A further word about carpal tunnel. I found an old neurology book
that sited the use of cortisone injections for some cases where
surgery is not desired. It seems that some drs still do that with
good results.
I have had carpal tunnel for about 18 years, long before it became
so trendy. I had the cortisone shot, but the doctor said it would
last only about 3 months. Almost to the day, the symptoms were back.
I opted for surgery in my right hand (I’m right handed). It went
really well after a week of not being able to use it. I would highly
recommend the surgery for advanced cases. It has never been even a
moment’s problem since. My left hand sometimes has symptoms, and
when it does, I wear a brace for a month or so, 24/7 and so far that
has always been enough, but if it got as bad as the right hand did,
I would have the surgery again.
I found an old neurology book that sited the use of cortisone
injections for some cases where surgery is not desired. It seems
that some drs still do that with good results.
Steroids – and cortisone is a steroid – do work for reducing
inflammation and pain. They also destroy tissue and cause bone
loss! Steroids are a double-edged sword and should be injected only
when pain is extreme and, even then, infrequently and with great
care.
Hello Beth and all I have had the surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome
and when doing computer work find a good chair is a must, same as for
doing jewellery. Next important thing is to make sure the keyboard
and mouse is at the proper height for you when you are sitting. Also
a gel pad to rest my wrist on when using the keypad, and I use an
ergonomic curved keyboard on my computer though my husbands is
standard. Your arm from the elbow to the hand should be straight,
that is the wrist should not bend when you type. The same is true for
the mouse. I have a mousepad that has a raised portion at the back to
help to keep my arm straight.
Also if you are doing computer work for extended periods of time you
should make sure to break every 15 to 30 minutes and look at other
than the computer screen, drop your hands towards the floor and shake
out the kinks. If time allows go for a brief walk and get a drink of
water. After 15 minutes staring at the screen we forget to rest our
eyes and everything else. This causes us to stare too hard at the
screen and concentrate so hard that we forget that we are also
tensing our bodies. All these contribute to problems with wrists,
eyes, shoulder, neck and headaches. We can also have these problems
at the bench where we should do similar practices.
Think about it. We seem to like to punish ourselves :).
Karen Bahr “the Rocklady” (@Rocklady)
K.I.S. Creations
May your gems always sparkle.
Hi, Frif-- Your situation with carpal tunnel sounds like a major
drag. I just had a thought-- you could made custom grips using Jett
Sett or the like, including “pistol grip” type, as whatever angle is
comfortable. Stick your little dop stick in one end of a softened
handful of Jett Sett, squeeze into a good shape, hold it til; it
holds its shape. What do you think?
ps you can’t keep up cortisone shots, it will destroy the bones
My equipment does not vibrate excessively, and I don’t have carpel
tunnel, but I do have a very common circulation problem called
Raynaud’s Phenomenon. Lots of people have this and don’t even
realize it has a name. The most noticeable symptoms are “red, white,
and blue” colors in the fingers and toes during a flair up,
sometimes swelling, and sensitivity to cold. Cutting stones with
warm water helps as well as not cutting on cold damp days. Vibration
can also aggravate the problem. The good news is that it’s a great
excuse to live in Mediterranean climates like the Bay Area!
I too have Raynaud’s Syndrome/ Phenomenon in my hands. When it
flares up it causes the circulation in some of my fingers to be
greatly diminished and they turn white and become somewhat numb.
Very annoying when in the middle of a project. It happens most
frequently in the winter when cutting stones with cold water in the
basement. (Guess I should try tapping into the hot water line
also!) Rarely happens in the summer. (Michigan climate.) The best
remedy I have found when this happens is to lower my hands and hold
them under warm water until the circulation starts again and the
color comes back.
Dale in Michigan where summer could be starting any time now. I
hope!
I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia (mummbledy) years ago - which is a
syndrome, a collection of symptoms, rather than a disease. My
version was described as ‘tendonitis of the body.’ Besides my body,
both hands were so swollen with Carpal Tunnel they were nearly
useless. I even had the middle of my tongue go numb from swelling.
I got cortisone shots from the carpal tunnel specialist, the
symptoms went away for only one month and then the rheumatologist put
me on oral cortisone and Motrin and said ‘this is your life, get used
to it.’ Luckily I had an office job at the time, as I was practically
disabled for any ‘real’ work.
Long story short, four years later I’m reading a pamphlet on
Magnesium therapy for a wide range of ills. Open to anything that
would get me off cortisone, I checked toxicity on Magnesium…the
worst it’ll do is put you in the loo for a while (think Philips Milk
of Magnesia). I started taking therapeutic doses (as much as you can
take without getting the trots) of simple, cheap Magnesium and a
month later I was off the cortisone completely.
Another three to four years later and now I take 150% of the RDA for
maintenance and only have problems when I miss my magnesium for a
week or so (I hate taking pills!).
I’m sure this won’t necessarily help EVERYONE, but it couldn’t hurt,
and about 75% of the people I know who’ve tried it are getting good
results.
You should try 'Magnesium Chloride USP (MgCl2j.6H2O). It is
available by ordering from a pharmacy as a hexahydrate. A 500 gm
bottle cost us $35 CAD. You mix 1/4 cp of the magnesium with 1 liter
of water and take 1-2 tablespoons in juice once a day. It is quite
bitter that is why we mix it with juice. You keep it in a container
in the fridge until used. It lasts up to a month.
As you mentioned, you know if you have taken too much for your body
if you develop diarrhea, so you just cut back. Some people might need
to double this dosage. A doctor in Mexico told us about this remedy
for any aches and pains that are arthritic like such as - arthritis,
carpal tunnel, bursitis, joint or bone aches. My husband swears by
it.
Magnesium is the pain mineral, utilized by the body to help control
pain. The above form is very quickly and easily digested by the body
whereas some peoples digestive systems to not digest pills well.
Karen Bahr “the Rocklady” (@Rocklady) K.I.S. Creations
May your gems always sparkle.
I don’t know about that: ingesting supra-vital (more than the body
needs) levels of Magnesium Chloride might induce serious bone
derangements such as demineralization and perhaps nervous conditions
related to improper membrane transfer of ions. At the very least you
might have bladder stones after this regime. Better check with a
nutritionist.