Hello all,

I have been a bit of a luker here for a while. I have been dealing with NTOS since July-August of 2011. I am in the military and cannot really pinpoint what might have casued my TOS. It could have been from carrying heavy packs or doing combatives training, or possibly lifting weights.

My issues are quite odd and differ from many others I have read. Mine started with muscle twitching in the left neck, I would also get associated dizzyness while working out. This progressivley got worse towards the Dec-Jan 12 timeframe. I would notice my scalp muscles being very tight, very bad headaches, and pain in the face and eye region.

I also started noticing pain in the left/middle chest, left serratos anterior, and my left scapula started to wing out. Pain in the neck, mid back, shoulder/armppit, and collarbone region has also gotten much worse. Stretching and PT help for maybe a day or two but nothing long term.

I had previously been diagnosed by a sports medicene doctor at the University of Missouri with TOS. He wanted me to do PT/OT yet I got zero progress. After many specialists, chiropractors, and PT appointments with no real progress I found Dr. Robert Thompsons info on the internet and decided to call their office.

I just went out this past week for the block test and eval. He does believe I have NTOS, but cannot really explain the dizzyness. He says it sometimes does happen and cannot guarentee it will be fixed. However he says I should notice many of the other issues to be helped. After talking with him he feels surgery is the best bet. On Tuesday I will be having my left 1st rib taken out, pec minor, and both scalenes all on the left side as well.

Dr. Thompson and his staff are awsome thus far, and after seeing all the professional atheletes he has worked with, it seems he knows what he is doing. They understood my circumstances and he believes I will be able to return to the active lifestyle I had over a year ago.

I am somewhat nervous, I have never had surgery and really don't know what to expect. I have read a few people's write-ups. I just want to see how people are doing post-surgery? This issue has basically sidelined me from doing my job in the military. I can only hope this will work and I can get back to doing what I love. Any tips from anyone post surgery would be awsome! I plan to get healthy asap!