My left hand hurts quite a bit. It's not constant pain, it's more like my hand is sore. I don't seem to have the same strength as I used to, and when I move my thumb it hurts more than any of the other fingers. If I rest my chin on my hand, it hurts all the way down to my wrist in sort of a line from where my thumb meets my palm. My mom, who suffers from carpel tunnel, says it sounds like I'm developing it too. I spend a lot of time on the computer for work, but I don't have any of the numbness that I read about with carpel tunnel.
Do any of you have carpel tunnel with similar symptoms to mine? Or have I just strained my thumb in some odd way?
Just in case anyone does a search for carpel tunnel and comes across this question... I wanted to update to say that my hand is all better. I must have pulled a muscle without realizing it because it hurt for about two weeks, then got slowly better over the next few weeks.. It's now early February and I have no pain. I'm glad it's not carpel tunnel (yet!).
well I have the numbness that you don't have and the lack of strength. it seems like my hands are almost detached from my body, it's hard to explain. Doc said carpel tunnel (pregnancy induced, which I didn't know was possible).
It could also be a pulled tendon. I had this several years ago when my older kids were in kindergarten. Oh my gosh but it was painful! I woke up one day and my hand hurt. I thought I slept wrong. I had it checked and the doc said that it appeared to be a pulled tendon. The pain shot from my thumb (I could not even open my hand to have my thumb more than an inch from my fingers) down my arm about half way. It lasted from August to January. I even had a massage therapist check it out and show me ways to help it. I was lucky in that it went away. But my hand does cramp up when writing and my handwriting is horrendous.
I had severe carpal tunnel a few years ago due to my job as a hairstylist and swelling from pregnancy. I almost had surgery, because it was so debilitating, but I quit my job and my swelling went down after work, so it got better. I don't remember having numbness either, just a lot of severe pain and weakness.
It sounds a lot like it could be carpel tunnel, but it could also be arthritis, which often happens with people who work on computers... you can request an ergonomic wrist pad, mouse and keyboard at work, take rests, and wear a wrist brace. Your Dr. may prescribe steroid injections and maybe physical therapy, as well as meds that could help with inflammation and pain. I would definitely get it checked out to see what it is.
Could be any of the above, including Tendonitis which can mimic Carpal Tunnel. I know the test they used for my husband (who had it in BOTH wrists) is to tap two fingers across your wrist, if there was MAJOR pain, they said it was CT.. Also note... if in mid 30s or later.. the old hormones can be acting up... some women (such as myself) get muscular aches around ovulation and right before the onset of my period.. why is that.. it's because there are greater hormone fluctuations around that time.. don't believe me... check out the net..
anyway, you may want to get a doctor's opinion...
good luck in whatever you decide to do..
I've had both of my hands done since my son was born almost five years ago. They have to test your hand to see what the nerve damage is. It doesn't hurt but it takes 30-60 minutes. I THOUGHT my right hand was worse but the test said my LEFT was REALLY bad.
I had a GREAT (and hot as hell) doctor and he fixed me up and I went back a year later and got the other one done. NO REGRETS. I wish I did it SOONER. That pain is gone INSTANTLY and it CAN'T come back! :)
The recovery time is next to NOTHING now. My husband was able to take some time off of work but I REALLY didn't need him too. It was nice to not have to change diapers for a few days while I was bandaged up.
The only way to know is to see a doctor and get a nerve test done. In the meantime you could try wearing wrist braces to see if that helps. I wore mine at night. It turns out I did not have carpal tunnel, the numbness was in the wrong fingers for that. I did go to an accupuncturist and the treatments have taken all of my hand pain away. Just another alternative. I hope you find some relief soon, hand pain is terrible to live with.
Because it is your thumb with the pain, it is probably not carpel tunnel but there are three nerves that innervate the hand and it could be one of those. You need to see a hand specialist to rule out other conditions as well. How much do you lean on your elbows? or put your head in your hand? You could be pinching a nerve higher than the wrist as well. I often "tweak" my ulnar nerve (the pinkie side of the hand) by leaning on my elbows and putting pressure on the nerve as it passes the elbow. Thankfully a little aleve and stopping putting pressure on my elbows usually cures this. Since you have lost strength, it is important to get it checked out. My mom has permanent loss of muscle due to not getting her hand checked out for too long.
If down sound like it's beginning to develop. If your mom had it, you're probably more predisposed to getting it too. Maybe look up some physical therapy you can do on your own time; if it persists, see a doctor. I've heard 50/50 proc and cons regarding the corrective surgery, so if you can do some PT that makes it feel a bit better before it gets worse, go for it! Feel better :)
