Help needed for the wife!

[BobbyH]

Hey all!

So, but if a story, but the wife loves clay shooting with me, but few years ago, she had an injury which resulted in ‘Rotator cuff inflammation’. 
Now, she struggles to hold up her 12bore, and after 6 cartridges, she’s tapping out. 
She picked up the courage to go with me tonight, and again after 6, she said no more so I carried on. 
When I was Driving us back home, she got very upset and ended up crying because she wanted to carry on and it’s frustrating she can’t. 

She has had steroid injections, cortosol injections injections, physio, and it hasn’t gone away in ages….NHS!

Does anyone have any suggestions on how we can can get shooting again?

 

Lighter gun? Surgery? 
 

Thanks all!

[Old farrier]

Have you tried shooting dtl two shots (max) then a break while the other four shoot 

just a thought 

[holloway]

lighter gun with little or no recoil ,must be a combination of caliber and cartridge that works my little 20 is a joy to shoot with light shells after the heavy old twelve.A 28 ga perhaps ?

[Yellow Bear]

29 minutes ago, BobbyH said:

Hey all!

So, but if a story, but the wife loves clay shooting with me, but few years ago, she had an injury which resulted in ‘Rotator cuff inflammation’. 
Now, she struggles to hold up her 12bore, and after 6 cartridges, she’s tapping out. 
She picked up the courage to go with me tonight, and again after 6, she said no more so I carried on. 
When I was Driving us back home, she got very upset and ended up crying because she wanted to carry on and it’s frustrating she can’t. 

She has had steroid injections, cortosol injections injections, physio, and it hasn’t gone away in ages….NHS!

Does anyone have any suggestions on how we can can get shooting again?

 

Lighter gun? Surgery? 
 

Thanks all!

Know exactly how she feels, been there, done that, got the tee shirt.  A 20g SA helped but in my case other things, including stenosis,  exacerbated the problem.  Try the SA to see if it helps but if it is purely weight then I don't know.

[BobbyH]

1 minute ago, Yellow Bear said:

Know exactly how she feels, been there, done that, got the tee shirt.  A 20g SA helped but in my case other things, including stenosis,  exacerbated the problem.  Try the SA to see if it helps but if it is purely weight then I don't know.

Its purely the weight, it’s her left shoulder that’s giving her the grief 

[Yellow Bear]

5 minutes ago, BobbyH said:

Its purely the weight, it’s her left shoulder that’s giving her the grief 

Try a 20 with the balance point nearer the stock.

[BobbyH]

3 minutes ago, Yellow Bear said:

Try a 20 with the balance point nearer the stock.

I haven’t thought of balance points!

[banno]

My sons 28g is such light weight and so little recoil that it could be worth try one of those.

Maybe osteopath?

[BobbyH]

6 minutes ago, banno said:

My sons 28g is such light weight and so little recoil that it could be worth try one of those.

Maybe osteopath?

What gun is it mate?

[oldypigeonpopper]

Hello, Try a 20 bore with a very light load , even a semi auto 

[Rob85]

23 hours ago, BobbyH said:

Hey all!

So, but if a story, but the wife loves clay shooting with me, but few years ago, she had an injury which resulted in ‘Rotator cuff inflammation’. 
Now, she struggles to hold up her 12bore, and after 6 cartridges, she’s tapping out. 
She picked up the courage to go with me tonight, and again after 6, she said no more so I carried on. 
When I was Driving us back home, she got very upset and ended up crying because she wanted to carry on and it’s frustrating she can’t. 

She has had steroid injections, cortosol injections injections, physio, and it hasn’t gone away in ages….NHS!

Does anyone have any suggestions on how we can can get shooting again?

 

Lighter gun? Surgery? 
 

Thanks all!

Rotator cuff inflammation is a bit of a wooly diagnosis in that it's not a diagnosis of anything really. Remember the rotator cuff is not a separate body part but rather it is just the 4 muscles that cross the shoulder joint.

I would suggest battering the NHS and demanding an MRI to determine the root cause and if it shows nothing then its back to physio or orthopedics and demand to see a consultant in sports medicine to move things forward.

