Golfers Elbow Pain???? Help????

[Chicago Seminole]

Can anyone who has experienced "Golfers Elbow" aka tendonitis/tendinosis, give some tips or information based on their experience.

I caused the injury by playing golf and/or hitting balls at the range almost daily on a quest to break 80.

I strained a muscle in my upper back region and strained my elbow. I quit playing golf completely for 4-5 months and the pain hasn't really gone away. I have read that tendinosis can last several months as tendons take a long time to heal.

I don't have health insurance so I can't afford to go to a doctor and go through the myriad of tests and xrays.

So what are my options.

Cortisone Shot? (has benefits but can also cause damage)

Acupuncture?

Massage Therapy? (It has helped alot with my back pain)

Specific Exercises?

Sit on the couch for 6 more months?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Elvisliveson]

I would think resting completely during the winter should help and then when you come back you should where a brace that goes on the forearm just below the elbow.

[boogielicious]

If it is tendonitis, then rest, ice and physical therapy would help.  A great way to ice is to freeze water in a dixie cup. Then peel back the paper and rub on the injured area for 5 minutes.  Do this several times a day after any activity that may aggrevate the injury.  Stuff a simple as folding laundry can cause issues.

You can look up physical therapy exercises on the web.  They will focus on strengthening the area around the injury first, then the injured area.  It would recommend seeing a doctor or physical therapist first.  But if that is not an option, then use the web.  Use very light weights or stretch bands and focus on perfect form for the exercise, not more weight or resistance.

Also, there are bands that you can wear around your upper forearm that compress the muscles and help prevent injury.  Look up tennis elbow.

Best of luck.

[Aquaguru]

Originally Posted by boogielicious

If it is tendonitis, then rest, ice and physical therapy would help.  A great way to ice is to freeze water in a dixie cup. Then peel back the paper and rub on the injured area for 5 minutes.  Do this several times a day after any activity that may aggrevate the injury.  Stuff a simple as folding laundry can cause issues.

Also, there are bands that you can wear around your upper forearm that compress the muscles and help prevent injury.  Look up tennis elbow.

Best of luck.

The ice cup is a great idea it doubles as a massage as you rub hard on the lateral elbow.  Thats is where all your pain is coming from.

Some good things to do is to stretch.  Hold your arm out and pull your fingers back towards you.  You might also consider taking an anti-inflammatory like ibuprofen if you are able too, ask your doctor first if you have any doubts.  A two week dose will help.  It takes ibuprofen a couple days to a week to start feeling the effects.  Also rest it during these two weeks then start with strengthening exercises

http://www.hughston.com/hha/a.seven.htm

this is a good start for exercises.  You can use a hammer to do them just remember the closer you hold to the head the easier it is.  Start there then slowly move your way down the handle as you get stronger.

Tendonitits is inflammation of the tendons so a cortisone shot will not help you and a physician will more than likely not give you one because the medication has been proven to weaken the tendons and cause them to tear later on in life.

Hope this helps. I have had a good success rate with ice massage, rest, stretching, then strengthening in my athletes that have this.  Give it about a month and you should be back to close to %100

[ThreeputtRon1]

Man, oh man, can I relate to this question.  I've been struggling with "golfer's elbow" all year long. I wanted to continue playing golf bad enough that I usually just took a couple of Advil about an hour before my tee time, and stretched out a bit before swinging.  Still hurt like heck, but I could usually play through the pain, and managed to get my mind off of it after a few holes.

Unfortunately, my doctor has told me the same thing that most of these replies have stated.  It's called medial epicondylitis, and the best chance for cure is rest, the use of frequent ice packs, and some type of pain medication that is safe for you to use.

Thanks for starting this thread.  I'll keep watching to see if anyone else has any good ideas for easing the elbow pain.

[Aquaguru]

Originally Posted by ThreeputtRon1

Unfortunately, my doctor has told me the same thing that most of these replies have stated.  It's called medial epicondylitis, and the best chance for cure is rest, the use of frequent ice packs, and some type of pain medication that is safe for you to use.

Thanks for starting this thread.  I'll keep watching to see if anyone else has any good ideas for easing the elbow pain.

Yes it is called medial epicondylitis.  It is sometimes mistaken for tennis elbow which is lateral epicondylitis.  The tendons that are inflamed are the muscles that flex and pronate your elbow and wrist.

[basscat348]

Get you a box of white rasins and a bottle of slow gin by De Kupyer has to be this brand.Now soak the raisins in the gin for about a week the eat about 10 or so everyday if your a really big guy or gal then probably a handful might be better.After about 5-6 days ALL your pains will be gone GUARANTEED.Try it and you can thank me later.

[BonoVox]

Curious what elbow is it that is bad? I am right handed and my right one acts up on occasion.

[1puttit]

I have had major tennis elbow problems in the past. Tried numerous therapies with no help. Finally stumbled upon the Flexbar and the Tyler Twist exercise. Doing 10-15 reps a day really helped and I've had minimal pain ever since. They now have a similar exercise for golfer's elbow. Here's a bunch of info with links to both the tennis elbow and golfer's elbow exercise. You can get a Flexbar on Amazon for about $20. http://www.hygenicblog.com/tag/flexbar/  Good Luck!

