Many of the new patients that I see in my practice have already exhausted a variety of therapies and therefore arrive feeling hopeless, helpless and depressed. Many of these individuals have tried to live with their chronic injuries, despite the cost to their quality of life, sleep, work, and even relationships. Living with chronic pain can have a devastating impact on one’s life. I want to share the following testimonial to let people who are in this position know that this is the typical patient that I see, and that this is the typical patient that Shockwave Therapy can often help.
I’m a 53 year old male. In February 2014 my shoulder began to ache, perhaps from shovelling too much snow from my Winnipeg drive way. At first I took extra strength Advil but soon I had a constant pain so I went to my doctor. My doctor prescribed me pain medication and referred me for a type of therapy which unfortunately did not help my pain. I was prescribed stronger meds (and meds to counteract some of the harmful impact of these meds) and then tried another type of therapy. I was told I had nerve damage and was then sent to a pain clinic where I saw a sports medicine doctor who showed me some stretching exercises. I then tried another type of therapy.
It was now April 2014 and my pain had increased so much that it was now debilitating. I was having problems sleeping and could barely work. I was exhausted and ended up seeing an orthopedic surgeon who said that I had “Frozen Shoulder” and would need 12-18 months to even begin healing. I was prescribed pain medication to take 4-6 times a day. I was told there was nothing else that could be done.
My job eventually moved me to Kelowna where I saw Dr. Harris’ newspaper article. I was very skeptical and thought Shockwave Therapy could not possibly help me because I would have otherwise been told about it by one of the many professionals that I saw in Winnipeg. With my pain increasing, however, my wife booked me an appointment with Dr. Harris.
In January 2015, on my very first visit, Dr. Harris confidently told me that he had helped hundreds of people with my condition every year. He told me that he had an extremely high success rate and would probably only need to see me about 6 times. To my amazement and joyful surprise, Dr. Harris was 100% correct! Almost immediately I started feeling the range of motion coming back to my shoulder. It got better after each Shockwave treatment and more importantly, my pain level was decreasing for the very first time in a year. Previously, I had to wash my hair in the shower using only one hand as my Frozen Shoulder had prevented me from raising my arm above my head. I couldn’t even extend my arm out straight enough to ride a bike.
After my second visit to Dr. Harris, I decreased my need for prescription pain medication by 50%. After my fourth treatment, I no longer needed any pain medication and I returned to a normal sleep cycle. My overall mood was hugely uplifted. By the spring, I played my first full round of golf pain free! I highly recommend Dr. Harris to anyone suffering from pain or a debilitating range of motion. I only wish I had met him much sooner. –Darrell M., Kelowna Resident.
Shockwave Therapy or ESWT, original developed to break up kidney stones, can break down scar tissue and stimulate new blood vessel growth, promoting proper muscle function and restarting the healing process. It is in those injuries that have lingered for months or years where Shockwave shines. If you have chronic shoulder injuries, don’t give up hope.