.

I agree, if it continues get it looked at. I'm 32 and have been shooting with pain the last 3 years, every year having to turn my bow down more and more, still with a lot of pain. Went and saw a shoulder specialist and I have arthritis, bone spurs and my socket isn't round. Getting it cleaned out after season. Wish I didn't wait as long as I did. Kept thinking it would get better but only got worse.

Sounds like you have a rotator cuff tendonitis. To be sure, I would go right to an Orthopod. Dr. Get it diagnosed.

If it is a tendonitis, rest combined with PT can do a lot. There are exercises that can really help. I have also had benefit from nutritional support from Great Lakes collagen taken daily, and acupuncture. I'm 65, and have had shoulder pain off & on over the years. Interestingly enough, most of my injuries have come from lifting heavy things while doing construction/yard work on our property. Just get it diagnosed, and be smart about caring for it. Good luck.

PS. I still shoot 65#.

I post this on nearly every shoulder pain thread that pops up but don't let it go! I let mine go and now have about 30% use of my left arm compared to where I was about a year or so ago. It can't be repaired. I was told if I hadn't let it go so long they may have done something with it. In all likelihood my bowhunting days are over because of my refusal to get it taken care of.

Wow, you guys are all really making up my mind here! Guess I better go see a doctor. I'm glad to know that I'm getting it taken care of sooner rather than later. It's gonna be hard to do, but I'm going to lay my bow down for awhile.

Trust me laying you bow down for a while won't do anything , trust me I have been there . If you have a small tear or anything laying off it will do nothing . And the longer you let it go the worse it can get .

I drove 16 hours with a 1 year old in the car seat. It required a lot of reaching back. On the way home something popped. From there on I had pull over to retrieve his sippy cup or get him a snack.

I didn't shoot for a few months and it felt better but not quite right. I went to the range and cautiously drew. At about 3/4 draw the pain hit. I hesitated and then felt what was likely scar tissue give and hit full draw. Scared me but has felt fine since. I expect to have an issue with that shoulder at some point.

When you go see the doc, your insurance will prob want you do do PT before anything else. Unless you can convince them you have been doing shoulder exercises and it doesnt help.

Get the cortisone shot... I have had them in my wrists, shoulders and 2 done in my lower back a couple weeks ago and they do work

my advice based on my problems if you end up getting cortisone shots only get them a month before deer season so you can go the whole season before it wears off.. after 3 its time for surgery which is a whole other recovery process time frame I'm going thru now.

my problem was diagnosed as "Bone Spurs" but I think I had a rip in one of the muscles too!!

Could be a million different things. I had inflammation of the bursa in one shoulder (got the juice), calcium buildup in the rotator tendon in the other (needle breakup). Go see a shoulder doc and get it figured out.

Not sure why so many want you to rush off to the doctor, your body can and will heal itself in time, just give it 3 months, REST!, no shooting, then start back slow, less draw weight and never shoot more the 50 arrows per day, and if it still hurts go see a doc! I've had sore shoulders many times, one time it took a year to heal, also had tennis elbow a couple times, planters, all healed with rest!

Seeing a Dr. is the best 1st step. There's alot of different pains is a shoulder, anything from a muscle strain to a full blown rotator cuff tear. Maybe even a session with a shooting coach to make sure you don't have bad form that could be causing more harm.

Nothing quite like bad advise.

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