Question:
Has anyone had this kind of pain?

For the last few days I have had severe pain in my left arm and shoulder. It does not hurt to move my arm but it shoots sharp pains into my arm when I take a deep breath. I AM planning to see my PCP, but I'm in a dilemma right now because my new insurance is not in effect yet so I'm trying to hold off since I should be on the policy very shortly. A neuro-muscular therapist I know said it is referred pain from my stomach/diaphram area, and the pain is not actually due to any type of shoulder or arm injury (I did nothing that would have hurt it anyway.) Has anyone had this type of pain, or know of anyone who is post op who had this type of pain? I'm worried it may be a problem with my pouch or staples or something. I'm 8 months post op, down about 125 pounds, Open RNY with gallbladder removal and I am transected. I'm concerned because I have a VERY high pain tolerance and even after taking 2 vicodins tonight, I'm still in pain.    — Laurie L. (posted on March 24, 2002)

March 24, 2002
I too have had this pain when i take a deep breath it's kind of like an achy sharp pain. I am pre-op though and it usually goes a way by itself for me. Also i seem to notices that it happens when i am over full. I don't know if that helps. :-) Amber
   — Amber F.

March 24, 2002
I would personally get it checked out right away. I know that waiting for insurance to kick in is really a strong motivation to wait...I would be tempted too. But your health is much more important in the long run. Take care. -Kim
   — KimBo36

March 24, 2002
Laurie.. it is always best to have that type of pain checked out, but I had it post op too and I was told it was gas from the surgery and it worked itself out. God bless..
   — Gail S.

August 21, 2005
I know this is an old question, but in case someone has the shoulder pain and reads this, I want to tell something else that it might be. I had the severe shoulder pain post-op (it started about on the 3rd day). Since I had shoulder surgery a few years earlier, I thought they may have hurt it during surgery moving me. ( my surgery lasted over 6 hours) I now know this is a sign of a leak. I had a leak, but since I had 2 JP drains in, it was not fatal. BUT it could be, so don't ever ignore it.....Debbie Haverland
   — debi327