Maybe I was just due. After all, I've had a long, healthy, active, almost non-stop life full of basketball, softball, hiking, hunting, hockey, splitting wood and other activities.
It was in early 2020 while playing basketball with a bunch of younger guys when I went up for a rebound and felt a funky tweak in my right shoulder. I shook it off, didn't think much of it and kept playing. When I woke up the next morning my shoulder was sore - really sore! In fact, I really couldn't move it or use it. But a couple of days later, I was back on the basketball court and again playing twice a week and lifting weights about three times a week. As I lifted, I noticed a certain type of lift bugged me so I just cut that out of the regiment. I'd been lifting for about a year and was the strongest I'd been in about a decade. I was hoping that improved strength would translate on the softball field. Then it happened again on the basketball court. This time it really hurt for about three days and I had trouble sleeping at night. Something was wrong and I knew it. Perhaps a torn rotator cuff?
I made an appointment with an acquaintance (Doug Henry), a physician's assistant, who worked for another acquaintance (Chris Price), a knee and shoulder surgeon. A physical examination showed I had good strength and good rotation in my shoulder but experienced pain in one particular spot. An x-ray didn't show anything and the initial diagnosis was great news. It was only bursitis. All I needed was a steroid shot and to implement a routine of some shoulder strengthening exercises. I was diligent with the exercises, maybe a little overboard by doing the required amount twice daily.
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One of the tears is just above &
to the left of the white arrow |
But the pain continued and I made another appointment, this time to get an MRI. I'd never had such an experience before. You lay on your back, close your eyes and endure for about 45 minutes. The nurse strongly urged me not to move at all so the images would be clear. Thank goodness I had ear plugs because it sounded like someone was crashing pots and pans together while I was inside the machine.
In the end, the MRI showed there were multiple tears in my labrum, the cartilage coupling that wraps around the shoulder's ball socket. Maybe it was from lifting weights or playing a lot of basketball/softball or maybe it was just wear and tear from an active life. Whatever the case, the doctor said I needed surgery. And the good news is he recommended it because I was in good shape. Apparently, the majority of people my age (57 at the time) and older are not recommended for surgery because their bodies are not strong enough and/or in good enough shape. Doc said there were three scenarios. One meant a big job with six months in a sling and nine months to a year of rehab and recovery. The second was more of a minor job with just days in a sling and four to six months of recovery. Third, was something in between.
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| Montana elk tags |
COVID-19 had already shut down basketball, softball and just about every other face-to-face activity for several months so I wasn't missing anything. However, I had drawn two tough-to-get elk tags for hunting season so I put off surgery 4-5 months so I had a chance to fill those tags.
My shoulder limited summer activities but did not prohibit them. I was still able to golf and fly fish. I also went paddleboarding several times. But as time passed into the late summer and early fall, my shoulder became more and more painful. Every once in a while I would forget as I threw a rock or a pine cone. Ouch! Intense pain shot through my shoulder.
I spent a weekend in early fall with Jace in Washington to try to find him a deer. I did not carry a rifle but had my pack on my back which caused no issues. As hunting season opened in Montana, I went out with my grandson Kyler. We hiked through the woods and at one point, stood still and quietly as a young whitetail deer buck walked up the mountain and stopped broadside at about 40 yards away. It would have been an extremely easy kill. Yet I knew if I pulled the trigger and had to field dress the animal with a knife, I would most likely fully aggravate or maybe really tear my labrum, so I passed. Why? Because if I was going to mess up my shoulder, it was going to be on an elk, not a much smaller deer.
In November, I went elk hunting several times and hiked well over 20 miles, the last trip of which Jace joined me and carried my rifle so there would be no strain on my shoulder. Despite three different outings, we saw no elk. It was very disappointing. After drawing the tags earlier in the year, I really thought I'd get an elk. With my chances of punch my elk tags over, I had a couple more outings to chase deer up above the house.
Aubrey went along on her very first hunt. Kyler came too. We saw a bunch of deer including a small buck about 150 yards away. But it was hard to see if it had antlers because of low-hanging branches. When I finally realized it was a buck, it turned and trotted away. I didn't get off a shot. I went one last time with my friend Brandon. He had a chance at a buck but didn't pull the trigger. I never saw a buck. So my hunting season ended on November 28. By now my shoulder was throbbing. It was a good thing my surgery was scheduled only four days later on December 3, the day before my 58th birthday.
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| This doe (circled in red) probably knew I didn't have a dog tag |
Doctor Price chatted with me beforehand and put his initials on my right shoulder. "Just to make sure we operate on the correct one." When I woke up my entire right arm was dead thanks to the nerve block I received. But I felt good and hungry. We grabbed some Arby's food and my favorite curly-Q fries on the way home.
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| You'd think I'd have at least got a manly scar out of the this, but no |
I strapped an ice machine on my shoulder pretty much 24-7 to keep down any swelling and I sat and even slept in a recliner we placed in my bedroom for the first couple of days. As we checked the paperwork, I found out great news. My shoulder needed two procedures to repair the tears but I only needed to wear my sling through the weekend, not the six weeks I feared. A follow-up email from Doctor Price highlighted the amazing process. Video showed what amounts to a tiny grinder shaving away the rough edges and suction removing all the excess tissue.
Behold, the amazing surgery video
Four days after surgery, off came the sling and the rehab exercises began. Then I transitioned to a physical therapist (Kylie France) in town. She helped me slowly build back the muscle I lost from more than half a year of inactivity. After eight weeks of rehab, Kylie sent me on my way with a series of home rehab exercises.
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| Home rehab workout tools A 5-minute mile on the hand bike Graduation t-shirt |
Now the ball is right where I want it to be - in my court! I've had a couple of setbacks along the way but I feel the progress. I pound through the rehab exercises daily and cannot wait to advance to the point where I can start lifting again. After all, when COVID-19 fades away and the world is opened up to full-fledged activity begins, I want to be back on the hardwood, back in the mountains, back on the diamond. After all, I've got some playing to do.
