[WonderWhatItIs]

Hi,
I'm new to this forum and am hoping you all might help me discern if I might have TOS.

I'm 37, female. Mom of three kids, my two youngest are 2 and 1. I have been constantly lifting children for four years and I think I've just taken a beating, physically, from it.

I began having issues w/ my balance back in December, and my vision was wacky (not quite double vision, but not "on" as it should be).

My current symptoms are:
I have shoulderblade pain on left side. I have an exceptionally painful area in the front of my neck, very tender to the touch. I have numbness that burns and sets in at night, right as I try drifting to sleep. I have neck pain, the back/base of my skull feels full on and off.

I have left arm weakness (and even some leg weakness).

I have been to neurologist. MRI of brain was clear. Follow up w/ her yesterday was pretty useless. Even though I told her of my new latest symptoms. She set up a nerve test for my left arm, but she didn't really seem interested in what I am experiencing.

I am trying PT for first time tonight. I hope the therapist can trouble shoot my pain and perhaps be more compassionate than the neuro.

I am going to a pain management doc who works for a spine surgeon for a one hour evaluation tomorrow morning.

I have been told back in Dec that I had perhaps a "virus" because of my weird symptoms. But I have also been told by a massage therapist that I have "alot of soft tissue issues going on". She said this while doing trigger pt therapy which was very tender almost painful, but not quite.

I asked what she meant by that and she said, "You have a lot of knots that might be pressing on your nerves."

Why don't neurologists take this pinched nerve idea seriously? I am frustrated. I think I have a lot of referred pain, too. Just really not myself, not strong. Feeling weak physically.

Sometimes I get numbess in my jaw, left side. Comes and goes, nothing too inhibiting, but it's there.

Will the phy therapist be more understaning if I tell him I am assuming it might be TOS? Hoping the spinal doc can be of help, too. I want an MRI of spine/neck.

I think there is some nerve impingement, though I don't know.

Any help or suggestions or experience is appreciated! I am not sure what to do next? Maybe a vascular surgeon for ultrasound of neck?

[Jomar]

Hello,
Welcome to our forums.
My elbow is acting up a bit and i have my muscle stim on at the moment so my typing is not up to snuff..
Then I have to go do my stretches, I've been lax on those - prob why my elbow is bothering me.

Feel free to read thru our other threads, and look thru the useful stickys up above the list of threads.
I just added to the TrP sticky and made a new thread about it too.


Find the best & advanced PT you can - some times it takes a few to learn which are really good vs those that are so so.

[WonderWhatItIs]

Originally Posted by Jo*mar

Hello,
Welcome to our forums.
My elbow is acting up a bit and i have my muscle stim on at the moment so my typing is not up to snuff..
Then I have to go do my stretches, I've been lax on those - prob why my elbow is bothering me.

Feel free to read thru our other threads, and look thru the useful stickys up above the list of threads.
I just added to the TrP sticky and made a new thread about it too.


Find the best & advanced PT you can - some times it takes a few to learn which are really good vs those that are so so.

Thanks for the replies. I had typed a reply but the computer wigged out and I don't think it posted. Apologies if this is a duplicate...

Anyhow.... in your pursuit of a diagnosis, did you have nerve testing done? And if there shows an interruption of nerve stimulation (or whatever the technical term), does this point to possible TOS?

Also - I have experienced a weird shoulder sensation in the passed, always after weight lifting. It seems my left shoulder always gets pulled more. Can't really explain it, but feels like it's lower, stretched more than my right side.

When I last had this, it was after having my middle daughter and I was lifting her a lot. I got the weird vision, pulled shoulder feeling, the tingles in arm. Doc at that time said "It's probably sinuses" HUH?

Have you or anyone reading experienced this "off balance" "needing realignment" feeling leading up to your TOS diagnosis?

I feel my left side is so out of aligment b/c that's the side I constantly hold my babies on.

[Jomar]

Have you looked up hyper mobility?
There's some simple tests you can do yourself to check for it.

Many of us here have some form itt , I think one reason we do over do and get out of alignment. That contributes to our problems.

I have had the most relief & help form a very good chiropractor.


Do you have one shoulder higher/lower than the other? how about hips? rib cage?
I was all tilted probably due to bad horse fall w/ concussion as a teenager.
but never had any arm pain or sx till the long hrs & repetitive work & hitting my 40s.