Have you ever felt a numbness or tingling sensation in your wrists or hands? Has this sensation been persistent for many months or gotten worse with time? If so, these can be the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). This condition may occur when a nerve in your hand or wrist is pinched. In most instances, it is the result of usual everyday activities, including the usage of computers. Yes, you read that right! If you are a regular computer user, you may get carpal tunnel syndrome due to the wrong or excessive usage of a mouse or keyboard.
This disorder starts gradually and slowly. It can affect one or both the wrists or hands. You can feel the tingling or numbness in your fingers, specifically in the thumbs and index fingers.
You may even feel weakness or uncomfortable sensations in your wrists.
If you are noticing mild CTS symptoms, you can ease your symptoms with certain lifestyle changes like regular use of carpal tunnel gloves while using the computer. Besides, you can follow the given tips to help you improve your CTS condition.
Whether you are typing on your computer, playing guitar or using a hand drill, you need to set a timer beforehand for using it for 15 minutes. When the timer buzzes, stop whatever you are doing and start wiggling your fingers. And, also stretch your hands and move the wrists for improving blood flow to the wrists and hands.
To keep your wrists straight to help relieve the median nerve’s pressure, you need to wear carpal tunnel gloves regularly. Also, you can use wrist cooling bands from time to time to aid the symptoms. The mentioned symptoms are more persistent at night. So, you can even consider wearing a splint at night time. If you notice an issue with repetitive tasks in the daytime, you can consider wearing wrist splints in the daytime as well.
If you observe yourself forcing or straining tasks like typing, writing or using a cash register, you must relax for a while. You should type lightly and use a soft-grip pen for writing. This way, you won’t strain your wrists while doing repetitive tasks.
You have to avoid activities that flex your wrists to the extreme. It’s best to keep your wrists neutral as much as possible. This will keep your wrist and hand muscles in good condition without leading to extreme CTS conditions.
You need hot and cold wrist gel support to relieve CTS symptoms. Always apply the hot and cold wrist gel alternatively or as directed by your physician. Make sure to repeat the application at least 2-3 times a day, depending on your condition.
If you have serious carpal tunnel syndrome, you need to seek a doctor’s help. However, a doctor may generally prescribe corticosteroids for reducing inflammation and pain. These drugs help reduce the swelling and pressure placed on your wrist’s median nerve. Even injections are an effective solution for CTS.
Your doctor can even suggest surgery for relieving nerve pressure. It may typically involve making one or more incisions in the affected area while cutting the ligament. It will release the nerve and enhance the space around the nerve.
The ligament grows back eventually and you have more space for the nerve than it was before. If the CTS is in extreme condition, surgery cannot completely clear up the symptoms. But it only helps you feel better while preventing any more damage to your nerve.
Carpal tunnel syndrome is a painful condition that can be disruptive to your everyday life activities. If you’re experiencing it for some time, it’s best to consult your doctor for relieving the pain and pressure. But before that, you can opt for general at-home remedies. If those remedies don’t work, you can contact a doctor for other treatment methods to prevent permanent nerve damage.
