Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Have always had trouble with my hands going to sleep at night to some degree. Always figured it was the penalty to pay for years of construction, metal work and wood gathering. It has gradually been getting worse. Last few months I have been doing a lot of fishing and not much else. Hands have been hurting from grasping the rod all day. Then, we put in 200 ft of new cedar fence and remodeled the back of the woodshed which incorporated part of the fence. These tasks involved unloading and restacking the shed to make room for the remodel and also breaking down the old fence panels to sell the best boards and convert the rest to kindling. Upshot is horrible pain in my hands at night and dull pain and pins and needles during the day. Diagnosis is moderate to severe CTS, tendonitis, some arthritis and a small bit of diabetic nephropathy thrown in as well. Now working on scheduling the first operation. Still have about 10 fence panels to break down and about half the woodshed to stack as well as 2.5 cords of Doug Fir rounds to css. All this and other projects are on hold for three months or more! On the bright side, I have 3+ cords of 3 year seasoned wood in the shed and 5.5 cords of 2-3 year seasoned wood stacked and top covered in the yard so we are fixed for the winter as we only burn 2.5-3 cords per year unless the winter is unusually harsh. I guess my purpose in writing this is to convince myself that this is not a disaster for this years burning season. Also to convince myself that the operations are the best and fastest way to my hands coming back to life. Although I have a high pain threshold, I have chosen the general anesthetic option for the operation. I understand the local anesthetic option is exceedingly painful at first. Any folks out there that have had experience with CTS? Any thoughts on the anesthetic or hand/wrist recovery period? Thanks for any input.

 

After 26 years in printing, I felt what I thought was the onset of carpal tunnel. Went to the family doc about it and after some tests, he claimed I was borderline but below what he would consider for surgery. I have since quit that career (in 2016) so the constant repetitive motions have slowed. When I split or stack for long periods, discomfort can show up again but no where near the level it once was. My MIL had the surgery and said it was very painful. That was a loooong time ago but I think she said she had to be awake/alert to let them know when she felt them at a certain spot.

I've stacked so much paper, it would be interesting to see just how much it was. Went into the presses looking like this. Hand-fulls at a time, skid after skid and jogged to be as perfect as possible.


They'd come out of the press like this and need flipped.


-sorry, took a little trip down memory lane there...

Now, when I feel the discomfort, I use otc Voltaren gel and it really helps.

 

A long time ago I worked for a company that researched the effectiveness of medical treatment options. CTS was one of the examples we had a lot of data on. Surgery for CTS is a perfect example of something that many doctors recommend for their patients but rarely choose for themselves. That’s a big red flag for me personally. Rest and a rigorous stretching routine (I suppose bordering on physical therapy) was what doctors chose the most.

I’d look into using heat and ice, stretching and massage before I went under the knife. I’m not good at taking care of myself in those ways, but if I could avoid going under the knife (and having a forced rest anyway) then I’d make it work. Obviously we all have different treatment preferences and tolerances. And you may feel like you’re way past everything except surgery.

I wish I could remember more, but it was a while ago. No matter what you choose, I hope it goes well and you recover quickly!

 

Hope you can get the easiest relief possible, brother.

 

As i kid i watched my father go thru several different surgeries on different parts of his body. None of them were a quick fix.

 

I started having a lot of pain in my hands a few years back...came outta nowhere and got bad fast...I thought it was some sort of early onset arthritis or something, I was about to go to the doctor when I totally by accident figured out that my issue was caused by sleeping on my hands, and the poor blood flow that resulted for an unknown but likely extended period of time. Now I try to make sure that my hand(s) are under a pillow, not directly under any body, limb, or head weight.
Not saying that this is what is happening to you, but maybe it can help someone out there...I can't be the only one that has experienced this!

 

..........so......You're wondering if anyone out there has been sleeping on your hands???

 

Wait is this another post about overreach?

 

Geeze, I hope I didn't trigger anyone.....again!!!!

 

I have carpal tunnel in both wrists. Developed after a a fall and breaking that fall with my hands.

Surgery is recommended for complete relief however, I opted out of it for now. It flares up with physical activity (pronounced firewood) and I was given wrist splints (whatever they're called) to help immobilize the wrists and it seems to help out a lot. Combined with a few days of light activity, I'm ready to re-aggravate them once again!

 

Oh boy... I was gonna say you are kinda reaching on this one Dave...but we'll just go with "overreaching"

 

Believe it or not get you some emu oil and rub it in vigorously. Not the synthetic but pure rendered oil. It's a life changer.

 

I get a steroid shot in my wrist every 6 months because of a broken bone years ago in the wrist.

don’t be afraid to change how you do some things and use a mechanical device.

 

Splints = braces.



I wore one last year when I broke my wrist.

 

Yup....those are what I'm talking about

 

Thanks for all the comments, with the possible exception of the "Planes Trains and Automobiles" reference. The Doctor and I have discussed all the options including the braces, exercises and stretching, formal physical therapy, topical anesthetics, steroids and vitamin and or supplement therapy. Apparently my case is serious enough that surgery is the best option by far. It offers the best chance of alleviating the pain and avoiding further nerve damage and allowing possible regeneration of existing damage. Some of the previous options may help in any regeneration. I wonder at the fact that I have let it go this far. The Doc says it is usually a case of the "frog in the boiling water" example. Put the frog in boiling water and it will instantly leap out. Put it in cool water and raise the temperature slowly and the frog may stay until it is too late. The nerve pressure progresses slowly enough that you get used to the chronic tingling and pain until there is an acute event that makes you realize that there is a big problem. My situation exactly. I am still gathering information as to the advantages of either the brief general anesthetic or the local only anesthetic options. I surely want to get this setback over with as soon as possible and get back to firewood, fishing and other physical affairs of everyday life...without pain in my hands.

 

We wish you the best care possible, brother. And a quick recovery