I first noticed that both of my shoulders had lumps in them a little while ago and didn’t think much of it. My right shoulder, which I refer to as my hitting shoulder in rugby, is worse in terms of the size and number of these hard lumps, and after playing another season this year, I’ve realized that said lumps are getting bigger.
Have I seen a doctor about it? No. But I at least plan to, now that I’m aware of the fact they’re growing.
I tried to see what I could find online about it, which is always a risky quest; anytime you Google anything medical, you almost always land on the outcome of cancer or death, so I try not to look into medical things using this method too often. But, I was rather surprised by what I read about my lumpy ass shoulders online, and I wanted to share what I learned with all of you.
In my own words, if you notice you have lumps that tend to sit near the middle of your shoulder, it is probable that you have separated your shoulder at some point. Here is some more trustworthy information on the topic from orthoinfo.aaos.org.
“A shoulder separation is not truly an injury to the shoulder joint. The injury actually involves the acromioclavicular joint (also called the AC joint). The AC joint is where the collarbone (clavicle) meets the highest point of the shoulder blade (acromion).
“The most common cause for a separation of the AC joint is from a fall directly onto the shoulder. The fall injures the ligaments that surround and stabilize the AC joint.
“If the force is severe enough, the ligaments attaching to the underside of the clavicle are torn. This causes the separation of the collarbone and the shoulder blade. The shoulder blade (scapula) moves downward from the weight of the arm, creating a bump or bulge above the shoulder.
“The injury can range from a mild sprain without a bump to a complete disruption with a very large bump. Good pain-free function often returns even with a very large bump.
“The most severe shoulder separation completely tears both the AC and CC ligaments and puts the AC joint noticeably out of position, with a larger bump.
“A mild shoulder separation involves a sprain of the AC ligaments that does not move the collarbone and looks normal on X-rays.
“A more serious injury tears the AC ligaments and sprains or slightly tears the coracoclavicular (CC) ligament, putting the collarbone out of alignment to some extent with a smaller bump,” the website states.
Interesting stuff, folks.
Photo by Inge Poelman on Unsplash
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