Hi All,

I am a TOS sufferer for more than 8 years and doctors were able to identify my problem only 3 years ago. I am in pain everyday and any repetitive work such as computer work, dish washing, giving bath to my son, changing a light bulb, cleaning toys, tightening screws using screw driver, any work where I should keep my hands forward, lifting weights will bother me a lot. I have been going to thoracic surgeon in MGH (Mass General Hospital, Boston) and during my last visit he mentioned that I might have permanent nerve damage and he is reluctant to do rib resection and he is recommending pec minor surgery to relieve right shoulder area pain, burning. However I also have pain and burning sensation in brachial plexus area, always pain to touch my chest rib cage and shoulder blades, used to have huge knots around shoulder blade area. Any small amount of work is making me uncomfortable. I have been a computer programmer for more than 22 years and I am very positive that my injury is related to my computer work. I am not working on computers anymore and had to give up very high paying job. Currently my Long term disability insurance companies are playing a big drama. I need your advise on how:
1) I can manage my pain on day to day basis
2) Any recommendations on doctors in Austin area
3) Any recommendations on Physical Therapists in Austin area

I am willing to take any advise to make my life better. I appreciate your help. Thank you for looking into my post. Have a good day.

Hi,
Have you had any quality PT , or a highly skilled chiropractors/body workers?
Do you do any self care & posture work at home?

Those things won’t be fast or quick. but if you find a really good team, pain & sx can be reduced.
It took years for the injury & pain to happen so expect a long time & consistent work to recover or reduce it.
some info-
Trigger point information {TrPs} for short
DOCTORS & PTs List and saved PT info threads

http://www.neurotalk.org/thoracic-ou...les-polls.html


I had good luck with low level laser (chiro) , top rib mobilization (chiro & PT), manual trigger point work (self & chiro) , far infrared heating pad - 150.00, IF stim 70.00, ultra sound 70.00 - these last 3 I bought on Amazon after comparing and all have lasted 10+ years already..

some simple home help things -
http://www.neurotalk.org/members/100-albums422.html

Thank you for the quick reply. Yes, I had several PT sessions and I am not sure whether they are quality sessions or not because the therapists mentioned that they don't deal with TOS patients on a daily basis. I also had 2 times botox injections and they are of no use. I will strictly follow your advise. Thank you for the help.

If PT/DC etc, ask you about your symptoms and adjust each session, that is good, if they tend to do same old thing, every time - hand bikes, exercise, various machines... not so good if you are in pain and symptomatic..

I feel PT should address the pain & symptoms first , usually with manual /hands on tissue work, not just tput you on a machine of some sort or lifting weights ..

After reading the sticky threads , it will give you a better idea of what to watch for with PT/DC etc..

It can be helpful to go to a few PT places and chat with the staff when it isn't busy, to compare which place /person might be good to try..some PTs are more skilled than others and some are just the "healing" type..

Speak up if if pressured to do things that you know will make you worse.
Just leave/cancel if a place is not working out for you.
Try somewhere different.

Home "work" is very important, you have to make it a main focus to heal, and not fall back into bad postures /activities.

Jo*mar,

I see your heart is filled with kindness. I started doing one of the exercise with ball you mentioned, I am feeling better. When I am in pain any little pain relief helps me.

What I see no matter what I do, I see I will not be a normal person. I see the PT/DC and etc only to do some maintenance and keep a check on the pain level so it doesn't get to intense level. Is that correct? Or can I do anything that will relieve my pain completely so I can start working and making money so I can send my kids to college

If you focus on healing, body awareness, and get very good therapist/chiros to help you get out of pain... really good one can do it if you follow up will home care too.

It took me 2.5 yr approx to get mostly non symptomatic...
Some of that time was wasted due to work comp delays & being sent back to assembly work as a "test"... a few lesser skilled PT in the mix , but I learned what to look for to find better PTs.. some of it was plain luck too.
Plus I was still learning about this chronic RSI & TOS thing.. on dial up internet back then.....2003- 2005 were my worst years of symptoms.

Mostly due to muscle strain, spasms, trigger points & a stuck top rib..
Those sticky threads are the accumulated knowledge many of the TOS old timers collected over the years. Some links might be expired but a google search might find the new version.

What is your avg daily pain level?
Taking OTC pain pills or nothing for pain ?

A good multi vitamin/minerals shouldn't hurt, I also took MSM & grape seed extract.
And keep hydrated so less sticky tissues..and flushes out the toxins.

Jo*mar,

Thank you for the replies. My average pain level is bad, which relates to burning, irritating, 10 mins of computer work will start creating neck pain and it is so severe that it will be tough for me to turn my neck and etc. If I disregard the pain, I will develop big knots on the backside of the shoulder blades. My case is even more difficult, in MA doctor's said it is a work related injury and I was approved for work related injury but no money from insurance. Since then I moved to Austin, Texas and I am in search of good PT and thoracic doctors and I am still yet to find them.

Over the counter, prescription medications doesn't help me at all. I take multi-vitamin. I haven't tried MSM and grape seed extract yet. How is it possible for you to become a normal person? I really need some details and I appreciate it. Thank you and sorry to bother you on this.

During the worst time , my hands mostly stopped working for fine tasks, that was very scary.
So it made me really learn all I could & totally focussed my energy on any and all ways to heal.. alternative stuff, self therapy, bodywork,plenty of gadgets..and a lot of luck .

When you can't turn your head , those are muscle spasms & usually triggerpoints are a part of that.. possible top rib needs dropped or mobilized..

What worked for me may not be what works for your case. all you can do is learn as much as you can & try things out to see if they help or not.
Don't stick with anything that makes you feel worse..