Teri Hatcher reveals her painful mystery illness

Jemal Countess

Teri Hatcher has been treated with cortisone shots to help alleviate the pain of frozen shoulder.

Teri Hatcher reveals she has been battling a rare and debilitating illness that has prevented her from performing every day activities.

"I've been struggling with this thing called frozen shoulder, which is a real condition which women get," the "Desperate Housewives" star, 46, told "Extra."

Those who have the illness often feel pain and lose motion in their shoulder due to inflammation. Overtime, the condition could improve by itself within two years with little loss of motion.

"It's basically left me pretty much not functioning with my left arm ... I can't hook a bra anymore," Hatcher said.

To help alleviate the extreme pain, Hatcher has been treated with cortisone shots.

"I'm not asking for sympathy or anything, it could be much worse," she said. "But when you take away something like being able to pick up a bag ... I really can't wait 'till it's gone so I can just exercise like crazy again, because I sort of miss it."

Hatcher has been known to be a fitness buff. In 2009, the actress participated in the Nautica Malibu Triathlon, in which she took part in a half-mile swim, 18-mile bike ride and a 4-mile run.

Working in an industry in which age plays a serious role, Hatcher has made a point to take better care of her health.

"I wasn?t panicked about [turning 45] , it just seemed like a milestone," she told Prevention magazine at the time. "The older you get, the more you become aware of the things you can?t change and the things you can change."

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