|
Background: RSI problems (in the forearms, wrists, hands, fingers, right shoulder) going back to before this summer started ... so it's been going on for a while. I took a bit of a break from computer usage after school ended, though, and went to see a general physician who kind of just stared at my hands and prodded at them (literally, just that) before telling me to take ibuprofen as an anti-inflammatory measure. So I did that and fixed up my desk set-up, and it got much more bearable.
School comes around again, though, as it always does, and the desks and chairs at school are the farthest from ergonomic you can get. Still, no huge issues for the first several weeks. Fingers and wrists ache a bit, but nothing too terrible, and it's easy to ignore.
Enter finals period and paper-writing.
Well, you can guess what happened from there.
Anyways, this entire break I've been cutting down on my computer time and just tossing back more ibuprofen and sitting around the house reading books -- I don't get nearly as much time to read as I want to during school  -- but my hands/wrists/forearms/shoulder aren't really improving. They all hurt even when I'm doing absolutely nothing, and the pain's pretty constant throughout the day. It's not so bad that I want to gnaw my arms off, but it's there, and I figure it's about time to actually see a doctor who actually knows what he/she's doing re: all this stuff before it gets any worse. School's about to start up again, and I'll only have more papers to write, though I tried to sign up for paper-less classes this quarter; we'll see if that holds.
Anyways, the problem is I dunno what type of doctor I should be seeing? Should I go to a chiropractor? A physical therapist? Try my hand at another general physician to see what he/she says? At this point in time, I still don't know what type of RSI it is -- the first one assumed it was tendinitis, I think, and I dunno if it was the ibuprofen or my desk rearrangement that helped more -- so even a simple diagnosis would be helpful so I know what type of activities I should be avoiding.
In any case, hope everyone had a good winter holiday! Sleep well, eat well, don't get sick! 
tl;dr: RSI. What type of doctor do I go to for diagnosis/treatment? Merry [insert your choice of winter holiday here]!
|
Try A Naturopathy look it up
|
Which country do you live in?
Ideally you want a rheumatologist to take a look at you... Oh and chiropractors aren't doctors....
|
[disclaimer: the following is my personal feeling and i do not have any scientific basis for it. It's just my intuition.]
to me, doing nothing to cure RSI sounds fairly wrong: Remember back then when people didn't get RSIs so much? I don't think it was because they spend most of their time reading books.
I would try to get out there and do some "real work". Grab an axe and chop some wood. Find a relative who's moving and carry all that heavy furniture back and forth between houses and truck. Go shopping on foot every few days and carry all that stuff home instead of driving with the car once week (if your supermarket is close enough).
Just develop some real-life-grown (aka not "trained" in gym) muscles in those joints so they can cope with that stress instead of making them even weaker. obviously though, exercise caution: if you notice your injuries getting worse fast when doing stuff, stop immediately. But doing nothing like reading books to me just sounds like a bad idea.
|
(note: this is all assuming you don't have noticeable inflammation - painful redness in joints and stuff. If you do, see a rheumatalogist)
These things tend to be caused by excess tension in the muscles. Relaxed muscles can do pretty much anything without problem, but tense ones work against each other and don't heal well. Pay attention to any tension in your shoulder/arm/hand when you're using them, and when you're not. Is there any tension in your shoulders or arms when you're lying down? It can be hard to notice, because after a while your brain starts tuning it out.
How's your posture? Straight or slumping? Relaxed or forced? Bad posture can mess with the alignment of your shoulders, making the muscles less efficient and more prone to problems. But forcing "good" posture will cause just as many problems.
Does typing feel effortless? If not, the muscles are probably tense. Same goes for if you don't have a full range of motion.
Like MisterD said, underuse can be harmful as well. Rest isn't enough because it's how you're using the muscles, not how much. PT would probably help. When doing exercises or stretches, make sure you have good form, and pay attention to internal sensations - feel the muscles tensing and relaxing.
|
I had RSI. Things that actually help are:
- ultrasound therapy sessions, you get that prescribed by an orthopedic doc
- rest and frequent stretching, proper way to do systematic stretches is described by said doctor
- lifting light weights thrice daily using various parts of your arm
Out of these, once you get a little better, the weight lifting is absolutely essential
Recovery takes between 1 and 3 years, if you mess with it you can end up seriously crippled as it will keep getting worse you need to start rehab today. Good luck!
|
On December 28 2011 05:14 MisterD wrote:
I would try to get out there and do some "real work". Grab an axe and chop some wood. Find a relative who's moving and carry all that heavy furniture back and forth between houses and truck..
