YES. Numbness in my hands, especially when grasping objects for any length of time (knives, for example, or steering wheels, bike handles, etc).
Wearing wrist braces at night helps. I use these: Wrist Braces They take a bit of getting used to, but after a few weeks they are just part of the routine and I don't feel like I can sleep without them. They're not a cure but they make me capable of using my hands in the morning.
You can also do finger and wrist stretches. Basically putting your fingers against the edge of a table and pushing down to stretch out the tendons, then relaxing your wrists and keep pushing and stretching out the tendons in your wrists.
The numbness makes you think it's a circulation issue but it's not. I used to shake my hands trying to "get the blood flowing" and it would work -- but only because I was taking a break from grasping, not because I needed extra bloodflow.
​
I went to a specialist. Luckily I have health insurance through my wife.
He gave me injections in my wrists, but warned me that the injections can last anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 years. It's hard to tell. Most people end up getting the surgery within a year or two of being diagnosed.
That was about a year ago, and the numbness is back. It's getting worse. I will probably need the surgery. He said the surgery is very quick, effective, and low risk.
(for the record, I'm 41)
It's likely a TFCC tear. Very common for climbing. Link to wrist widget on amazon which includes testing for TFCC tear.
I just wanted to share what's been helping my pregnancy carpal tunnel in case anyone is suffering from it like I am. I went from my hands randomly falling asleep to waking up all night long in pain with my hands completely asleep, and not getting blood flow back to them for at least 10 minutes at a time.
I bought 2 of these splints along with Biofreeze which I put on right before bed. So far they've been great and I've only woken up a couple of times when my arm was in a really weird position. Ice also works when they start throbbing during the day. Pregnancy is fun! 😆
A SAM splint is a no-brainer here. Small and lightweight, reusable, and great for temporarily immobilizing extremities until you can get a proper splint.
No way to tell if one's better than another without using them. I got this one and really like it. a) no stinky neoprene, b) palm splint is removable - which should be done, as that only puts pressure right on the palm and may worsen the problem.
I would say rest and maybe consider purchasing a TFCC wrist brace like this one.
I have one myself and it's been doing well, combined with some rice bucket exercises post-climbing. I asked one of my gyms physio's about them and they had good things to say about it, that they're one of the few things they'd recommend to people trying to rehab a wrist injury.
You can always tape up of course but I personally found it inconsistent. Some days it would work fine and others I'd wake up the next day with pain.
I've had carpal tunnel for a while now in both hands. Recently, it's become much worse, and I just requested "reasonable accommodation" (mouse and numeric keypad) from work today. I'm not great about wearing them, but these wrist braces Amazon Link have been the only thing so far that relieves the numbness. They are far better than the braces available at drugstores, and after more than 2 years of use, both are still in great condition. Highly recommend!
Edit: just a tip - don't wear them tight. It's enough to just keep your hand in this relaxed position, even during work.
I don’t like wearing them at night because it makes me feel restricted and claustrophobic, but I have this one for nights when my wrist really bothers me. It’s super cushiony, no bar but tons of support. It’s completely impractical to wear during the day because there is that much cushion, it’s super comfy.
This one has really good support, doesn’t poke, and is great if you have scrawny wrists, but it’s also adjustable enough for wide wrists. It’s the perfect shape for me, I have trouble finding a good fit with most. I recommend it for during the day but I don’t think I’d be able to sleep with any of the ones with a bar, and the others don’t do much most of the time.
I've used and liked very much one of these. The palm splint can be removed.
Make sure there is 5-10 degrees of flexibility; too tight will cause stiffness and too loose will cause pain.
I can not wear any with hard supports like metal or plastic, those actually made it worse by increasing pressure points. The night ones I use are the kind that is squishy. Beads or gel pads both work.
This is simular to the one I have now. I bought the last one at cvs because I like to try them on as I have small hands/wrist so the one size does not always work for me.
Hope this helps.
