By Non-Surgical Shoulder Pain Expert, Dr. Matthew Hernandez, Ethos Integrative Medicine

“Do I have to quit tennis if I want to avoid surgery?” This was the first question Jerry lobbed at me as we sat in my office. His once-ace tennis game had been disrupted by a persistent rotator cuff injury, dealing him a double fault in his athletic pursuits.

“I don’t know what else to do, doc. I’ve done e-stim, dry needling, physical therapy exercises — and I am still having pain. The orthopedic surgeon gave me a cortisone shot and told me I’d have to wait until the tear was bad enough for surgery — which also means I have to wait for the pain to get worse. And I can’t even play now.”

The Aces and Pains
Jerry’s story is a common one in our office. He has done everything his insurance allows him to do, but he’s not making a grand slam recovery.

The good news for Jerry is that there are options outside of insurance that allow him to get back to playing without shoulder pain.

To better understand Jerry’s options, we need to look at why he isn’t better in the first place. The vast majority of injuries are a result of repetitive, poor movement patterns, which cause wear and tear to the muscle and joint structures in the body. Jerry’s rotator cuff injury was a result of this poor movement pattern.

While the treatments he received focused on correcting the movement pattern, which is crucial, they missed the sweet spot in addressing the rotator cuff injury causing his pain. Sure, the cortisone injection provided temporary relief, but it also caused more damage to the tissue…
How Our Deep Dive Bridges the “Gap”
Jerry found himself in what our team calls “The Gap” in orthopedic medicine — where conservative care is exhausted, surgery isn’t an immediate option, and waiting for the pain to get worse is the only choice. His story is not uncommon; applying a one-size-fits-all approach left Jerry without clear guidance or solutions. But you don’t need to wait until it gets worse!

With our comprehensive Deep Dive (which includes our Pain Profile, 32-Point Shoulder Inspection, Precision Shoulder Scan, and Diagnostic Mapping Technique — all of which were used to confirm Jerry’s pain and guide his treatment strategy), we’ll not only get you an accurate diagnosis (and explain it to you!), but will also provide you with a personalized treatment plan to effectively treat your pain and prevent it from coming back.
Deuce the Discomfort, Love the Game!
If shoulder pain is making you retire your racket, call 480-573-6171 to schedule your Deep Dive for a Pain-Free Shoulder with our specialists at Ethos Integrative Medicine, and scan the QR code below to access our FREE report, “Shoulder SOS: The Expert Guide to Decoding Your Pain.”