Coop - This is EXACTLY how I'm feeling tonight! Chugg'n along with PT #2 and strengthening and I KNEW better. I know what I can and can't do, but yet at this point, I let someone talk me into something I knew I shouldn't do.
Why am I STILL such a slow learner? Is it just because we want to expedite the process?

I know this will pass and I'll get back on track, but I'm more frustrated with myself for not saying NO!

You're doing great, so keep up the good work. Set-backs have ultimately led me to moving forward, so onward and upward we will go. :) Let's kick some TOS aaaaaaaaaaaaaassssssssssssssssssssssss!

Thanks, Anne. Yes, I think the setbacks are a necessary part of the process, but they can be so discouraging! It's nice to have someone that knows what I'm talking about.:)

Cold Hands
 

It's been quite a while since I've had cold hands, so I thought maybe I had gotten past that. I was hoping anyway. However, during my last flare up they got that way. I was wrong again. This TOS keeps me pretty humble. Every time I think I have things figured out it proves me WRONG.

Funny thing is, I remember when I was a kid in grade school, my hands would get really purple on cold days, and the other kids would comment on it. I wonder if that could've been an early sign of TOS? There's always so many unanswered questions.

I have a history of cold hands as well and think it was early TOS.

Are you doing anything to depress your first rib? Like seeing a hands on therapist (pt, chiro, osteo, massage) or doing it yourself?

Life is far from perfect, but learning to shove my first rib down was a breakthrough for me.

Also, if you're exercising, you have to ask if you are doing any exercises that might be flaring you up such as pushups, anterior shoulders, neck, etc.

I'm not doing anything to manually push down my first rib because I usually end up hurting myself. I'm not using any foam rollers either. I have the Edgelow kit but I haven't used any of that stuff in a long time. I'm having better luck just doing my mobility exercises free hand, like on the Intu-flow DVD. When I push against something I usually end up flaring myself up.

I'm not doing any strengthening exercises either. All I'm trying to do is get full range of motion in all of my joints. Sometimes I just push the envelope a little too much and cause myself a flare up. It's a very fine line.

Ulnar Nerve Stretch
 

I've added this Ulnar nerve stretch to my mix of exercises and it feels pretty good. I don't hold the stretch though, just go to the tension three or four times. Holding a stretch still doesn't work well for me. I like movement better.

I really wouldn't consider it one of the top three TOS exercises though. That's just his opinion. I'll bet if you asked everyone here what their top three exercises were, they'd all be different. It changes for me all the time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4aXR...eature=related

Thanks, i like the ulnar one alot too, ive been doing it lately and I really feel the stretch. 2 other pts have given me that one.

Hi,
Edgelow's kit is beginning to work for me finally after my rib work and soft tissue mobilization as well as active release sessions with Dr.Art Ando of Ando and Aston physical therapy,Anaheim Hills Ca. and the exercises they have shown me. If you ever plan a trip that side, they are truly worth the visit.
Thanks so much for the ulnar nerve stretch link, I will try it out as I have elbow pain issues from time to time.

Thanks, stos2. I'll keep that in mind. If my progress stalls, maybe those doctors can be my "Ace in the Hole."

31 months
 

I'm at the 31 month mark with my mobility exercises and things have been going pretty well the last couple of weeks. My hips and my shoulders are loosening up to the point, where now I can start working on my spine a little bit. Very, very carefully, though. It was about this time last year when I pushed my lower back too hard and end up in the hospital. I was seriously considering have a double spinal fusion at the time.

So far, this joint mobility has played out the way Scott Sonnon says on the beginning of his Intu-flow program. Who would of ever figured that after all of the doctors and therapists I've seen, the best advice I've gotten has come from a martial arts guy?(Scott Sonnon) That doesn't give me a lot of faith in the medical industry.

Another good joint mobility video
 

I came across this joint mobility video by Pavel Tsatsouline. There's some good stuff on there. I'm always looking for new ideas to keep my progress moving forward. It's so nice to have all this information online these days.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ib2b...eature=related

Trigger point work
 

I've been doing a little bit of trigger point work lately. In the past, I really wasn't a fan of it. It seemed like it just made me worse. It seems to be helping now, though. I think all the mobility exercises I've done has gotten my body to the point were I can tolerate it better.

Pec Minor Release with the Thera Cane
 

I started doing this Pec Minor release with the Thera Cane. I've been doing it standing up and using very little pressure because my Pecs are super tender, especially on the surgical side, and my surgery was 21 years ago. I'm not sure if the surgical side is so tender because of trigger points, or the nerves are just more sensitive on that side. I'm curious to see if that will get better over time.

