Day 1: Time to Get Serious

I am embarking on a journey, and I'm hopeful that it will be one of healing and progress. "Operation Defy" is simply my whole-hearted and extremely intentional effort to combat my physical limitations so that I will be able to pursue my passion for playing viola with all of my heart...and then some. It's not going to be easy, and thus I'm using this blog as a source of accountability so that I stay consistent and dedicated to my plan. I hope you'll join me for this adventure, and hey, you might even learn something along the way. :)

Here's my story--

I have a confession: Most of the time, I feel like I'm falling apart.

I suffer from what is known as Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, one of the most complicated repetitive stress injuries out there. Keeping it simple, TOS is the compression of the nerves, arteries, and veins of the arm as they run through the thoracic outlet, the area between the collar bone and first rib. This produces a wide variety of symptoms. For example, on my worst days, not only do I experience intense burning in my hands, arms, shoulders and neck, but ringing in my ears and jaw pain are not uncommon. This syndrome is difficult to diagnose because its symptoms mirror many other RSIs. I have had symptoms for over 3 years now, but it took 2 years to figure out what actually was wrong. While it's really hard to say how far my case will progress, one thing is for sure; it's not going away.

Last week was a breaking point. Even though I managed to survive my first semester as a music major without any major setbacks, the past month and a half I have been noticing a significant increase in symptoms. While there are numerous things that could account for this, I've narrowed it down to three. 1.)The rigorous Christmas at Luther rehearsal/performance schedule at the beginning of December, 2.)Having 90 minutes of symphony rehearsal every day over J-Term, and 3.)The fact that by November, I had gotten pretty relaxed about stretching and other exercises that I'm supposed to do, making me more vulnerable to intense activity such as Christmas at Luther. So essentially, I let my guard down.

As I said, last week was a breaking point, as that is when I fully came to terms with the fact that I had lost control of my symptoms. I cried. A lot. And I reevaluated my situation. Coming to the conclusion that I could either give up or fight, I chose to fight, realizing that I would have to be just as dedicated to my treatment as I am to my study of viola. It's time to get serious.

Fighting TOS really is a 24 hour job. Stretching, posture training, lots of water, vitamins, exercise, strength training, breathing exercises, more stretching, and stretching<--All this and more in Day 1 of Operation Defy! I sure hope this works...

Thank you for your support!

I will defy.