I'll start out with some stories of how my many sessions w/ various places & PTs went.

1st injury 1999 - w/my own PCP Dr -
severe RSI bilateral - both wrists hands & fingers pretty much stopped working for awhile. Could drive on fairly straight roads but lots or turns & parking was a problem. was off work immediately (wc) due to no fine finger use/dexterity.
I vaguely remember the PT used heat/ultrasound/massage/ for the most part and then I iced and did a lot of resting at home.

I think I was off work for 4 mos. then back on modified work in other parts of the company for another 7 mos. til I felt I was ready (I asked to return to my assy job = more $$ and the modified jobs were pretty boring (LOL) I was at about 75% of my old normal , but I did nearly fully recover from that first episode of RSI. Or maybe I should ssay I thought I did
Plus they asked for my input on ergo changes and inventing some new equipment to make the work less stressful on our hands/arms.

Ooops getting off track sorry..

"shoulder strain" 2001 & another in 2002/03 -
no time off work , some modified duties & job restrictions.
went to PT during work hrs as it was only 3 miles away - MCO - managed care organization.
basic cookie cutter PT - heat, ultrasound, then go thru some basic posture exercises and strengthening the shoulder girdle.
It patched me up to go back to full duties.

2 months later = It ALL started coming back- but moving around, hands, arms. wrists, shoulders, neck, upperback pain - So my new PCP ( I went to my own Dr this time, but my 1999 dr had moved away ) had trouble pin pointing the problem/s.

But I did get decent PT - except for the first place she sent me to - it was a rookie PT guy still using a book to help him
Had more issues come up so back to Dr , but my regular one was out so got an older Dr that was more savvy about RSI - he got me to a hand therapy specialist -but they were still stuck with having to stay in the limits of my wc claim original injury for hand /wrist tx only
These PTs did much more focused PT on what I needed for my arms & hands- but they could not do anything for my neck or upper back.

About this same time frame is when I started seeing info about TOS during my web searches - and I started seeing the pattern, but still stuck in the wc system and a PCP that didn't really know much more than the very basics of TOS.
She did one of the blood flow tests on 1 arm - both sides had sx, and she never said what results she got from the one she did.

I did get another referral to an even bigger & better PT place.
So something good did come out of it.


I'll write more later about the actual PT sessions.
Did a lot of yard work yesterday...


PCP also later referred me to a physiatrist later on which was another good thing. At a spine health & rehab place.

But something about how we did it messed up my wc claim status.
For a referral at the time wc only lets you go out to another dr 1 time- I went 2x's!! so they "said" I changed Drs and deposed the physiatrist instead of the dr I saw regularly for 1.5 years..for the injury!!
live and learn... I guess..
My atty was not the best as I figured out later.. he should have asked me who my main dr was before allowing a depo of the wrong one.