6 Weeks Onwards

The aim of this phase is to start to move your arm further and continue with your strengthening to help you to begin to use it more normally in everyday tasks.

So, I’ve passed the six week mark now, what changes do I need to know about?

Well, now that six weeks have passed since your operation, you do not have to use the sling and can now move your arm without any major restrictions.

This sounds great, but is there anything that I still need to be careful with?

It is recommended that you still avoid putting too much weight through your new shoulder, at least until twelve weeks after your operation.

How long until I can start my hobbies, driving and work?

It is suggested that you can start to think about returning to work from about eight to ten weeks if you have a sedentary (non-manual) job, and from sixteen weeks if you have a manual job. It is always worth talking to your employer about a phased or gradual return to work, as you will often find your shoulder has to rebuild its strength and fitness to do your job.

Returning to driving can be considered from six to eight weeks, as long as your movement and pain allow you to be in control of the vehicle at all times.

Returning to sport can be considered from three to four months dependent on the activity. You can get more advice on this from your surgeon or physiotherapist. If you are thinking about going back to swimming, this can be considered from six weeks, but you may have to adjust your stroke to manage getting back in the pool successfully.

Are there different exercises for me to do now?

In short, yes! Given that you are now able to do most things with your new shoulder (see above for exceptions), you can start to explore our shoulder exercise library.

Exercise tips:

Some of these exercises might require more movement than you can achieve with your new shoulder. You can adapt and modify any of the exercises as you need to.

You should aim to complete the exercises (as many or as few as you want to) about 3 to 4 times a week.

Each exercise should be completed between 8-12 times (or repetitions) for 3 to 4 sets. Make sure you have about 1 minute's rest in between each set.

In order to change your muscles, you need to challenge them. In other words, you should really feel the effort with each set of exercises and should really not be able to do more than 12 each time around.