Whenever possbile, when parking your car, even if you have to park farther away, find a place you can pull through so you do not have to wrench your neck around to back out of a parking space.
The furniture you relax in like living room couch or chair, should fit 'your seat'. When you sit, your feet should be on the floor, your back, head and neck supported and not pushed forward.
If the fit is not right, prop yourself with pillows, even using a large bed pillow to get the fit right.
Learn ways to de-stress. Deep breathing techniques can be very helpful.
A Therea-cane or S-hook can be helpful for massage.
I have found The Trigger Point Therapy Workbook to be a helpful resource.
You may enjoy loud, fast-paced music; however, softer, calming music may be a refreshing tension reliever.
Educate yourself on your health condition. Knowledge can help take the fear and stress from the situation. Libraries, internet searches, youtube videos, forums of TOS patients can all be very informative and helpful.
Learn to break down some jobs into smaller more manageable tasks. Such as carrying groceries-ask for bags to be loaded very lightly, and carry less. Many stores will load your groceries for you as a free service if you request.
Take care to get enough sleep, the lack of which greatly affects stress and tension levels, and therefore can trigger TOS pain symptoms.
Melatonin tablets can be helpful. A small snack at bedtime may be advised to avoid middle of the night drop in blood sugar from waking you.
Find and utilize the support systems you need to cope with TOS.
Online support groups and forums can be a great encouragement and resource.
Local hospitals, community centers, churches and libraries all can be places for meetings that might benefit you and help you meet others with similar concerns.
Stay tuned for Juggling TOS 103....comming soon!
