If we're swapping stories...

I've had similar issues with my right arm and shoulder over the last few years, though not as bad. I've not required surgery, and I'm glad that yours has gone well.

Initially it started when I jolted my right shoulder while snowboarding (repeatedly; I'm *very* right-handed when it comes to falling over). The consensus from my personal trainer was probably that I had some scar tissue hiding in there, and that -- short of surgery -- exercise to build up the supporting muscles was the only thing available.

Fast forward a while, and I'm starting to experience pain and stiffness in my neck, and occasionally numbness and tingling in my right hand, in particular my index finger. At that point, we decided that it was my crappy posture, coupled with the crappy state of my work chair, and the height of my desk. I quit that job (not specifically because of the chairs), and -- working from home -- I'm able to put my desk at the correct height, use a decent set of monitor arms, and get a decent chair (though I've still not splashed out on a Herman-Miller...).

I also started seeing the same personal trainer again, which helped with the lower back pain, and somewhat with the stiffness in the neck. I also went to a sports physio who concurred with the scar tissue thing and did some massage and manipulation which seemed to ease it a bit.

But the numbness and tingling wasn't gone, so I eventually got a referral to an orthopedic consultant (insert smugness about free healthcare here...). The consultant concluded that there was nothing actually wrong with my shoulder, but that there was still something wrong. The numbness was a complete unknown, so he referred me for an MRI scan, but I delayed it until this year.

We also decided that maybe the tingling and numbness was a direct result of the scroll wheel on my mouse, so I swapped that out for a vertical mouse, which has two effects: no forearm rotation, which reduces that source of stress; and I use a different finger for the scroll wheel (because it's positioned slightly differently).

I also started swimming regularly again, something which I've not done in about 20 years.

Result: no further problems with my shoulder, no neck stiffness, and mostly gone tingling and numbness in my index finger and forearm. We never got around to scheduling the MRI scan...

However: I fell and injured myself (torn abdominal muscle) while snowboarding earlier this year, which has meant no swimming (and no personal trainer) recently. It's also meant that I've regained all of the weight I lost after Christmas and New Year. I can also trace any new numbness in my hand or arm directly to the XBox One controller

Still, I think I'm healed, so I'll be getting the bike out of the shed and heading down to the swimming pool later this week, hopefully.