It's been over a month now since I tweaked my shoulder coming into an upward facing dog. I haven't had a nagging injury like this since the great hamstring pull of 2003; that took forever to heal. I'm trying to take my own advice on yoga injuries and not practice on it. I know this is the way to heal, but it's been making me grumpy! Until I decided that instead of dwelling on all the poses I can't do, I'm going to try to make the most of those I can do: in particular, forward bends. Even before the great hamstring pull of 2003 (see above), my hamstrings have been a bane. They are so quick to tighten up when not stretched regularly. So this is my practice now, and I'm actually looking forward to it. I'll let you know how it goes.
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I feel your pain. I tweaked mine in November. No behind the back, overhead or plank poses which means, no Yoga. And that’s hard since I teach 2x week. Let’s just say I’ve mastered teaching using verbal cues. I was advised that Yogi’s tend to overcompensate and use the Upper Trap muscles (those that extend laterally from the neck) so strengthen mid-trap muscles and lay off the shrugs. Bend elbos at 90 degrees, hold a 1 lb. weight and move side to side, slowly. The shoulder joint is the weakest, hardest to strengthen joint in the body. So take it easy… good luck! And I hope you have a safe recovery.
I’m sorry!! It’s so awful to have injuries like this, and I know when I’m injured I get very frustrated and impatient.
This is the advice my yoga teacher recently gave my friend when she had a nagging chest wall muscle injury:
1) Continue coming to practice daily.
2) “Listen to your body- it is your instrument for exploration; observe and respect it. Do not force it to do something that is painful, otherwise it will not heal.”
3) “You likely pulled a muscle. Try not to get too frustrated, and remember that this is not permanent.”
4) “Sometimes an injury like this is the body’s way of slowing us down. Perhaps you were asking too much of it in the first place, moving too fast. Now is the time to take it slow and reconnect with your body.”