Here's the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPnf-74J5-g

Reaching the Butter
 

A little while ago when I was in the grocery store, this lady asked me if I could reach the butter for her. It was on the top shelf, way in the back. In the past I would've had to tell her I couldn't reach it either, but I managed to do it without any pain after. It's been many years since I could reach like that. I know it's not much, but it's another milestone. Sometimes I get pretty discouraged but a little thing like that helps keep me motivated.

Encouraging words from Scott Sonnon
 

I noticed a similar character to the major transformations in my physical life: from obese to fit and from recovering a broken back and neck to a pain free life. Slow, steady, consistent persistence charts the course to success.

But it isn
't the path that is the problem. Is it? The solutions are usually simple, but because the path is so long, we get frustrated by the speed of change... And we quit. Or we try so hard to hasten the achievement that we over do it and worsen the situation.

Does the gem cutter get frustrating during the 1,000 visibly unproductive strikes against the gemstone, when the unknown 1,001 strike effects the perfect cut? Yet, we become frustrated by our lack of apparent progress, our setbacks and unknown finish line, so we set down our hammer and chisel too close to success.

It takes two years to make any substantial change permanent. You'll see results in two weeks, but get your mind ready for the long haul, so that you do not allow frustration to scuttle success before you navigate to your goal. Stay the course. It's working.

very respectfully,
Scott Sonnon

Scott Sonnon posted this on his facebook page yesterday. "Two years to make any substantial change permanent." It's been 32 months for me so far, but I had to undergo open heart surgery earlier this year, so that set me back some. Who knows, this could take me several more years. Like he says, there's an "unknown finish line". Everyone is different.

Steak vs. Jerky
 

One thing I've noticed is the longer I do this, the softer my muscles are starting to get. When I first started, all of my muscles were hard, and tender to the touch. They kind of felt like jerky, hard and unpliable. In fact, I hated being touched because it hurt. I hated shaking hands, being hugged, and all that stuff.

Now, it's easy for me to tell what areas I need to work on just by touching the muscles. The areas that are getting healthy are soft and pliable, kind of like a nice steak before you cook it, and they don't hurt. The unhealthy muscles feel more like jerky, hard and unpliable, and painful to the touch. I've been doing a lot of self-massage, and trigger point work on these areas and it's helping soften those tissues up.

When I was young I did a lot of weight lifting, and I thought it was good when a muscle was hard, but now I realize you don't want that. A healthy, pain free, muscle should be soft and pliable. You want muscles that feel like steak, not jerky.

Thera Cane is working great!
 

I've been using a Thera Cane for a couple weeks now and it's working great. It really gets in there and breaks up some of the stubborn, bound up tissues, that movement doesn't seem to get. I have bruises all over the place but I feel like some of those areas are moving better already. This, along with the joint mobility exercises, seems to be a pretty good combination. Some others have said that, "Hands on therapy" has been helpful. I consider this my, "Do it yourselfers hands on therapy." 40 bucks, and I can use it every day. http://www.theracane.com/

Coop: I got one of those canes with my first round of failed PT. Not much came out of those PT sessions except the TheraCane. I'm happy you're enjoying it. I wish they would make a model with a slightly softer end nubs or things you can pop on to slightly diffuse the pressure. There's an invention for us.

Yeah, I guess it's hard to make something that's perfect for everyone. I think it's pretty well designed myself. I really like it. My wife likes it too, but her complaint is, one of the little nubs on the handle always pokes her boob, so I guess that might be a problem for some of you ladies.

I have a backknobber and which is similar but hard to get the pec minor because of the way it is shaped and is also a little hard for me. I was thinking of cutting a pink bouncy ball (hollow kind)and sticking it on the end. I have pinky balls on a stick which is a dowel with a pinky ball on each end that I get from my pt. it works pretty well.

Working on New Trigger Points Hurts like Heck
 

The first time I go over new trigger points it hurts like heck. Sometimes, I even feel nauseous afterwards. Some of these muscles have been tight, and haven't moved well in years, but I'm taking a full body approach and working on everything. After I've worked on them a few times, the muscles start to soften up a little bit and the pain is not so bad, but the first time I work on an area can be pretty brutal.

An interesting thing is, some of the most painful spots are where there isn't that much muscle. Like the edge of a rib, the top of my shoulders, the sides of my wrists, my shins, and even my ankles.

I agree, pinkie ball on a stick is best for pec minor.

Miracle Balls
 

My daughter gave me a pair of Miracle Balls for Christmas. She knows I'm always looking for something new to try out. Basically, they're just 4 inch vinyl balls that you lay on and relax, kind of like you do with a foam roller. I don't like foam rollers that much, so I'll have to test these out for a bit and see how they compare. http://ergonomics.about.com/od/buyin...racle_ball.htm

Limping back home
 

Yesterday when I went on my morning walk, my left leg cramped up, and I had to limp back home. This morning, same thing. Stuff like this can be pretty frustrating but it's kind of been par for the course whenever I try something new.

