[Leesha]

Hi everyone,
I've been reading this site for awhile now and it has been really helpful... so I thought i'd join so hopefully I can find out more...
So a little about me first...

When I turned 17 my hand started cramping up, I didnt think anything of it, but then things started getting worse... I constantly have pain in my right arm, its a real heavy feeling, like im carrying something and just can't put it down (does anyone else get this??). I have a really busy life, working 5 different jobs, and trying to stay on top of my studies aswell. My hand tires easily and I now cant do certain activities, such as writing because of it... In the last 6 months all of a sudden my hand has become weaker, i can not open doors properly anymore, and even using spray bottles is difficult. The doctors tested me for MS and Parkinsons and other stuff like that (all coming back clear =) ), ive been on what feels like 100 different tablets, and none of them worked, they just gave me side effects, so i stopped taking anything all together and just learnt to deal with the pain.

I was constantly in and out of hospital getting tests, blood tests, MRI's, nerve conduction studies..... etc etc.... I was getting no where, i was spending all this money and everything kept coming back normal.... my neurologist sent me to a surgeon who said it could be TOS, and that he'd do exploratory surgery, but I said no, because there was no real proof that it would even work.... I started to think maybe it was all in my head because nobody could find anything!!!

....Until 3months ago, when i became pretty sick with a cough that just would not go away.... I had just changed GP's and she sent me to get chest Xrays to see if there was water on my lungs.... there wasnt, but in the xray she found out that I have an extra 1st rib (in both left and right side of my chest) ... i explained to her about the pain I have in my right arm and how i am seeing a specialist, and asked if this extra rib could have anything to do with the pain... she explained that it definatly could, and contacted my neurologist.... from here itz sort of been like a rollercoaster ride... for 3 years everything had come back normal (or so i thought) and now i just found out that i need to have surgery, the sooner the better 2.... they have just re done tests, and things have dramatically dropped, i dont understand it all, but my test results have come back worse then before, so they want me 2 get the surgery before things become irraversable // or worse...

thing is im a dance teacher, and have finally got myself to where I wanna be after years of work... i dont know much about surgery, like recovery time and stuff... im seeing the surgeon in 2 weeks, but wanted to know peoples stories who have had their rib removed, the success of the op, and what their symptoms were before they got the op....

i had never heard of TOS before, and there is not alot of info about it around, so i was hoping i could learn from other people who have dealt // are dealing with the same thing...

any info would be great to hear, especially what the operation involves =)