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Will wrist tendonitis stop my career? My hands are all i have...by Rohise
Typing my wrist pain story now even brings the fear of wrist pain. I hope my wrists can take it as i type my story. I believe there are a lot of factors which contribute to my Wrist Tendonitis. I write heavily, do household chores (sweeping), type a lot in the computer, used my right pisiform as mouse pivot and put my hands under my head when sleeping so these things added to my pain... I write heavily, as in there are marks at the back side of my paper. I write this way because i want to see my writings as dark and nice as it could be. That was how i wrote, and every time i finished writing, my wrist would feel pain. I also observed that my right ring and pinky fingers (right-handed) would hurt the most (because they are 'crushed' with my hand-writing position)...I wrote like this for about 8-10 years. Then I changed my writing style. I tried to write lighter, and with my ring and pinky fingers outstretched, but the pain is still there. Now i extend my ring and pinky finger and try to write lightly....which resulted to sloppy handwriting (but I could trade sloppiness for a pain-free hand). The next factor would be my improper computer use. It's only about a year or so that I've learned about proper computer use. My mortal sin: I've used the pisiform of my right hand (yes, additional stress to my right hand) as pivot when using the mouse. Also, I wasn't aware of proper hand position during typing (my wrists were bent when typing)...I even over-reach for the keyboard and mouse during typing. I know my mistakes, but now I try not to bend my wrists when typing, and use my mouse better. But I hope my renewed computer practices could make up for the 8 years of strain injury to my wrists. Then there are other hand activities which add stress to my hands. I do occasional sweeping, where i would rotate and rotate my wrists. During sleep, I like to put my hands under my head which literally crush them for hours. I have been putting off consulting medical advice. For one, i was very busy with school. Also, I was considering the ever-popular carpal tunnel syndrome, but after doing self-Phalen's maneuver test, and coming with negative results, i was half-convinced i don't have problems. For the time being, i was contented with heat application to ease my pain. During this time, I had wrist-pain only during after-writing, after-typing events or after-activity events. The last months of college required extensive handwriting requirements and papers to be typed, thus resulted to additional stress. I also worked as a transcriber, which basically "murdered" my wrists. For the last year, I've had a standing pain in my right wrist, with a rating of 4-6 out of 10, and after-activity rating of 8-9/10. Finally, 2 months ago I had time to schedule a consultation. I first went to a rehab MD. I narrated my symptoms, and even demonstrated the clicking sound of my right hand when i rotate it (yes, it developed clicking sounds during my 2-3 years ago). Thinking it was physical therapy, i hope to get good results. I was diagnosed with ulnar nerve compression (maybe that's why the phalen's test came negative) and treatment for my right hand included: a. paraffin wax b. ultrasound c. TENS I had five sessions of it, about 1-2x per week. Every after-therapy, my right hand had a pain scale of 0-2/10. But the pain came back. Now i consulted an ortho doctor. After examining my right hand, he said i had extensor carpi ulnaris adhesions and this formed from inflammation processes with my repetitive strain injury. And he advised that i go back to my usual activities only being mindful of good hand position. He also suggested wearing a wrist brace and prescribed celecoxib 200mg PRN for unbearable pain. I went, thereafter, to buy a wrist brace, but i was not able to find one that day. Thus that night, i improvised and splinted my right hand and went to sleep. But i committed another mistake: I splinted the palmar side super straight, thus upon waking up and after a few hand movements, I've got so much pain i just wanted to chop my hand off. After taking pain meds, I bought a right wrist brace (brand name: LP Support). However, now i have a standing wrist pain of 6-7/10 and everytime i move my hand, my joints and tendons feel weak and i think i would break any moment (there are clicking sounds almost all the time i'm moving them). And now that my right hand is braced, my left hand is doing most of the work that i think it is starting to feel fragile and have clicking sounds too. I'm starting to feel that my left hand is also having tendonitis. Currently I'm trying ice application and doing some stretching. Sometimes they work, sometimes they just worsen my pain. What should i do? Believe me, I am too nervous to do any movement with my hands. Now, I am eager to have any tendon-improving supplement, and have been doing stress ball stretching exercises for my hands during the mornings. and Sorry for this long narrative. But after I've read your wrist tendonitis article, i was surprised to see "that having wrist problem is lucky" when I feel like I'm in hell. And I have been very detailed as i can. My questions: 1. is my handwritng style ok? (extended ring and pinky fingers) 2. do you have additional advice for safe computer practices? 3. i've read that cold applications should be the treatment, did my paraffin wax and other heat therapy aggravated my condition? 4. I hope you can shed some light on what i can do for my hand. I am a fresh graduate nurse and I am fearing that this problem can interfere with my career. I am hopeful that you can help me. Thanks in advance. ---- Joshua Answers: (CONTINUED IN NEXT SECTION) ---------------------- Please reply using the comment link below. Do not submit a new submission to answer/reply, it's too hard for me to find where it's supposed to go. And, comments have a 3,000 character limit so you may have to comment twice. -----------------------  Joshua Tucker, B.A., C.M.T. The Tendonitis Expert www.TendonitisExpert.com
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