It will only get worse!

How does this surgeon know?

On February 19^th of this year, 2025, I met with an orthopedic surgeon to discuss the results of an MRI of my left shoulder. This overused body part was causing me a great deal of pain. The surgeon sat in front of me. We sat knee to knee and he looked into my eyes with a sense of urgency. He told me the scan showed a minor rotator cuff ligament tear and he pointed to the injury on the screen. He said that surgery now would be simple, but recovery would be the same as most similar surgeries --- recovery would take several months with pain, immobility, and no guarantees. Then he said what almost convinced me at the time: “And without surgery now, it will only get worse!” He said if I did not have this surgery now, the next time I come to him for relief, it would likely require a complete shoulder replacement – a much bigger deal!

Well, now my lie detector went off in my mind. No one, and I mean NO ONE, has the ability to foretell the future. Simply put, it hasn’t happened yet. The future is known to God alone. So what’s this guy talking about? How does he know it will get worse?

Remembering that the medical profession is indeed a business and that many doctors, even the most dedicated, are also motivated by self-interest and profit, I think about how surgery is probably a very lucrative part of their practice. So I must take his future-casting with a grain of salt. A big grain.

With my skepticism growing by the minute, I went home and began to research the issue. In viewing a diagram of the anatomy of the shoulder joint, I was fascinated by the genius of our Creator. The shoulder is a mass of bone, cartilage, tendons and ligaments, woven together in this amazing tapestry and exquisitely designed to provide a circular range of motion, enabling the human body to do magnificent things. I am no athlete. I only need my shoulder to pick things up, help me cook and clean, hold my arms and hands up to pray, and feed my cat.

At first, I was mildly convinced by this surgeon, who has a stellar reputation for being one of the top orthopedic surgeons in the world, and so I began to practice doing things with one arm, given that, after surgery, I would have to keep my left arm totally immobile for weeks, maybe months. I even watched videos of veterans who lost an arm in war, telling how they managed to shower, dress and do other daily tasks with one arm. I wrote down all the survival tips, bought household products designed for one-armed people, and I felt I was “ready” to embark on this terrible journey to and through surgery and its aftermath.

Then a new level of dread set in. How was I going to survive without being able to drive or cook or do anything? How was I going to get through weeks and maybe months of being home-bound? How was I going to tolerate the pain? I clearly and viscerally did NOT want to undergo this surgery.

I decided to do more research. I learned that the RICE method of treatment is recommended for sprains and things like ligament injuries. RICE stands for Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation. I added a P for Prayer and so I began to follow the PRICE method. I asked God to help me with this decision to have surgery…..or not.

Here’s what I did:
For several weeks, I immobilized the arm by keeping it in a sling. I used pillows while I slept to keep myself from rolling over on the injured shoulder. I purchased a full shoulder gel pack which I kept in the freezer, and I sat with this pack on my shoulder three times a day for 15-20 minutes at a time. When I sat in my favorite lounge chair and when I slept, I placed a pillow under my left arm to elevate it. I purchased a compression sleeve to wear periodically. When I prayed my daily rosary, I continued to ask God for guidance and healing.

Gradually, in a few more weeks, the pain lessened and the biggest challenge was to keep practicing the therapy until the pain was completely gone, in order to avoid re-injuring the shoulder.

On busy days, when I forgot about the healing process and re-engaged the left shoulder to lift things, sometimes the pain came back and I knew I needed to continue to rest it, because healing takes time. I learned that the human body has an enormous capacity for self-healing. Our Creator built healing into our body processes, but natural healing does not happen instantly, and in prayer, I expressed to the Lord my willingness to cooperate and wait for Him to heal me.

Now, it’s August of the same year, 2025, six months after my meeting with the surgeon, and I have no pain in my left shoulder and a good range of motion. Although I did not submit my body to another MRI, I have confidence that the ligament has been healed. I have avoided surgery and it’s awful aftermath! Alleluia! Thank you, God.

In truth, every circumstance is different, and maybe some injuries require more invasive action by surgeons, but think about it: Every time a surgeon cuts into the body, a second injury takes place. After surgery, your body has to recover from the initial injury and then the injury caused by the invasion of a foreign object, the surgeon’s tools, which cut through the delicate tissues intricately woven around the shoulder joint. No wonder recovery takes so long!

So was the surgeon lying about his prognosis? May yes, maybe no. In his experience, perhaps the majority of his patients do not have the desire, the patience, the ability, or the faith to do what’s necessary to allow the body and the Lord to do the healing. So many want instant gratification and perhaps some people downplay in their minds the issues regarding recovery from surgery. Some doctors justify hurting you to fix you. The “gotta be cruel to be kind” idea. I’m being generous. I can’t say for sure what this surgeon’s motives were or how well he can “read” his patients, including me.

I don’t know how long the healing of my shoulder will last because I am an active senior and I don’t doubt that I will injure my aging ligaments again someday. Daily, I do exercises to build up the muscles supporting my shoulder, hoping that will extend its usefulness. And I continue to pray, thanking God for His mercy.

But I can NOT tell the future, but neither can our doctors. I urge you to remember that.

And….thank you to my friend Ken for suggesting I create this post.
Sincerely,
Julianne