Hello, this is my first posting.
With the help of a sister who was a registered nurse for over forty years I have deduced what I think is Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. My sister had similar symptoms developed in the course of her work as a nurse.
My problem stemmed from poor posture. I am an amateur musician and started developing weakness in my hands in my early thirties.
I saw neurologists at two different clinics in my hometown in the early eighties. They gave me cursory hand strength exams, stuck needles in my hands, and they told me I didn't have any problems. Not one of them talked to me about possibly correcting my posture. I don't know if TOS was a topic that was discussed among the medical community at that time, but at any rate the doctors were worthless.
I didn't correct my posture until I was in my mid forties thanks to advice from a chiropractor I was seeing. I then was alerted to a book about correct posture and the Alexander Technique by a massage therapist.
After one month of correcting my posture I was able to resume playing my guitar for hours. a day where for the previous fifteen years I had rarely been able to practice.
They symptoms for TOS I had did not involve any pain. I simply had numbness in my fingers. I arms became extremely fatigued when i put them over my head.
Because my arms became tired and sore quickly I could not play tennis as well as practice my guitar. My right hand is still discolored.
Everything I loved to do came to a halt.
But after correcting my posture I was able to resume playing my guitar and playing tennis.
But after I started working for the USPS later that year the problems resumed chiefly from having to do a lot of lifting and throwing (yes throwing) of heavy objects. I would occasionally have periods where the strength in my arms and hands would return but then I'd get relapses,'
It wasn't until I retired and bought a back brace and started doing stretching exercises that my health improved. I actually thought I had TOS licked.
But then I'd have relapses. I'd start losing strength in my hands and arms despite the back brack and stretching.
The funny thing was when I noticed the strength leaving I'd lessen the time I practiced.
But when after resting my arms and hands for a week I found the strength had almost completely disappeared and I was back to square one. This has happened numerous times over the past ten years. I'd build up strength, things would be looking good, and the arms and hands would start getting sore and weak again, and the strength would go down to square one.
It was only recently that I discovered that my sleeping habits might have a lot do with my problems.
For all my life I had preferred to sleep on my right side the side where I had most of the TOS problems. because I'm right-handed.
I have read articles about TOS for many years, but I had failed to pick up about not sleeping on the side with the major TOS problems. So I will see if that was one of the major problems in keeping my strength in my arms and hands.
My advice to anyone who has problems with hand and/or arm strength is to check your posture. If you do get diagnosed with TOS don't sleep on the affected side.