Shoulder Pain Treatment
The shoulder is the most mobile joint in your body — and the most vulnerable. Rotator cuff issues, impingement, frozen shoulder: I find the mechanical breakdown and rebuild it.
Why Your Shoulder Hurts
Shoulder pain rarely comes from one thing. It’s usually a combination: weak rotator cuff, tight pecs pulling the shoulder forward, a shoulder blade that doesn’t move right, and years of compensation. Add overhead sports, desk posture, or an old injury that “healed” wrong, and you’ve got a recipe for chronic pain.
Frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis) is its own beast — the joint capsule literally thickens and stiffens. It has distinct phases and needs a different approach than impingement or cuff tendinopathy.
How I Treat Shoulder Pain
I test rotator cuff strength, check scapular movement, and assess which structures are actually irritated versus which are just compensating. Treatment targets the drivers — often the cuff needs re-firing while the overactive muscles (upper traps, pec minor, lats) need calming down.
Acupuncture for Shoulder Pain
Orthopedic acupuncture excels at shoulder issues because I can target the deep rotator cuff muscles (infraspinatus, supraspinatus, subscapularis) that are nearly impossible to reach with hands alone. Motor point needling re-fires inhibited cuff muscles; dry needling releases the trigger points in pecs and traps that pull the shoulder out of position.
Functional Medicine for Shoulder Pain
Tendons that won’t heal often point to systemic issues: chronic inflammation, blood sugar dysregulation, or collagen synthesis problems (vitamin C, zinc, copper deficiencies). I address the biochemistry so the local treatment actually sticks.
Supplements I often suggest
For shoulder pain, these are the supplements I suggest most often in my practice:
- Inflammatone (Designs for Health) — Herbs, nutrients, and enzymes that help modulate the inflammatory response.
- Turmero Active (Apex Energetics) — High-absorption liquid curcumin for joint comfort.
- OmegAvail Hi-Po Fish Oil (Designs for Health) — 1,600 mg EPA/DHA per serving with lipase for absorption — no fishy aftertaste.
See all the supplements I recommend →
I may earn a margin on dispensary orders. If you take prescription medications, check with your doctor before starting any new supplement.
Let’s Fix Your Shoulder
Shoulder pain limits everything. Book a free intro call and tell me what’s going on.