My doc said he could give me cortisone shots for the shoulder, but I opted out of that because I don't really want to mask my awareness of what's going on in there. He did prescribe some transdermal patches that I can apply at bedtime to help me sleep, and I have those but am avoiding using them. Pain is nature's way of telling you something is wrong.
Re Stan's question about strengthening things around the joint to prevent future injury, I suspect that's a good idea. My shoulder had been stiff for about ten years, so I probably had some prior damage. When I tore the tendon last January, it wasn't a strength thing, as far as I could tell. I was operating as normal, unloading granite counter slabs from my truck with a helper, and I felt a burning sensation in my shoulder as I was lowering a piece. From a muscular standpoint, I was fine, but it appears that the tendon just let go.
