r/carpaltunnel

Does anyone know of a CT brace that comes in different sizes? Or at least one that's on the smaller side? I just bought the comfybrace, but there's a two inch gap between the brace and my arm, and it slips right off. When I tighten it enough so that it stays put, I feel it putting pressure on my nerve and I get the urge to take it right off. Ive also tried the mueller brace but it's horribly uncomfortable and also cut off my blood flow.

Is there a simple way to tell if my hand pain is carpal tunnel or RA? I’ve suspected I had carpal tunnel since I was 18 but was always able to deal with the pain (and never formally diagnosed), but the last 3 or so months I’ve been waking up with extreme hand/finger pain and it’s now affecting my sleep on a daily basis. My RA lab results are negative but doctor hasn’t ruled it out yet. I’m thinking it may still be carpal tunnel, but not sure? Pain is in all fingers other than my thumb, extreme stiffness when waking up. Mildly sore throughout the day.

I type a lot for my job (like that’s my entire job), and being sleep deprived is driving me insane, so hoping to figure out ways to alleviate this sooner than later 😭 i actively see my doctor but appointments are often weeks inbetween without clear answers…

Greetings fellow sufferers,

I've had open cts surgery on my dominant hand about a year ago. It healed well and the symptoms went away basically 99,99% except... Well, I work remote at the pc.

Mouse: Using a normal mouse is impossible now. I got an ergonomic vertical mouse and it improves the issue, but I still have to use a mouse with my non-dominant hand most of the time. Which is fine usually, but doing more detailed work with vector and 3D programs is horrible. I know I would be much more detailed and quicker with my dominant hand. But if I try it with the dominant hand, within minutes my hand grows numb and tingly and I get shooting pains.

Keyboard: Was impossible until I got a gel cushion for infront of the keyboard. Since then I can write a post like this just fine. But if I write something longer, like for example a longer story, and I do want to finish my book someday... well, withing about one page my hand has all the symptoms and gets so numb it's hard to continue. Wearing a brace does help a lot, but it's not a good fix for the long term.

Art: Somehow, with tattoo artist machine tape around my pens and some of my fingers I am totally fine and can draw for hours and hours and hours with maybe a bit of soreness after a long day.

Do you have any recommendations? My Drs all say the hand is fine, and the electric nerve tests they do always come back totally fine. One Dr recommended physio, which I went to, but it runed my hand to the point I couldn't use it at all for a whole month.

Any advice for an artist who has to do a lot of pc work?

Edit: Spelling

I just discovered this subreddit, I am so happy to have found y'all and if my post is repetitive or breaks any rules please lmk so I can change it!

I have had serious problems with carpal tunnel for 5 years now; I did not have a doctor take me really seriously until 2025, at which point it was recommended I would need both carpal and cubital tunnel surgeries on both of my arms as I had already been splinting regularly for years. They wanted to operate in January 2026 which was just not affordable for me at the start of a healthcare plan year. Finally I am looking at being able to schedule my carpal tunnel surgeries later this summer. The plan is to get each hand done 2 weeks apart from each other, then give it a year of rest before reassessing the cubital tunnel situation.

This is where my question comes in. I work in engineering, requiring fine motor control of my hands. My surgeon at my consultation super urged me to not take time off and jump right back into work, swearing that she has had the same surgery and went to a yoga class the same day, that the healing is incredibly easy and quick and by the end of the 2 weeks for one hand, it will be healed and ready to take over for my other hand while that one gets the operation. I work with a LOT of people who have had this surgery. I have a coworker who has had the surgery done "the old way" (not endoscopic) and "the new way" (endoscopic) and she claims there was no difference and she even says she regrets getting the surgeries done (but she kinda has that attitude about everything anyways). Another coworker JUST had the surgery done, but she took 2 full weeks off of work just for one hand and claims that she still can't even use her hand to wash her face. I have another friend who got carpal tunnel surgery recently and says that he felt better and was getting used to using his hand the 3rd day or so.

Now I have gotten such conflicting experiences - and I'm sure they're all valid in their own ways! But I am curious what to expect. Because truthfully I cannot afford to take a month off work, but I need this surgery. Any advice, anecdotes, or analysis of the situation would be beneficial. Thank you in advance, you seem like a lovely community!

I got the results of my upper limb EMG and it says: “no significant neurophysiological abnormalities.” However, I still have the symptoms I described in my previous post. I’m a professional musician/drummer and I’ve basically stopped playing, or only play the bare minimum (teaching lessons, etc.) because I’m afraid of making it worse.

Now I don’t know what’s going on. I’ve seen people saying EMGs can come back normal sometimes. Is the fact that mine was normal at least good news? Are there other diagnoses that could cause these symptoms?

Last year I had a cervical spine MRI and there was a herniated disc, but it was considered very small and supposedly not enough to cause symptoms.

