1. Get an anatomy book so that you can SEE your anatomy and the muscles involved. I got the Wolf-Heidegger Color Atlas of Human Anatomy. I also got the Anatomy Coloring book to put pen to brain to help me see the connections of things.
2. Know that for many POSTURE IS KEY. Rounded shoulders, concaved chests ...all bad. Straighten up...shoulders down and back. Head neutral and back...spine and neck straight. Google forward head to see how bad that position is.
3. If posture is key for you (not everyone) you MUST strengthen the back muscles i.e. mid trapezius, rhomboids and serratus anterior to HOLD the scapula back and down. Usually (at least in my case) it is the scapula that is angle forward and down (because of the rounded shoulders) that causes the compression. Know that the scapula has a front protrusion and thus is NOT limited to being only part of your pack. Know that it interacts with the clavicle (AC joint) which interacts with your rib cage (sternum and first rib)...ah...you say..the points where the Brachial Plexus pass.....YES! BP passes behind the clavicle area near the sternum and first rib...also near the pec minor and coracoid process (the latter is the front protrusion of the scapula)...SEE this and you begin to understand why POSTURE is key and why standing and sitting with shoulders back and down helps. I have now started to get rid of some flare ups by working this more and more. I lie on a foam roller length wise and when I flare I can work the muscles in my back to open my shoulders and within about 5 minutes I can relieve myself of the flare up. NOt saying all would be successful with this...I am getting there. Still have issues that I'm patiently working with. But it is always great to find a successful remedy.

hi everyone, i have two assignments to finish this weekend so i will be brief.
i think most of you know that i believe that many TOS people may have the same problem that i have, partial long thoracic palsy. it wasnt picked up because the test is, to push against a wall and if your scapula wings, they consider that you have got it, if it does not, they consider that you dont. my scapula stability varies markedly in sympathy with the TOS symptoms or should i say TOS symptoms worsen as the scapula stability worsens. all TOS sufferers symptoms worsen when they use their arms out in front of their body or have to perform repetitive tasks that require constant scapula stability. I contend that it is the weakness of the serratus anterior muscle that causes the other scapula stabilizers (rhomboids, trapezius, pectoralis minor) muscles to work much harder to perform simple things like combing ones hair, driving the car, pushing the shopping trolley, etc. the continuous overuse of these muscles causes, tight thoracic spine (T4 syndrome), strange neural symptoms down ones arm (pec minor syndrome, hyperabduction syndrome), rotator cuff tendonitis (real pain in the shoulder).
chiropractors maintain that a tight thoracic spine will cause neural compromise to the nerves which make up the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. an example of this is the nerve which controls the vasoconstriction for the upper limb comes from T2. When i received treatment from an occ physician which included a gym program and neural stretching my condition worsened, i started suffering new symptoms such as cyanosis and coldness in my r hand. i have received treatment for the thoracic tightness between my scapula from a chiropractor and i have not had cyanosis for 2 years and my hand might feel cold once a month instead of a few times a day. dry needling was and is an important part of releasing and controlling the tight thoracic muscles. limiting the use of the affected arm ( and therefore not scapula stabilizing) is an important part of ensuring that the muscles do not go into spasm again. Eventually the medical establishment will recognise the significance of muscles in spasm in the thoracic spine just as they recognise the significance of muscle spasms in the lumbar spine. regards towelhorse