Any cure for tendonitis / tennis elbow? page 3

[claude512]

I'll second trigger point / deep tissue massage, took care of my constant elbow pain
(along with the usual heeling process for tendonitis)

[Thor Falk]

THREAD SUMMARY HERE - THANKS Y'ALL

thanks so much guys - I will be trying the stuff and report back (maybe the cortison not right away though - it is a bit of a fallback option...). I have made a summary of the responses on my blog: http://thorfalk.wordpress.com/2011/0...munity-advice/

I also just ordered a book on trigger point stuff... Trigger point massage | Thor Falk

[Thor Falk]

It is pain on the outside of the elbow. It is particularly triggered by gripping (a strong handshake for example....) or by movements that have a rotational aspect to it

[Neanderthal]

Having spent the last 20+ years flying air rescue in military helicopters I am, in my doctor’s words, an orthopaedic nightmare, LOL. My right shoulder/rotator cuff is shot, both elbows have had tendonitis, I have 2 herniated discs in my lower back, my right knee was hyperextended and never fully recovered, and I have a crack in my left knee joint. Needless to say Motrin (“Vitamin M” in the military) has been a mainstay of my diet for years, which is one of the primary reasons I started PB this week. I’m hoping diet changes can help reduce the inflammation in my body to the point I can come off meds. I’m really hoping PB and many trips to my physical therapist (PT) will have me pain-free in a year or so.

For the OP, I tried all sorts of remedies, healers, drugs, etc. for the tendonitis in my elbows and the only thing that helped was 3-4 months with a good PT. His treatment was electro-stimulation of the affected area combined with ultrasound heat, followed by massage. Then after a few weeks he added light resistance training with big rubber bands and had me rotating a weighted bar, with both exercises getting progressively more (relatively) intensive over time. It was a slow process, but now both my elbows are at 100% and have been so for several years. If some of the other suggestions don’t work for you, try physical therapy. I recommend the most experienced PT you can find (mine’s been doing it 37 years) and do exactly as they say. If they know what they’re doing then in a few months you should be tip top.
Best of luck!

[Hedonist]

Rest, ice, etc can all be helpful--but elbow issues tend to "flow" from the shoulder, so to speak, so mobility and postural alignment exercises focused on the shoulders are going to have the bigger payoff.

I was having bad elbow pain. Finally went to doc's. Nurse practitioner said it was tendinitis and put me on ibuprofen. Also sent me to physical therapy. They gave me two exercises to strengthen my back. Went to doc a few days later (standard checkup). She asked how I sleep. "On my side." "How many pillows?" "One" "You need two." Pain is gone.

[runnergal]

Find a good acupuncturist - I have a great, cheap, old Chinese guy who I swear by and have send friends and family to for quicker healing of broken bones, tendonitis, twisted ankles, etc. He does a combo of acupuncture and acupressure and massage.

I echo the acupunture.

DH was a total non believer in acupuncture but after 2 years on the traditional route (cortizone shots which only provided temporary relief) acupunture FIXED his Tennis elbow

I have had FANTASTIC results from acupunture. Some practitioners are better than others, if you dont feel relaxed and blissed out after the first treatment find a different one.

[Barb]

I had 2 cortisone shots for tennis elbow. they worked like magic for a few months and then BAM! they wore off and it was back worse than ever. The doctors told me that cortisone shots actually weaken the tendons, so after the antiinflammatory action wears off, you are MORE prone to reinjuring or aggravating the existing injury. Rest and respect for the injury are essential. It was OK to do things that caused a little pain, but anything that really hurt was out of the question. Keep your hands positioned with palms up when you are lifting or gripping anything. It puts way more stress on the elbow tendons to pick up a heavy object with your palms face down - try it. So, most weight lifting moves should be modified to keep your palms up. To this day I will only do chinups, never pullups because I don't want to reinjure my tendons. I also used wrist wrap straps for heavier pulling - mine have grappling hook type things to hook onto the bar - again to reduce the amount of strain on the grip.

I will say that I suffered from tendonitis for 4 years, with a few months of relief from the cortisone shots. I went primal a year ago and after about 4 months I was finally pain free. There is no quick fix. Cortisone is only temporary - at least it was for me.

[NeoBerserker]

I had tennis elbow or something like it when i had to stop working out for a while due to a genetic headache (i got the same headache for a month that my father got....weird...). And before i started going to the gym i had it too. I have a job that requires my arm to be used quite often and even my father, with whom i work with, has tennis elbow. It only bothers me when i'm not doing a lot of activity. When i'm just working, which is a light exercise itself, it'll hurt if i haven't been to the gym in a few weeks. Weird huh? But iv'e notice injured muscles generally respond well to exercise. I'm so convinced of this, as a similar thing has happened to my back:

*spoiler, more boring stories about me*
I'll try to keep it short; Had back trouble, probably due to bad bed and not being active, went to doctors, chiropractors, and physical therapists and got x-rays. No one was able to help, yet they tried. They ALL said to NEVER lift heavy weights and load your spine again. GOOD GOD WHERE THEY WRONG. They should of said don't lift heavy weights so you can keep coming back to give us money. They told me to never deadlift, yet i believe it was dead lifting that has healed my back. I am back pain free (switching to paleo helped too, but dead lifting came first).

[Thor Falk]

thanks guys

[WalkerN]

eXfuze is the perfect compliment to the Primal Blueprint. All natural and it will help with a multitude of different "ailments" of this day and age. Both my grandfather and dad have rheumatoid arthritis but after taking this for a month they are pain free. They also have a great version called PROformance for all us athletes. Good luck!