Could you just hold the bag in your other hand? You can also buy braces that could help with support at just about any pharmacy, walmart, target, etc. I’m not sure how much it would help with a SH injury, but that’s probably your best bet. If you can only use bandages, wrap it tight (but not so tight that it impairs blood flow!) and splint with some popsicle sticks if you have any- here is a loose tutorial.
Yes, hurts like hell. This thing allowed me to play almost pain free as long as your not making heavy contact with the ground.
I'm normally cynical about gimmicky things but honestly did an awesome job. WristWidget
I had the same problem when I started using my deck in bed to watch TV shows on / game at night, terrible wrist pain after an hour or two.
I fixed it by ordering two of these wrist braces off of amazon and wearing them when I'm in any kind of a prone position and playing with my deck.
I know it's not an elegant solution and it's definitely not for everyone, but I can honestly say this has helped immensely with my wrist pain and I've gotten used to the feel of my deck in my hands with the wrist braces on so it feels normal to me now.
I wear a "wrist widget" when I play, because I also have wrist pain. This has help tremendously, for me.
https://www.amazon.com/FUTURO-48462-Support-Nighttime-Symptoms-Breathable/dp/B0057D86QA this looks a lot like the braces that i wore before i got custom ones made. they're padded so it's softer on your wrists, but they have rigid metal in them that keeps the wrist from bending. i agree that soft support does nothing for me while i sleep, i need something stiffer.
so idk what your exact injury is, but I sprained my TFCC in my dominant hand/wrist 14 weeks out from a meet this year. I am still taping my wrist or wearing the Wrist Widget every single workout. The ortho I saw cleared me to do anything that didn't hurt, so I did--but that limited me pretty significantly, I couldn't lift off my own benches anymore, couldn't use anything but straight bar to squat, etc. My shoulders and elbows were absolutely trashed as a result. I thought about dropping out of that meet about 400 times and probably should have, to be honest. If you're a beginner and this isn't a "life goal" or money meet (the one I did was a life goal meet and likely my only chance to do it for quite a while), I'd rehab the wrist correctly and push your comp out toward the end of the year. I honestly don't know how long I'm going to be paying for pushing through with my wrist; nearly 8 months later, it still hurts like a SOB sometimes.
This was me for 6 months I can tell you exactly what I did and treatment. For me it was so bad I couldn't hold the bottle or brush my teeth. Speaking for myself I didn't get any shots bc to me it was a bandaid. I needed to treat the inflammation and strain. No judgment towards others that have but that's just my thinking, masking the pain but not treating it but yet still using the hand the same way without any changes isn't the solution.
Here's what I did - it's not 100% recovered but about 95%. We have to come to terms with this possibly being a life long thing like how people pull the sciatic nerve you always gotta be mindful it never really goes away.
1) epson salt soaks every night with water as hot as u can stand it for minimally 15 minutes. Important to use the right amount of salt to water ratio.
2) brace brace brace BRACE!!!!! I always wore a brace to elevate the pain and from misusing the thumb tendon. What u feel is the tendon being inflamed and twisting around - this brace absolutely hands down helped me I can't recommend it enough.
Mueller Reversible Thumb... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004YIFA2C?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
3) and brace again lol - I can't tell you how much this thing saved my hand I wore to sleep as well and my mother who developed the mothers thumb too swears by it.
4) excercises for the thumb and wrist to recondition the nerve, I did this everyday I truly believe it helped me. My mother again who isn't really into this eventually did it too bc her wrist and hands got so bad she couldn't hold a fork either. This happens when u ignore the problem and just takes longer to heal.
Check out Featol. BTW, palm splints put pressure right where it could cause even more damage. So take it out and just make sure you have 5-10 degrees of flexibility. Too tight will cause stiffness and too loose will cause pain. And I would only use it at night. If you need it 24/7, you may need more than braces.
I currently use this brace. It was given to me by a occupational health doctor at work. I’ve read that using braces too much can lead to muscle atrophy so I try to only use it when I really need it.
- Make sure your setup has good ergonomics, and that you have good posture when working as a whole. your pain in your wrist/fingers can come from postural issues higher up like in your elbow, shoulder, neck, as a lot of that stuff is connected.