This is the most insanely idiotic advice on how to treat severe RSI I have ever heard. It is tantamount to running a marathon with a broken ankle and a ruptured spleen. What you are suggesting would make him require spoon-feeding in a matter of weeks.
|
I know how you feel OP. For the past 15 months or so I have had problems in my arms (mostly right arm) which I have eventually found out is my radial nerve. The source was right above and below the elbow but it also extends into my forearm and causes some pain in my hands and occasionally soreness in my shoulder. The pain has oscillated at times (hellish at times and bearable at others) I've done a little PT (still in the process) and I don't think it has really helped a lot. I rested all summer and that did not seem to help at all. I'm currently taking two weeks off from work for the holiday and that rest has seemed to help a little though.
You want to see an orthopedic doctor. Prod him with questions and try to give as much detail as you can and make sure they listen. Do some internet research before and after you go. You might want to look into radial, cubital, and carpal tunnel syndromes. After hearing about radial tunnel syndrome from my doc (the third one -_-) and then reading about it, I could see that my primary pain pretty much followed along the path of the radial nerve. Anyway, the doc will probably give you a referral for physical therapy. GL.
|
On December 28 2011 08:13 Kickboxer wrote:Show nested quote +On December 28 2011 05:14 MisterD wrote:
I would try to get out there and do some "real work". Grab an axe and chop some wood. Find a relative who's moving and carry all that heavy furniture back and forth between houses and truck.. This is the most insanely idiotic advice on how to treat severe RSI I have ever heard. It is tantamount to running a marathon with a broken ankle and a ruptured spleen. What you are suggesting would make him require spoon-feeding in a matter of weeks.
Yeah, I'm inclined to agree. While some physical activity seemed to help me a bit (I did a lot of swimming at the end of my summer and that seemed like it might have helped a bit), whenever I did other activity which required quick and jerky motions of my arm, it seemed to make it worse. For example, it hurt like hell for a week after I went golfing and bowling one day. Strangely when I helped my friend move and was lifting couches all day, it didn't seem to bother me too much.
|
Thanks, everyone!
I'll be looking into the orthopedic docs at my school's hospital, then, and seeing if they can get me on whatever treatment I need. Would physiatrists be a decent alternative as well?
As for physical activity, I actually do kendo. I'll be sad if I have to give that up. When the pain first started to intensify this year, I actually went for kendo practice and immediately regretted it when I woke up the next morning, though. (I r smrt.) Guess we'll see what the doc says I should and shouldn't be doing with my body.
|
On December 28 2011 08:13 Kickboxer wrote:Show nested quote +On December 28 2011 05:14 MisterD wrote:
I would try to get out there and do some "real work". Grab an axe and chop some wood. Find a relative who's moving and carry all that heavy furniture back and forth between houses and truck.. This is the most insanely idiotic advice on how to treat severe RSI I have ever heard. It is tantamount to running a marathon with a broken ankle and a ruptured spleen. What you are suggesting would make him require spoon-feeding in a matter of weeks.
that's why i said he should stop immediately if it becomes any worse -.-
see, i have a weird thing on my hand sometimes that comes and goes every now and then. The first time i went to the doc, he told me to do absolutely nothing with my hand, like not even drive a car cause the vibrations would make it worse, and if it gets worse go to a surgeon and cut it out. turns out, that thing actually goes away when i do work. don't ask me how, maybe it's because it pulls my joint in length so theres more space or whatever, sounds hilariously stupid, i am aware of that, but that's how it behaves. I'm actually best of with that thing by ignoring it completely and doing stuff as if it wasn't there, because thats what makes it go away again fastest.
I mean it's pretty obvious that when you can't move your hand or something, you shouldn't do any heavy work. But if you have something like a cramp for instance, the best thing to do is medium heavy work, not resting it. I don't think most RSIs compare to broken ankles, because they are not torn apart bones or something but over-used or stiffed up soft parts.
|
Pretty much the same problem here.. My wrists has been painful for about 5 months now and it just can't seem to go away whatever I do. I tried ibuprofen, rest, stretches, strenghtening exercises, anti inflammatory food, nothing seems to help much, and when it do, the pain comes back as soon as I start using the computer again.
|
|
|
|
|
|
EPT
