Carpal Tunnel Treatment Can Ease Pain
Many people who get carpal tunnel syndrome are diagnosed as having it caused by work tasks. Careers that require repetitive hand use for hours and hours can bring on CTS. If you find that you are getting this painful and possibly debilitating condition from work, there are preventive measures that you can take that may relieve your symptoms.
Start by the basic advice: If it hurts, stop. This means that if your dominant wrist is the one that's injured, avoid using it for routine tasks. These include pouring water, holding a soda, or turning a doorknob. What you want to do is reduce the usage level without giving up productive time at work. You want to take pressure off the swollen wrist and nerve sheathes.
If you do a lot with computers, adjust your desk chair so that your keyboard is at the same height as your elbows while you sit. You should get an ergonomically friendly keyboard, too, so that you can work rapidly with minimal movement of wrists and minimal stretching of the digits. Your wrists, hands, and forearms should all be aligned and parallel to the floor when you are typing. Get a wrist pad so that your wrists aren't hanging just hanging in the air, forcing you to put pressure on the median nerve by holding up your wrists. The wrist pad lets you rest your wrists while you work.
About every hour or so, give yourself a 10-minute break (make sure your manager understands why you have to do this). Get up from your task and just walk about and maybe shake out your wounded wrist. This helps prevent you from pushing yourself too hard and maybe causing more harm to your wrist. You should also massage your wrist and hand. You should do this at lunch time, at home, and whenever you get a chance. This helps with blood circulation, which can possibly help heal the swollen joints and tissues that are putting the pressure on the median nerve.
At night when you sleep, you should try wearing a splint of some kind to prevent any wrist movement that could cause more irritation or inflammation. Do this for up to two weeks and see what your results are. Some people with CTS find it helpful to hang their hand over the edge of the bed while they sleep. This can relieve pressure. At home when you are awake, use something like Icy Hot on the injured wrist, or just use alternating applications of heat and cold.
Beyond these home remedies comes the realm of the physical therapist. There are several specialized exercises designed to strengthen the muscles around the carpal tunnels, and they're usually non invasive, though they may recommend hot wraps and compresses after the exercises to keep the muscles and tendons in the right place while new muscle tissue is built up. The ultimate goal is to get carpal tunnel syndrome to fade away on its own.
Start by the basic advice: If it hurts, stop. This means that if your dominant wrist is the one that's injured, avoid using it for routine tasks. These include pouring water, holding a soda, or turning a doorknob. What you want to do is reduce the usage level without giving up productive time at work. You want to take pressure off the swollen wrist and nerve sheathes.
If you do a lot with computers, adjust your desk chair so that your keyboard is at the same height as your elbows while you sit. You should get an ergonomically friendly keyboard, too, so that you can work rapidly with minimal movement of wrists and minimal stretching of the digits. Your wrists, hands, and forearms should all be aligned and parallel to the floor when you are typing. Get a wrist pad so that your wrists aren't hanging just hanging in the air, forcing you to put pressure on the median nerve by holding up your wrists. The wrist pad lets you rest your wrists while you work.
About every hour or so, give yourself a 10-minute break (make sure your manager understands why you have to do this). Get up from your task and just walk about and maybe shake out your wounded wrist. This helps prevent you from pushing yourself too hard and maybe causing more harm to your wrist. You should also massage your wrist and hand. You should do this at lunch time, at home, and whenever you get a chance. This helps with blood circulation, which can possibly help heal the swollen joints and tissues that are putting the pressure on the median nerve.
At night when you sleep, you should try wearing a splint of some kind to prevent any wrist movement that could cause more irritation or inflammation. Do this for up to two weeks and see what your results are. Some people with CTS find it helpful to hang their hand over the edge of the bed while they sleep. This can relieve pressure. At home when you are awake, use something like Icy Hot on the injured wrist, or just use alternating applications of heat and cold.
Beyond these home remedies comes the realm of the physical therapist. There are several specialized exercises designed to strengthen the muscles around the carpal tunnels, and they're usually non invasive, though they may recommend hot wraps and compresses after the exercises to keep the muscles and tendons in the right place while new muscle tissue is built up. The ultimate goal is to get carpal tunnel syndrome to fade away on its own.
About the Author:
Tom Nicholson has been teaching those who suffer from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome find easy, effective methods of treatment for years. Let him show you some simple and easy carpal tunnel exercises that can ease your uncomfortable symptoms. Learn what so many people have already learned - treatment doesn't have to be invasive or costly to work!
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