It's from lying on one of those Miracle Balls on Saturday, just for a few seconds. Obviously, it's a little too much for my lower back and I irritated the sciatic nerve. It's happened to me many times along the way. That's why whenever I try something new I only do one or two different exercises to see how my body reacts. Sometimes just a little is still too much. Being my own therapist, I'm constantly having to figure things out and make adjustments.

Time goes by fast
 

It's hard to believe almost three years have gone by already since I started this. I started in April 2010, and now it's 2013 already. Crazy. It seems like it's only been a few months.

I was watching Dr. Phil yesterday, and he said that 90% of people who make New Year's resolutions fail because they quit. I haven't quit yet and I'm not planning on it this year. Last year was a bad year for me, having heart surgery and all that. The year before that I ended up in the hospital with lower back pain. Hopefully, this year I can stay out of the hospital.

My goal for this year is to stay out of the hospital and work everyday on my goal of getting as pain free as possible. The hardest part about this is there's an unknown finish line. I'm kind of just cruising along on a wing and a prayer hoping for the best.

You can't rush this
 

On the Dr. Phil show I was watching yesterday, he was talking about setting goals by specific dates and times. I don't think that works for regaining your mobility. Your body heals and regains mobility at its own pace. It goes faster the more time I put in, but only to a point. If I push too hard, I usually just end up flaring myself up and slowing down progress.

One goal I've had since I started this, is to be able to touch my toes again someday. My wife thinks that's unrealistic because my back is so screwed up, and she may be right, but it's still my goal. I haven't set a time limit on that, though. If it happens, it will be on its own time. The same way a baby learns to walk on his own time. There's just no way to predict how long it will take.

Did you get the book too? The creator of the miracle ball also created a small book with instructions on how to use them.

Anyway, my favorite stuff for overall body alignment is still somatics, the Weisberg PT stretches, some Katy Bowman and some Peggy Brill.

Still no cure for my TOS though. :mad:

Yes, the Miracle Balls came with a small instruction book.

Intuition and experimentation
 

"If you want to get yourself out of your pain on your own, you have to develop intuition." Naudi Agular-Functionalpatterns.com

I think this is very true. People keep asking me how I figure out all the different things that I'm doing. Basically, it's just intuition and a willingness to experiment a lot. My routine is different every single day, that way I don't get bored and my body keeps adapting.

The last time I had physical therapy was probably about eight or nine years ago. It was at Dr. Newkirks Office in San Rafael. He dealt with a lot of TOS patients. The extent of my therapy was, several sessions of hands on therapy, lying on the floor with some rolled up bubble wrap between my shoulder blades, and lying lengthwise on a foam roller. That was it. A good start, but barely scratched the surface of what I needed. It was like trying to melt an iceberg with a cigarette lighter.

Nowadays, there's plenty of information out there on the Internet, but you have to sort through it and figure out what works and what doesn't. Some of the people out there giving advice and exercises for TOS, are just repeating what someone else told them, they haven't done, and experienced it, on their own. I try to learn from the people who have done it themselves. A lot of information out there is just plain wrong, or doesn't work, in my opinion.

Clubs, my favorite tool
 

Clubs are my favorite thing to use when I want to get a little more stretch in some of my exercises. I have a 1 lb pair of Indian clubs, and a 5 lb pair of Clubbells. A Clubbell is just the brand name of the clubs Scott Sonnon's company sells. I can't use both of the 5 pound clubs at the same time yet, but I'm getting better at using one of them. If I ever get to the point were I can use them both at once, I'll be doing pretty good.

The nice thing about a club is it stretches everything out away from your body and decompresses everything. It's really good for your shoulders, elbows, and wrists. Mine are starting to feel a little bit better all the time. Using them caused a lot of inflammation at first, but over time that's gradually gotten better. I did a lot a weightlifting when I was young and that kind of compressed everything. Swinging the clubs is really helping to get my shoulders and arms stretched out and functioning better. Another great idea I've gotten from Scott Sonnon.

I think I will check it out as well as Edgelow.
Thanks and heres to less pain in 2013!

Beginning club weight
 

When starting out using clubs, I would definitely start with 1 pounders, nothing bigger. Looking back now, I kind of wish I bought 2 pounders, instead of 5 pounders, for my second pair, but that's OK. It will just take me longer to grow into them. I'm making progress.

Another thing I use are 2 pound pilates balls to kind of change things up. You hold these with an open grip, vs. a closed grip for the club, so it works the muscles a little differently. Plus, they're a lot cheaper than clubs. About 10 bucks for the pair vs. 50 bucks for a pair of 1 pound clubs.

Most of the time when I'm using these things, I just work on one arm at a time. Two reasons. The first reason is, it's just easier to concentrate. Second reason is, my TOS is bilateral, so pulling on both arms at the same time can cause a flare easier.

