Well I'm 3 1/2 months post first rib excision........ make a long story short ( necessity due to newly increased pain.)
I've had a terrible relapse!!!!!!!
My shoulder/neck/arm feels alien to me, it has its own agenda.... to bring me pain.
I did a clean around the house at the weekend and I'm paying for it.
It feels like my muscles have ripped, I'm having sweats from the discomfort and back on meds. DAMN IT!!!
I actually feel worse than pre op and I'm kind of at the pain level of about 2 weeks post op.... VERY TENDER>>>>>>OUCH.
I've posponed my scheduled next op for the other side and seriously considering cancelling it altogether, that is if my vein is not too compressed. I'm due to see the surgeon again after the New Year for another consultation ( watch this space).
Has anyone else relapsed around this stage of post op??????
PLEASE BE WARNED...... Take extra care post op! Recovery for me anyway is ALOT longer than what was stated.
Best wishes to all

Yes, I started getting worse at nearly the same time. I had a very difficult 2 months following surgery. Then I had about 3 weeks where I was using less pain medication and feeling better. Then the window just seemed to close.

That was almost seven years ago. Since then I've gotten progressively worse. My life is infinitely smaller than it was pre-surgery. Knowing what I know now, I would never have decided to have surgery in the first place. I thought I was bad pre-surgery, but I really had no idea of what bad really meant.

I hope your set-back is just temporary. Pay attention to your body if it's telling you that house cleaning is too much.

Good luck,
Kelly

While this is annoying because I can't get much done, I do not house clean for more than 15 mins at one time. It's a rule. I use a timer and when the timer beeps, what's done is done and the rest will wait. I haven't even tried 2 X a day yet, although I think I'm ready for it (one morning session, one evening, 10-12 hours apart).

TOS is so weird. If I baby it, I can start to feel better, but a little overdoing and I get reminded that all is not right.

Interestingly, I can do therapeutic exercises from PT books or from my PT for an entire hour and be fine. It's the chaotic movements of housecleaning that exacerbate my symptoms.

Figure out what your limit is and respect it at all times. Increment it only when you have an explicit reason why you think you might be able to, like a lasting reduction in symptoms. Make the increments small.

Thank you so much for your input and great tips....... timer, here I come!!!!
I must promise to myself to not do too much and limit my time on chores, no matter what.
It's a reminder that TOS is here to stay, op or no op!
Take care xxxx

You're welcome.

My PT said that the way she looks at the surgery is that it helps patients manage their TOS better (increased blood flow, less crowding, etc.). They still have to take care of it and manage it.

My comment was directed as much to me as it was to you. I forget my limits, too, or just get mad that I have them. Sometimes when I feel the worst I am more inclined to power through the pain. I figure I feel awful anyway so I might as well get something accomplished.

Take care.

Many thanks for your input....... It's not fun, is it!!!!!! Best wishes to you also. xxxx

Had the surgery in Sept. 2011, and I am also having a lot of pain. I wake up every morning in pain and the more I keep arms at my sides, the better I do. If I use them at all, I get a lot of pain and spasms in arms, neck and shoulder than the tingling starts. This is a crazy syndrome. I have also been experiencing stabbing pain in the side of my neck that will go up toward the top of my head, that really sucks. The meds I am currently taking don't seem to help.

Pretty much the same issues here, I get a horrible sharp stabbing pain behind the collarbone and in the vein just above it ( the incision )........ I really do have to limit myself!!!!!!!!!
Make sure you pace yourself too. First rib excision Surgery recovery is not as simple/quick as the surgeons tend to suggest.
BEST WISHES TO YOU.