What Are The Worst Things To Do After Shoulder Surgery?

A common question people ask is, what are the worst things to do after shoulder surgery?

I always try to simplify things with people. After shoulder surgery, we let patients do way more than most surgeons. We tell our patients not to fear doing certain things, but in general, you don’t want to do things that cause much pain.

I like to use the pain scale to keep it more objective. Anything above a two or three out of ten, don’t do it. Even if you do that, you’re probably not going to damage what we did permanently, but you’re irritating your shoulder. And it will take longer to get better if you push it too hard.

So keep it simple. Don’t do stuff that causes severe pain. Don’t do things where you’re in horrible pain the next day or that night either. That’s your body’s way of telling you that you just overstressed.

I tell patients that the shoulder is quite wise, and if you overdo it and overstress it, it will punish you for it. So don’t let your shoulder punish you by following the rules and doing what it asks of you.