Hey Ladies, Guess What? Frozen Shoulder is linked to Perimenopause

WTF it is, and why your Doctor probably won’t mention it

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I’m one of countless women who had never heard of Frozen Shoulder until I developed it. I say countless because there is no record that it existed — medically — despite spending thousands on visits to my Primary Care Physician, x-rays, and weeks of physical therapy.

What I’ve learned since is how very common that is.

It was the last thing I needed, naturally. I was going through a divorce that left me drained, trying to find enough work to support myself, and crying in the shower because I couldn’t even lift my arm to shampoo my own hair.

My saving grace was that it was my non-dominant side, but it was debilitating, mentally and physically.

I wasn’t crying in the shower in week one, though.
This was a nine-month-long fucking saga.

It started when I noticed that leaning on that arm while I was sitting on the sofa hurt. Within a week or so, I couldn’t sleep on that side.

More startling were the jolts of pain that resulted from moving my arm in all but one direction. Curling inward, protecting it like a little shrimp, still felt okay. Anything else practically…