[LBlack14]

I haven't played since November 6th and my left/leading (I'm right handed) hurts so bad at times it keeps me awake at night. I've rested and iced, still no relief.

[LBlack14]

Originally Posted by 1puttit

I have had major tennis elbow problems in the past. Tried numerous therapies with no help. Finally stumbled upon the Flexbar and the Tyler Twist exercise. Doing 10-15 reps a day really helped and I've had minimal pain ever since. They now have a similar exercise for golfer's elbow. Here's a bunch of info with links to both the tennis elbow and golfer's elbow exercise. You can get a Flexbar on Amazon for about $20. http://www.hygenicblog.com/tag/flexbar/  Good Luck!

Linky no es bueno.

[LBlack14]

Originally Posted by basscat348

Get you a box of white rasins and a bottle of slow gin by De Kupyer has to be this brand.Now soak the raisins in the gin for about a week the eat about 10 or so everyday if your a really big guy or gal then probably a handful might be better.After about 5-6 days ALL your pains will be gone GUARANTEED.Try it and you can thank me later.

I'm not real good at sniffing out sarcasm and I like slow gin so are you sh*tting me or what

[jola]

Get a band-it.That brace and rest worked for me

[1puttit]

Working Links for the Flexbar

Golfer's elbow

http://www.hygenicblog.com/2009/09/29/reverse-tyler-twist-with-the-thera-band-flexbar-for-golfers-elbow/

http://info.thera-bandacademy.com/flexbarelbowmedial

Tennis Elbow

http://info.thera-bandacademy.com/flexbarelbow

Looks too simple to work but it really does. For $20 bucks what do you have to lose?

[DannyG]

I have had this problem a couple of times and I have found that exercise is better than resting it. I belong to a gym so I have access to a wide range of dumbbells which I use for reverse curls. (Hold the dumbbell palm facing down and do a regular curl.) Start very light with just a couple of pounds. This will hurt for the first few reps but as you work it, everything will loosen up and start to feel better. You may not get beyond a few pounds for many days but over time you will slowly be able to increase the weight. This is no quick fix and may take months before you feel 100%. Icing and ibuprofen (Alieve) helps as well. I now do reverse curls as a regular part of my workout and haven't had the problem in years. Of course improving my swing may have had a little to do with that as well :-)

[Chicago Seminole]

Thanks for the replies guys. Just to reiterate, I played through the pain for about 2 months straight before I quit playing golf completely to heal it up. It has already been 3 months since I have played. I have been wearing an elbow brace off and on the last 3 months, but today I went and bought the actual "elbow band" that you put below the elbow.

I guess I am asking if anyone else has cured the problem after dealing with it for more than 5 months. I am worried that there may be a buildup of scar tissue on the tendon, and I don't have health insurance.

I hit about two dozen balls at the range the other day, and the pain was significant for 2-3 days after, but it felt more like "post workout pain",. I  feel like if I hit some balls every few weeks, (along with the specific exercises) I should be able to strengthen the muscle and tendon. Does that make sense?

I guess I should slow my swing down when I do start playing again, and stay away from courses with short Par 4s LOL.

[squaddie]

Originally Posted by Chicago Seminole

I hit about two dozen balls at the range the other day, and the pain was significant for 2-3 days after, but it felt more like "post workout pain",. I  feel like if I hit some balls every few weeks, (along with the specific exercises) I should be able to strengthen the muscle and tendon. Does that make sense?

No.  From the few articles I have read they indicated you should wait for the pain to be 100% gone, then gradually get back into golf.  Taking anti-pain medicine prior to swinging also won't help, since one will still damage the elbow area but just not feel the pain.

If you don't wait for the arm to fully heal then you can make the injury worse.  A few articles I read of people's experiences who didn't wait long enough to heal developed bone spurs and required surgery to repair the elbow (in this case a weight-lifter).

The reason why this problem has continued for 5 months is probably due the fact you haven't waited for the elbow to fully heal, which is understandable, since one can get impatient with an injury like this.

I am also trying to recover from golfer's elbow right now.  I first had the injury back in December, caused by hitting fat too much. I've been healing up, but every time I tried to get back swinging when the pain was minimal it would flair up again.  I have hit the gym a few times and did some exercises where the arms just supported the routine (like bench press, lat pulls, moderate weight), but the elbow remained agitated.

I've gone cold-turkey on swinging, and just using my right arm naturally, being sure not to strain my elbow.  So far this seems to be helping recovery the most.

To measure the healing process I found a simple technique: stand over a mattress or couch cushion.  Bend over slightly and rest your palms on the mattress.  Then slowly push down into the mattress with both arms, like you are trying to push the mattress lower.  If you feel any soreness, stiffness or pain in the affected arm, it means the elbow still hasn't fully healed.

I would try the above mattress test once every 2 or 3 days to see if you are recovering.  If the pain level or stiffness is the same after a month, and you haven't been doing anything to strain the elbow further, then you will probably have to see a doctor about your elbow.

[Radford Wooly]

See a Doctor so you can get an official diagnosis so you can treat it properly!!