arm/wrist/elbow pain

[destinydai.livejournal.com]

my entire right arm hurts, and hurts something fierce. it's been doing this on and off for 2 weeks or so, usually after i get home from work, after spending 8 hours on and off in front of a computer, but today it started hurting at work

i read up a bit on carpal tunnel, but they all describe pain middle finger to thumb, and mine is middle finger to pinky. miserable aching pain in the wrist, shooting up to my elbow, and today my hand started getting that tingling feeling.

so, i'd rather not go to a dr and i wanna fix it or help it before it gets worse. we're moving soon, and hopefully i'll change careers, but for now i'd like some helpful tips over:

wrist exercises - to strengthen and/or increase circulation
herbs or supplements to help pain or reduce pressure or swelling in the joints
heat? or cool compresses?
splints or wraps?

and any other general tips from anyone else who may have gone thru this

i might just have to learn how to be left handed

copied - pasted - crossposted

Comments

[judithskiss.livejournal.com]

i feel your pain:

gently bend your hand backward against something and extend the stretch all the way down your arm. i like to lay my hand flat on a table and bend my knees so that my butt almost touches the floor. this should give your whole arm a nice stretch. also, try to massage the muscles and tendons in your underarm area (where your pits are). be sure to spend some time stretching both of your arms.
as for herbs, a low daily dose of willow bark should help dialate your capillaries, letting blood flow a little more freely. eat warm foods and root veggies, things with ceyenne pepper and ginger. breathe honey. deep yoga style. you don't have to be a guru to do all this stuff either.

hope you feel better

[czarina69.livejournal.com]

Most carpal tunnel can be fought by having exercises that counter the over-used muscles. For example, I use pliers and torches all day long. This is alot of squeezing. I counter-act that buy typing or piano.

Also, epsom salt soaks.

[return2vishnu.livejournal.com]

It's best if you can change your posture to stop this from happening.

Strong dosage of B-6 300 mg daily as well as vitamin C (3,000-9,000 mg) daily will help allot.

Hot salt water packs as well applied to the area.

Sincerely,

Eric
the herbalist
atreyablue@yahoo.com

[aboxofeyes.livejournal.com]

I don't know about CT issues so much, but I've got a repetitive stress injury in my right shoulder/neck (also from excessive computer work and bad posture). I went to the doctor and she sent me right to physical therapy, no drugs or anything. It worked wonders. It's more expensive than finding exercises online, but it's great to have someone explain how to do all the movements correctly and to keep an eye on you while you're learning. Since I met with just my therapist after the diagnosis, it was very easy on the nerves. No scary doctors all the time.

Hope you get better soon!