|
I'm guessing this should be a blog.
For quite a while now (~3 years off and on) I've had issues with my arms going tingly and numb (not that that really makes sense) when playing. The first time it happened was back in S4 in TBC, when I was playing a lot of 2v2 and the games were really long as a result of my comp - after the 50 minute games I could barely play for like 20-25 minutes because my fingers would literally lock up, and I could barely hit keys. I stopped playing for a while, and when I started again I didn't really have the issue.
Then, when playing Global Agenda, the issue started again, although it was far less pronounced. For the most part, just rubbing my arms would fix it for a while, so I could keep playing with only very short breaks.
But just recently, when playing SC2, its started again, quite severely. At first I thought it was an issue with my chair, as it happens noticeably more often when I have a chair with armrests than when it has no armrests - but even without armrests, it still happens in really tense games and/or games in which I'm really confused and making stuff up on the fly.
Has anyone else had this and fixed it? Is it a blood flow issue, a nerve pinching issue, or just a nerves issue?
|
lol, i got something similar to this in a 45 min game (turned into a lot longer after the guy gg'd me before i was ready to quit, lol). my hand got totally numb and cold, and i could barely move it after. falling back on previous sciency knowledge, i'm pretty sure it's a stress response, the blood's being redirected to the vital organs and away from the extremities, causing cold, probably numbness as well.
i checked it for accuracy and heart and stroke agrees with me. apparently this stress thing is bad for you, haha! stress free life is boring, so too bad.
Stress and Blood Pressure
and the rubbing probably helped cause it was recirculating the blood for a short time
|
i dont see how people use a computer without arm rests i always rest my elbows on my chair when i use a computer.
|
United States3360 Posts
Might be carpal tunnel syndrome or something like that (pressure on nerves). You can try doing wrist stretches regularly (search carpal tunnel to find the stretches explicitely described) to alleviate that. The stretches are good for you even if you don't have that carpal tunnel syndrome as a preventative measure.
And try to keep your arms lifted off of the desk/armrests, with only base of your hand/top of the wrist lying down, if anything at all.
|
well yeah it happens to me too it's just ergonomics. I don't think I have a good enough setup to be going hardcore at sc like i do (when I do). stretching is good, having the right elbow support helps (avoid pinching nerves on arm rests) as well as taking care on not resting your wrist on the edge of your desk.
|
try to keep your arms/hands level... my hand would go numb if my keyboard's wrist rest thing wasn't attached
|
That happens to me a lot as well, though, not nearly as extreme as you've described. The way I get through it is by moving my mouse hand farther up on my desk. I noticed that I kept my mouse hand to where the edge of my desk was @ my wrist where the veins/tendons/etc. etc. are. It was cutting off blood flow and it was going numb/getting cold while I was playing for long sessions.
|
make sure that your arm isnt bending much less than 90 degrees at the elbow so that blood is able to flow freely to your forearms and hands without having to fight against gravity. Also some hand/forearm strengthening and stretching would be helpful. If you have a stress ball or hand grippers, thats the kind of thing that will be best, without actually working out - as well as stretches to pull your wrist/fingers in the opposite motion of the position they normally assume while you game.
|
Hong Kong20321 Posts
probably to do with angle of ur arm and how long u've been resting against ur table.
happens to me if im sitting lower than my table haha.
|
if youre overweight take some of it off not only does it reduce pressure on your spine but also other benefits of losing weight posture is a huge factor slouching adds pressure on the plexus brachialis and resting your forearms/wrist/elbow on a hard surface depending on which fingers go numb will tell you which nerve radiating from the plexus brachialis is getting compressed/elongated.
thumb index half middle = median
half middle ring pinky = ulnar
1 dont use mousepad rests these compress the carpal tunnel and restricts bloodflow
2 dont use armrests these compress the cubital tunnel and the basilic vein
3 first sign of pain tingling numbness = stop
cold rooms are another thing since when you start shivering your body is redirecting some of the bloodflow from your extremities to your core organs
play 15-20 minute games with 10-15 breaks inbetween longer games = longer breaks. no doubt theres some nerve damage there and you need time to recover so either reduce practice or risk permanent nerve damage.
the differential on the non-armrest tensing up: muscle cramps. youve been playing too long. so rest.
|
I had this issue too for a while during beta. Here's how I got it to go away:
I lowered my chair so I wasn't using the arm rests anymore and sat up straiter. Honestly that was all. After I did that all the pain/numbness, etc went away within a couple days.
|
United States3360 Posts
On October 25 2010 02:29 DoA wrote:
I had this issue too for a while during beta. Here's how I got it to go away:
I lowered my chair so I wasn't using the arm rests anymore and sat up straiter. Honestly that was all. After I did that all the pain/numbness, etc went away within a couple days.
Yeah if it's carpal tunnel syndrome related or similar to, improving posture like that helps a lot. Keeping your arms off of stuff is really important.
|
If its mostly your arm, it can be related to blood pressure. Sitting for a long time reduces your heart rate due to inactivity. If you live a sedentary lifestyle, such as sitting and gaming for most hours of the day, your overall blood pressure will be low. The combination of both can reduce the circulation resulting in arm numbness.
If its more specifically felt in the lower arm/wrist area, it may be carpel tunnel.
Either way, take breaks. Exercising breaks. Go run up and down your stairs for 10 minutes, then go back to gaming.
And please go see a doctor 
|
This happens to me sometimes. Its really just because your hand positioning, and if your hand is on the edge of your desk it can happen.
|
On October 25 2010 04:03 a176 wrote:And please go see a doctor
Like I can afford that ;_;
|
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. Everything you are about to read was found with google.
I was just about to make a thread on this as I am suffering from the same thing. After doing some research, it seems like it is the ulnar nerve that is being irritated. This is the nerve that is responsible for the tingle in the pinky and ring finger. It runs in the canal between your elbow and the inner knob like bone on the inner elbow area (The funny bone). You can feel the groove where it lies. Lightly pressing on this will undoubtedly reproduce the symptoms you get while gaming.
I have come to a couple of conclusions:
1) Armrests are the likely cause of this for me personally. I simply do not suffer from the symptoms when I am not resting my elbows on the armrests.
2) There are different levels of severity ranging from ulnar nerve compression (minor) to ulnar nerve adhesion. Ulnar nerve adhesion is where the ulnar nerve actually becomes fused to the muscle. It is possible that the latter would require a visit to the doctor and is caused by prolonged compression.
One other thing worth mentioning. Some people have claimed that their symptoms were caused by weight lifting. Mostly from pulling weights into the body. I have been strength training for a little over 5 months and I believe this has somewhat played a role.
|
|
|
|
|
|
EPT