Do not accept anymore corticosteroid injections. If they haven't worked by now they aren't going to.

[BobbyH]

27 minutes ago, Rob85 said:

Rotator cuff inflammation is a bit of a wooly diagnosis in that it's not a diagnosis of anything really. Remember the rotator cuff is not a separate body part but rather it is just the 4 muscles that cross the shoulder joint.

I would suggest battering the NHS and demanding an MRI to determine the root cause and if it shows nothing then its back to physio or orthopedics and demand to see a consultant in sports medicine to move things forward.

Do not accept anymore corticosteroid injections. If they haven't worked by now they aren't going to.

Thanks for your reply!

After last nights little emotional episode, I’m getting a small O/U .419 for her to use, and she’s going back to the Dr’s about her shoulder. I have always said to go back, but she has sadly just been given poor diagnosis and accepted that she will be in pain for the rest of her life….Shes only 33!

[oldypigeonpopper]

1 hour ago, BobbyH said:

Thanks for your reply!

After last nights little emotional episode, I’m getting a small O/U .419 for her to use, and she’s going back to the Dr’s about her shoulder. I have always said to go back, but she has sadly just been given poor diagnosis and accepted that she will be in pain for the rest of her life….Shes only 33!

Hello, You mean a O/U 410 ?? 

[BobbyH]

7 hours ago, oldypigeonpopper said:

Hello, You mean a O/U 410 ?? 

Sorry yes, a .410

[oldypigeonpopper]

2 hours ago, BobbyH said:

Sorry yes, a .410

Hello, Hope it all works out Bobby👍

[bruno22rf]

20g semi and shoot from the other shoulder, feels really odd for a couple of weeks but you adapt quite quickly.

[BobbyH]

48 minutes ago, bruno22rf said:

20g semi and shoot from the other shoulder, feels really odd for a couple of weeks but you adapt quite quickly.

I did toy with that idea with her, it could be a get around at this stage yeah!

[ehb102]

Definitely get that shoulder injury sorted. She's been way too patient. You have to push and push with the NHS. You want surgery - if it is needed - when you are young. Go around the system if necessary. 

One of the reasons I dislike the semi auto snobbery is that they are great for exactly this kind of issues. I have a Hatsan 20 that is great for this. 21g plaswad work in them. Otherwise yes, a lighter gun, a back weighted gun, switch shoulders. 

There is probably capacity in the muscles to make it up to ten or twelve shots but that takes training and practice. I appreciate that's awful. But most of all she shouldn't be in pain. Back to the doctor and start expressing how terribly painful it is and how patient she has been and how PAINFUL it is ALL THE TIME. You have to fight five times as hard as a woman to be heard by the medical establishment. 

[BobbyH]

Thanks for your reply on the matter! She thought it would be fine, but after so many people have said on here about going back to the Dr’s. She’s going to!

Thankyou all for your input, your making a woman shooter very very happy!

3 minutes ago, ehb102 said:

Definitely get that shoulder injury sorted. She's been way too patient. You have to push and push with the NHS. You want surgery - if it is needed - when you are young. Go around the system if necessary. 

One of the reasons I dislike the semi auto snobbery is that they are great for exactly this kind of issues. I have a Hatsan 20 that is great for this. 21g plaswad work in them. Otherwise yes, a lighter gun, a back weighted gun, switch shoulders. 

There is probably capacity in the muscles to make it up to ten or twelve shots but that takes training and practice. I appreciate that's awful. But most of all she shouldn't be in pain. Back to the doctor and start expressing how terribly painful it is and how patient she has been and how PAINFUL it is ALL THE TIME. You have to fight five times as hard as a woman to be heard by the medical establishment. 

Thanks for your reply on the matter! She thought it would be fine, but after so many people have said on here about going back to the Dr’s. She’s going to!

Thankyou all for your input, your making a woman shooter very very happy!

[Rob85]

13 hours ago, BobbyH said:

Thanks for your reply!

After last nights little emotional episode, I’m getting a small O/U .419 for her to use, and she’s going back to the Dr’s about her shoulder. I have always said to go back, but she has sadly just been given poor diagnosis and accepted that she will be in pain for the rest of her life….Shes only 33!