- try using a soft padded night brace. These really helped for me in the past. they make sure that when you sleep you aren't messing up your wrist/fingers any more due to their angle or position. I've used this one and it was good: https://www.amazon.com/FUTURO-48462-Support-Nighttime-Symptoms-Breathable/dp/B0057D86QA/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1C5JNNF32U0AA&keywords=night+wrist+brace&qid=1654573730&sprefix=night+wrist+brac%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-5 I found these to help more than wearing braces while working.
That’s carpal tunnel. Conservatively treat for now. Buy a splint from amazon and wear 24/7 as much as you can. Repetitive motions can cause it. Same with pregnancy hormones.
Wrist Brace for Carpal Tunnel, Adjustable Wrist Support Brace with Splints Right Hand, Small/Medium, Arm Compression Hand Support for Injuries, Wrist Pain, Sprain, Sports https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BK4PXF7/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_DEMV7GY9NA2G93Q92ZPQ?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
If it doesn’t resolve, the next step would be steroid injection (pretty simple actually, but you will need some medical friends to do it for you).
This wrist supporter is magic! I also had an ulnar side injury (tear of the TFCC) after a biking accident that resulted in severe pain and stiffness. Using the wrist widget during keiko made a huge difference, and with PT I fully recovered in about year. You’ll barely notice it under your kote and it’s super affordable if you end up losing it. Hope it helps and good luck!
WristWidget (TM) - Patented, Adjustable Support, Wrist Brace For TFCC Tear- Triangular Fibrocartilage Injuries, Ulnar Sided Wrist Pain, Weight Bearing Strain - Left Or Right Hand - Regular BLACK https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0056PQV2K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_V3SEE251RSTBH2HAZ9J7?psc=1
It was a super basic wrist brace from the drugstore, no splint or anything, and it was okay. I put it in pretty tight and the compression helped. If this happens again I will get a specific thumb stabilizer brace like this https://www.amazon.com/Mueller-Medicine-Reversible-Stabilizer-Measure/dp/B004YIFA2C/
I bought this one off Amazon which is a softer brace and seemed to have really good reviews, but unfortunately seemed to do nothing for me :( maybe it will just take a couple nights of wearing to notice though.
You need something like this.
OP- you have to get the brace! Otherwise it’ll keep getting worse. Specifically- a night brace like this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005YU8TMC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_i_SCMXH4N1WS8SPDMCKSRN?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
I am still working through the diagnosis and treatment with my doctor. They want more tests, but I bought a brace that keeps my thumb from being used and it works well. I wear it all the time pretty much if it’s hurting. Here is the Amazon link
Mueller Reversible Thumb... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004YIFA2C?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
These were my favorite. Soft, no weird compression spots. Not needlessly long. Straps are easy to use. You can fairly easily cut a slit into it so you can take the metal brace in/out. They're supportive even without it.
For Carpal Tunnel, I recommend a wrist brace, tell her to wear it consistently every night. She can take medications such as ibuprofen if the pain is bad. If there’s so improvement over the course of wearing the brace for a month or two, she may need to see a hand surgeon who can either inject steroids into the carpal tunnel or do a procedure where they cut open the carpal tunnel from the inside which will relieve the pressure and fix the problem. CBD offers no benefit for this disease.
For depression, you need to talk to a therapist. There are certain therapies available through counseling that will help, and if those fail or she needs extra help, there are anti-depressants that she can go on for a short period of time. CBD, as with carpal tunnel, does not have any proven benefits for depression. Self medicating through a drug with no benefit for depression will not help.
TL;DR - CBD offers no benefits for depression or carpal tunnel, avoid it, talk to your regular doctor for more help.
I used to have the same problem. Get a night splint (or two). They are very cushy and have a little pillow in the palm area. My doctor recommended to me and it was instant relief. Available at Walgreens/cvs - usually about $20 from what I remember.
ACE - 209626 Night Wrist Sleep Support, Helps relieve symptoms of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005YU8TMC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_YFDJKECMGCDQKHTABJN7?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1