Dealing with carpal tunnel syndrome

Carpal tunnel -- a painful condition of the hand and fingers caused by compression of a major nerve where it passes over the carpal bones through a passage at the front of the wrist, alongside the flexor tendons of the hand. It may be caused by repetitive movements over a long period, or by fluid retention, and is characterized by sensations of tingling, numbness, or burning.

Yes, carpal tunnel is a painful condition for anyone that is dealing with it. There are days when you feel like you can do all the normal things with your hands and then there are the days that the pain lets you know that you are going to be extremely limited and can’t do the things that you normally do. Yes, carpal tunnel is associated with repetitive motions such as typing or even a lot of crafts and sports or playing a musical instrument.

For some people if they have small tunnels in their wrists they are going to have a higher risk in developing carpal tunnel and I am one of those individuals. My wrists are extremely small and while having De Quervain's surgery on my thumb the specialist informed me that he would be seeing me again due to carpal tunnel in either one or both of my wrists. Yes, carpal tunnel can have not a lot to do with repetitive motions but in some cases such as mine it has to do with small tunnels in my wrists.

Carpal tunnel is something that I have been dealing with for a number of years. There are times when I am in a great deal of pain and then there are the times that I can do the regular things like everyone else. When the symptoms reappear I just have to be extremely careful with what I do and I hope that the pain will ease quickly and I can get back to a normal routine. I do wear the braces to bed quite often to ensure that I done curl my wrists when I am sleeping because when I don’t have the bases on there are nights that I wake up with the tingling sensation in the hands so I know I have been sleeping with my wrists in a bad position.

For me, dealing with carpal tunnel is something that I just have to deal with. I know that there may come a point where I might have to have surgery but until then I am going to try and be extremely careful to ensure I can avoid it. Sure, people have told me that my carpal tunnel is because of the computer work and crafting that I do. The things that I do may have been a little bit of the issue but the biggest part for me is having small tunnels in my wrists.

I am happy that my specialist let me know that I do have small tunnels because it made me aware to be extremely careful. When I write I ensure that I take breaks from the typing and when I craft I change up the crafts that I do and I also ensure I take breaks. Yes, carpal tunnel can be painful and there are days that the pain means that typing or doing anything is difficult for me but I manage it. Having a partner that understands the issue and helps me when I am having the bad days does help. Sure, I may end up having the surgery at some point but until then I will just make sure that I can careful and know what I can and can’t do.

Carpal tunnel may try and limit my abilities sometimes of doing things but I am determined that I am not doing to let it take over my life.