Muscles are coming back to life
 

It's pretty cool to see muscles finally start to move, that haven't moved in about 25 years. I was tight for so long, I was used to it. I didn't even know some of these muscles were supposed to move, but it sure feels good when they do. I guess after having TOS for so many years, they just gradually got tighter, and tighter. It happens gradually, so you don't realize it. You just know that everything hurts.

I have to admit, when I first saw the Intu-flow exercises, I didn't think I'd ever be able to do it. I just started with one exercise, and it seemed to work, so overtime, I gradually added more, and more. By adding exercises gradually, it's kept my pain level tolerable.(Most of the time) This three dimensional movement is definitely the best thing I've ever done. I don't really waste my time with anything else.

I had a pain management doctor, about 20 years ago, that told me the muscles had to be moved, to be healthy. She was right, but she never helped me figure out a way to do that. She tried trigger point injections, IV vitamins, acupuncture, massage, and I forget what else, but it never got me anywhere. Simple, three dimensional movement, for every joint is the key. I wish I'd known about Intu-flow 20 years ago. I don't think it came out untill 2005. 20 years ago, there was no Internet, so I had no idea what I was dealing with.

I've been using the Thera Cane on my entire chest now. It hurts like heck, and it makes me feel like I'm going to puke after, but it's helping. Too much weight lifting when I was young made those muscles really tight. I'm trying to soften them up, so my shoulders can pull back easier.

Muscle Elasticity
 

The elasticity in my muscles seems to be getting better all the time. Scott Sonnon said this would happen, but I hadn't heard of anyone with TOS doing his mobility exercises, so I wasn't sure if it would work. So far, everything he explained on the beginning of the Intu-flow DVD, has been right on the money. There's a lot of ripoff stuff out there, but the stuff he teaches is working very well for me. I like to read his facebook page every morning while I'm having my coffee. He posts some pretty inspirational and informative stuff. He overcame a lot of disabilities himself, so he's pretty passionate about helping others. I just wish he wouldn't use so many words that I don't understand. He's obviously a very intelligent guy.

Cold hands again
 

This post was on 10-23-12. I was just thinking how good my hands had been feeling and today they're cold again.:mad: The fun never ends.

Myofascial Release and Functional Movement
 

"There's no one magic fix for anything in life, and it takes a lot of knowledge to know how to truly correct something". Naudi Aguilar-Functionalpatterns.com

I've learned a lot about myofascial release, correcting bad posture, and functional movement from Naudi Aguilar at Functionalpatterns.com. Some of his ideas have helped me a lot. It's become one of my favorite websites to check out. Here's the link http://www.youtube.com/user/function...uery=theracane

Pain is gain with the Thera Cane
 

I've been using the Thera Cane on trigger points for about three months now and I've made good progress. It really helps break up some of the really tight, bound up muscles, that mobility exercises don't seem to get. It's pretty painful, and I'm always all bruised up, but those muscles are getting softer and more pliable. My wife thinks I'm addicted to pain because of all the bruises, but I'm just willing to go through pain, to hopefully, get out of pain.

I'm 50 years old, so a lot of the stuff I'm working on has been there for a long time. Old football injuries, too much weight lifting when I was young, and getting knocked around by cows on the dairy. Plus, having TOS for more than 30 years.

Naudi Aguilar at Functionalpatterns.com says, "Everyone on the planet should have a Thera Cane". I can't say I disagree with that. It's definitely working well for me. I use it pretty much every day, and I'm working on my entire body with it.

A good month
 

This month was a good month. I bought a 54 inch martial arts stick that I've been using for some of my mobility exercises. It has a really nice feel to it. Much better than the piece of broomstick I had been using. That, along with using the Thera Cane everyday, for myofascial release, has been a good combination. I'm starting to see that myofascial release is a very important piece of the puzzle.

Tomorrow, it be one year exactly, since I had my heart valve, replaced with a pig valve, and I'm feeling pretty darn good. Now, this year, I can focus my energy on putting this TOS back in its cage. Improvements come slowly, but they're still coming. I think the older you are, the more time and work it takes. I try to put in 3 or 4 hours a day, working on mobility, and myofascial release. Sometimes more than that.

Tissue Extensibility
 

Tissue extensibility is a new term I just learned from a video. It means, "The ability to be stretched or extended." Muscles must be soft and pliable to stretch properly, so when I do myofascial release with the Thera Cane, that is my goal. I'm trying to soften up the muscles, and break up the fibers, so they have the ability to stretch without pain.

According to the video I watched, myofascial release should come before joint mobility, so I guess I'm doing things a little bit backwards, but I'm getting results. So who cares? There's more than one way to skin a cat. The end result is all that matters.