I want to extend my gratitude to
Dr. Barry. This thank you is very long overdue! The past 2.5 years (actually 10 years) have been a long journey for me. It was July 2018 when I first met Dr. Barry for my shoulder pain. I then had rotator cuff surgery and labrum repair on the right side in October 2018. I continued on in my recovery with PT and was discharged, but continued to struggle with ongoing pain and significant discomfort. Then I started seeing a new PT in May 2019, which eventually led me to being referred back to Dr. Barry in October 2019, due to possible scar tissue adhesion on my left side. This was possibly the root cause of all of my issues on the right side.
It was at this time that Dr. Barry referred me to Dr. Cantwell for a plastic surgery consult on the scar tissue. Dr. Cantwell performed surgery on the left chest wall on January 15, 2020. It was indeed a scar tissue adhesion, almost 3 inches long, caused by the chest tube inserted between my ribs when I was born prematurely almost 45 years ago. This scar tissue adhesion had also “tacked down” my muscles, not allowing them to move. With this surgery by Dr. Cantwell, it finally released my muscles to move freely again.
I want to thank Dr. Barry for listening to me when the second PT referred me back to him, and then for referring me to Dr. Cantwell. The surgery he performed changed my life! Without this surgery I would still be in significant discomfort and pain. I would still be unable to perform many activities of daily living without pain. I have been in extensive PT, and still am in PT with another provider. I continue to make progress each week, correcting all of the overcompensations, and am doing things I have not been able to do in a very long time!
This scar tissue adhesion appeared about 10 years ago. As time went on, it limited my mobility and caused me to create significant over competencies; hence my right side taking over for the left’s immobility, causing the damage to my right rotator cuff and labrum. Over the years, I had shown this ridge/deformity to various health care providers, only for it to be dismissed or they would say they didn’t know what it was.
This experience has truly been a journey. It deepened my faith and helped me push for answers on the strange deformity on my left side, as I felt there had to be more of a reason for my ongoing pain, discomfort, and inability to get better physically on my right side. And there most certainly was a reason! THANK YOU AGAIN to Dr. Barry for listening, acknowledging my concerns and referring me to Dr. Cantwell. There are not enough words to express my gratitude and thankfulness to you!
