Lake Superior Waves and Shoulder Separation to the Third Degree

Yesterday the wind and waves were intense.  It certainly felt more like November than September.  The waves were crashing over the new breakwall.

We are not sure who owns the sailboat that broke loose and crashed into shore.

This is a custom agate window that I just finished for a customer in Marquette.

As some of you know I fell a week or so ago and separated my shoulder.  This is different than dislocating your shoulder when the arm bone separates from the shoulder bone.  In the case of most shoulder (AC) separations, the ligaments holding the color bone to the shoulder bone tear.  In my case, two ligaments tore causing the color bone to stick up above the shoulder.  Apparently, this "bump" is permanent.

I had the choice between surgery and physical therapy.  Because of the high probability of doing more harm than good with the surgical option, I am choosing physical therapy.  This non-surgical treatment builds up the muscles and helps stabilize the joint. Once the pain has eased, I will set up PT and start range-of-motion exercises followed by a strength training program. With most cases the pain goes away after three weeks. Full recovery can take up to twelve weeks.

CITES
James Heilman, MD http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:ACseperation.png
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Separated_shoulder