A grandmother forced to sleep upright in a chair because doctors were unable to treat her chronic shoulder pain claims to have found a natural remedy.
Elaine Fraser, from Lancashire, spent six years battling the daily agony and a ‘hellish’ 18 months sleeping at a certain angle because of her excruciating pain.
Physiotherapists couldn’t ease her pain as the problem, caused by a shoulder break when the 62-year-old was a child, was inside her joints, they argued.
But Mrs Fraser now claims she has found a way to relieve herself of the agony – and has doubled her sleeping time as a result – by taking a £16.99 natural remedy.
In a desperate attempt to combat the problem, Mrs Fraser, of Lytham St Annes, resorted to FlexiQule, a supplement sold in Holland & Barrett.
Despite initially doubting its supposed benefits, she noticed a remarkable difference in her chronic shoulder pain and sleep after just eight weeks.
And now, after years of tossing and turning at night, the grandmother-of-six is able to finally sleep for six hours – the recommended minimum amount.
Elaine Fraser, from Lancashire, spent six years battling the daily agony and a ‘hellish’ 18 months sleeping at a certain angle to combat her excruciating pain
Mrs Fraser, a retired project manager in the civil service, hailed her transformation in an interview with MailOnline.
She said: ‘The supplement absolutely changed my life, after sleeping propped up for most of my life I can finally sleep sound.
‘My GP was not interested in looking for a solution to cure my shoulder pain and said I needed to try physiotherapy prior to considering a much more expensive MRI scan.
‘Unfortunately the physiotherapy was not hands on and I was just told every week to do exercises.
‘This did not help at all because there is something that sometimes seems to go out of place when I lift or when I stretch and this negates any progress made by exercising.
‘I was then referred by the physiotherapy department to a private practice for ongoing treatment at my own expense. After many years I just gave up even mentioning the pain to my GP.’
Mrs Fraser broke her shoulder when she was aged just nine, after a painful collision during a school netball match.
Her shoulder failed to ever recover fully, and she continued to suffer the occasional niggle as she grew older.
But in 2011, Mrs Fraser broke the same shoulder again after careering off her bicycle and landing on a pile of bricks.
A ‘hellish’ 18 months
She said: ‘This second break was much more serious given the previous incident and I was left having to sleep in a chair upright for 18 months which was hellish.’
Mrs Fraser eventually resigned herself to joining the millions of people in the UK who just live with chronic pain.
A major study, published in the journal BMJ Open two years ago, estimated that up to 28 million Britons are living with chronic pain.
Physiotherapists couldn’t ease her pain because the problem, they argued (pictured with three of her grandchildren)
But Mrs Fraser claims she has found a way to relieve herself of the agony – and has doubled her sleeping time as a result – by taking a £16.99 natural remedy (pictured with friends)
WHAT IS FLEXIQULE?
FlexiQule – sold as a food supplement in Holland & Barrett – contains two natural ingredients, boswellia and ginger.
Manufacturers Alchem International claim the extracts help to manage the body’s inflammatory response and maintain joint health.
Boswellia, the plant that produces Indian frankincense, has been shown in studies to reduce pain.
Other trials have found it can maintain cartilage and prevent the formation of leukotrienes, which trigger inflammation and joint pain.
And, with over 115 active compounds, ginger’s uses go far beyond the cooking pot.
Ginger’s active ingredient is gingerol – a powerful anti-oxidant. Studies have shown that gingerol’s anti-inflammatory properties are comparable to that of ibuprofen.
Problems such as low back pain or osteoarthritis affect between 35 per cent and 51 per cent of British adults, according to the review of 19 trials.
After 18 months, Mrs Fraser was able to return to her bed at night, but her rest was still disturbed.
She would struggle to get a full night of uninterrupted sleep, which was made worse by her being unable to lie on her bad shoulder.
Used to the pain
Mrs Fraser: ‘I felt like I simply had to get used to having a bad shoulder, it caused a constant dull ache and it started to restrict my life.
‘I tried everything, from taking cod liver oil supplements to physiotherapy sessions at my local hospital.
‘But after a while the physiotherapist said that she couldn’t improve my pain because the problem was inside the joints.’
Mrs Fraser, whose youngest grandchild is just one, added: ‘After years of trying to resolve the pain I just learnt to grin and bear it.’
But, over the winter, after she had ‘finally given up looking’ for a solution, she came across a free trial of FlexiQule online and signed up.
And now her shoulder pain is under control and her sleep is better, according to her Fitbit, which measures her amount of shut eye.
Sceptical
Mrs Fraser said: ‘I was sceptical of taking a supplement as I have previously tried cod liver oil, which made no positive impact.
‘However, after just three weeks of taking the supplement FlexiQule, I started to notice small improvements in my mobility.
‘I am delighted with the increase in rest and I am finally able to sleep on my shoulder after seven years of having to lie on my back at night.
‘This new found flexibility has given me more energy and also improved my quality of life as a result of a good night’s sleep.’
Mrs Fraser continued: ‘My exercise levels have also increased as my general mobility has improved.’
In a desperate attempt to combat her daily agony, Mrs Fraser resorted to FlexiQule, a supplement sold in Holland & Barrett (pictured with a friend on holiday)