How To Recover from a Dislocated Shoulder

A dislocated shoulder is when the ball of your shoulder dislocates from the socket that holds it in place.

This can be very painful to the point that you won’t be able to move your arm.

Elderly people are most susceptible to these injuries as their bones become more brittle as they age. If you’re an older person who is susceptible to falling over and hurting themselves, you may want to consider investing in the home nursing care Macomb or Chesterfield has to offer, particularly if you live alone.

Although it’s possible to force the shoulder back into its socket, most people find this too painful, even with the assistance of those around them.

Instead, it’s recommended to phone for an ambulance to transport you to the nearest hospital or to make your own way there.

Those who dislocate their shoulder in Macomb or Chesterfield will be transported to the closest of the many hospitals in this region.

In the Ambulance

Adrenaline will help you to cope with the pain of the dislocated shoulder provided that you keep your arm still. Moving it will likely result in absolute agony. Once the ambulance picks you up, you’ll be treated to nitrous oxide to help cope with the pain even further. This is a key advantage of calling an ambulance and may be required as you’ll need to remove your t-shirt in order to for the medical staff to pop your shoulder back into its socket.

On the ride to the hospital, the paramedic will take some personal and medical details. If you make your own way to the hospital, you’ll have to provide these while sat in the hospital waiting room. Skipping this process is another key reason to call an ambulance.

In the Hospital

At the hospital you’ll be seen to by one of the permanent nurses or doctors. They’ll confirm the details that you gave in the ambulance. You’ll be taken for a X-ray so that the specialist can confirm the type of dislocation you have suffered. Shoulders can dislocate from the front and the back.

Once this has been confirmed , the specialist will set upon popping your shoulder back into its socket. You will still be on nitrous oxide at this point, although you may be given morphine to cope with the pain too.

Bear in mind that you’ll need to be completely relaxed to allow the medical team to force the shoulder back into its socket. Any resistance and the shoulder will usually refuse to be relocated.

The recovery period is usually 3-4 weeks. If you’ve invested in home nursing care in Chesterfield or Macomb, these individuals will help to nurse you back to full health.