Something I forgot to ask, if you don't mind elaborating... what part of the shooting do you think is it that is hurting her shoulder? Because this is the bit that physios or doctors with no knowledge of the sport won't understand. Is it the mount? Or recoil? From being told its rotator cuff related i would suggest its the mount.

 

[BobbyH]

Just now, Rob85 said:

Something I forgot to ask, if you don't mind elaborating... what part of the shooting do you think is it that is hurting her shoulder? Because this is the bit that physios or doctors with no knowledge of the sport won't understand. Is it the mount? Or recoil? From being told its rotator cuff related i would suggest its the mount.

 

Its not the recoil or the mount, its the weight of the gun on her left arm, (Right handed shooter).

 

She can’t support the gun in her left hand outstretched, without it hurting her. 
 

The gun she has (AYA Yeoman O/U) fits her perfectly, so it’s not a fit or mount issue.

[arjimlad]

My OU .410 Yildiz is a delightful light little gun which demands precision but is quite capable of clays if I aim it straight.

My wife had a shoulder injury last November which resulted in a vertical crack in her humerus, where the rotator cuff muscles attach.

This was missed on the x-rays and it was only when she had an MRI scan 3 months later that it showed up.

She's had the steroid injection after about 3-4 months after the injury, which has not worked and she is now awaiting an operation to file down a bony spur on her collarbone which is catching a tendon & causing pain/weakness. 

The treatment she had seems to be to leave it 6 months (with physio and painkillers) to see if it heals naturally and only then do you get onto the waiting list for surgery. The price of two expensive family holidays to get it fixed privately... nobody can tell us when the NHS will come up with an operation date though so we are in a dilemma. In the meantime she is on paracetamol all day and hot water bottle in the evening. 

I really hope your wife can get her shoulder sorted out, the specialist in Bristol seems to be quite certain he can fix my wife's shoulder. 

[Westley]

IF, it is solely a weight issue, I would avoid the small gauges, with the possible exception of a 20 bore. The ammunition selection and cost can make it an expensive road to go down. I too suffer from work related injuries to my right shoulder.  I have had all of the treatments that you have described, including an operation.  None of them worked. I ended up doing weight lifting exercises, using my gun. If it is only clay shooting that she is doing, I would look for a Beretta 20 bore gas operated auto. They are marginally heavier than a 28 or .410 gauge, but the weight is more to the rear of the gun, which should make a difference to the weight the left arm is supporting. See if you can find one for sale that she can handle and possibly try. There is a wider range of 20 bore ammunition available, and therefore it affects the cost. I am now back on a 12 bore which weighs 8lbs. and I use 24 gram ammo.

Edited November 28 by Westley

[BobbyH]

Thanks all for your comments and advice!

Cheers Westley, I shoot and reload my own .410 anyway, so we are going to try her on the .410. We will then go to a 20 and she how she is with that.

 

 

8 hours ago, arjimlad said:

My OU .410 Yildiz is a delightful light little gun which demands precision but is quite capable of clays if I aim it straight.

My wife had a shoulder injury last November which resulted in a vertical crack in her humerus, where the rotator cuff muscles attach.

This was missed on the x-rays and it was only when she had an MRI scan 3 months later that it showed up.

She's had the steroid injection after about 3-4 months after the injury, which has not worked and she is now awaiting an operation to file down a bony spur on her collarbone which is catching a tendon & causing pain/weakness. 

The treatment she had seems to be to leave it 6 months (with physio and painkillers) to see if it heals naturally and only then do you get onto the waiting list for surgery. The price of two expensive family holidays to get it fixed privately... nobody can tell us when the NHS will come up with an operation date though so we are in a dilemma. In the meantime she is on paracetamol all day and hot water bottle in the evening. 

I really hope your wife can get her shoulder sorted out, the specialist in Bristol seems to be quite certain he can fix my wife's shoulder. 

Arjimlad, what specialist is this in Bristol?

[arjimlad]

@BobbyH Mr Crowther.  We're very impressed. He seems totally confident in diagnosis and getting it fixed.