What should I do now? I have a follow-up appointment with the orthopedist the day after tomorrow, but during the first appointment he seemed pretty unmotivated/disinterested. Should I schedule an appointment with a hand specialist?

Hi everyone. I haven’t officially been diagnosed yet, but I have an appointment in 4 days.

I started developing numbness at night several months ago and brushed it off as my sleeping positions. Then a few days ago, I started developing a tingling and numbness in both hands, and intense pain in my wrists and lower arm. The pain is sometimes so bad, I can’t sleep through the night.

I feel like my legs and feet may be slightly tingly too - but at this point I’m not sure if that’s all in my head due to stress. I work a computer job and play video games, so I wouldn’t be too surprised if it is carpal tunnel.

My question is, is there any danger in waiting these 4 days to get checked out? I’m not sure how severe this is considered, and I’m worried it may rapidly get worse. 4 days is the soonest my primary can get me in.

Sorry if it’s a silly question! I’m trying to educate myself, and figured this is the best place to do it.

I developed pain that originated in the thenar area (the fleshy area of the hand below the base of your thumb) and my wrist. It had some clicking sensations and pain in certain areas or motions. I went to urgent care and got x-rays that were negative and a splint because I was told it’s CTS. I have been kind of wearing the brace, but the nature of my work requires me to use my hands so I haven’t been able to consistently wear it. Now the pain isn’t in the wrist, but it’s only in the thenar area and it’s really painful. It hurts to pick stuff up or move my thumb, even while trying to pick things up wearing the brace. I tried to massage it and it just made it worse. I have reduced mobility too

My carpal tunnel issues just started about a month ago, and I've been taking it as easy as possible at work and home as I can. When your CTS just started, did you take a long break from everything and did it help? I am hoping to nip it in the bud and baby my hands until they stop hurting, but it seems to be taking a long time. I know CTS is a permanent issue until you get the surgery, but I have heard that symptoms can sort of go into "remission" for years, depending on how you treat the issue. Just curious what your guys' experiences are. Thanks!

I really miss crocheting but obvi that's out of the question, so's every fibre art (I could cross-stitch but since I didn't wanna hurt myself my progress was very slow and I didn't wanna do it anymore), so's drawing (unless maybe it's a small drawing that doesn't have many details but this isn't really my passion tbh), so's making accessories...
So, what do you guys do for fun?

I'm 18M.

I've been diagnosed with carpal tunnel for 3 years and have had symptoms for longer. My mom was diagnosed at a similar age and needed to have surgery in her early 20s.

I have it in both hands, although primarily my non-dominant one. I'm looking for a brace (or two depending on how costly they are) that I can use when I'm sleeping. I only have numbness so far, pain only when I'm writing, drawing, or working out in positions that aggregate it.

Sadly the generic nylon/polyester braces are a no-go as I sweat through them. My doctor has no other suggestions and medical supply store only has pricey ones which my insurance doesn't cover.

Does anyone have any brace suggestions? I'm not too picky besides it not being nylon/polyester. I'd prefer something around 100€.

Had surgery done on my dominant hand/wrist over Christmas and after about 3 weeks, the swelling finally started subsiding and I got strength back. I returned to work 1 month after surgery. Over the last couple months, I've been steadily using my dominant hand/wrist more and saw a significant improvement. I basically got back to doing my normal hobbies and routines again.

But only in the last two weeks, my carpal tunnel symptoms have returned and the pain is almost as bad as just before surgery. Immediately returning to work I reconfigured my work station to be more ergonomic, split keyboard, using an ambidextrous mouse, adjusting desk height and seating position. I work as a design engineer and my work is entirely computer based. I type and use the mouse at least 8hr daily. I notice it's worsening after my work days. I'm planning to contact the hand specialist tomorrow, but I'm worried this is just going to be my life. I wear a brace that limits my thumb motion when I'm not working, but can't wear it while typing.

I'm 33yo. I can't just stop working. I don't dislike my job. There are parts of it I'm truly passionate about, but my favorite part of my job is actual design, which is entirely using the mouse and keyboard. If the symptoms really are permanent and persistent, I can't imagine working through this pain another 30+ years.

I'm so frustrated and depressed about the pain returning.

On Monday, I’m having surgery to remove a 16mm ganglion cyst, palm side up, that I’ve had from a FOOSH injury for over a year, and a carpal tunnel release. I’m really nervous. Not sure if anyone’s had both of these done at the same time, but I’m looking for any advice. The cyst and carpal tunnel have plagued me for so long now. I’m in constant pain, and my hand feels heavy all the time. I have barely any strength in it; I can hold, lift, and push things. Any vibration, even wearing a glove, is so incredibly uncomfortable. So I’m hoping this will help a lot. Any advice? How’s recovery?

This really hurts do I just buy a bunch of finger splints?