Are you feeling pain, numbness and tingling in your wrist and hand? If so, you may have a condition called carpal tunnel syndrome. This condition occurs when the median nerve in your wrist becomes irritated and inflamed, and it’s often caused by repetitive motions you do at work, such as typing. Saint Charles, Missouri, residents who think they’re at risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome can find ways to prevent it. Here are three tips that can help you prevent this wrist issue:
- Keep your wrists straight
If you want to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome, it’s important to keep your wrists straight whenever possible. This posture helps reduce the pressure on the median nerve, which can keep it from being irritated. One time of day you keep your wrists straight is while you’re sleeping. It’s not uncommon for people’s wrists to bend in uncomfortable ways at night, but there are steps you can take to decrease the likelihood of this. For example, you can sleep on your back with both arms and wrists flat on the bed, and you can place pillows on each side of you to reduce the chances of changing position while you’re asleep.
- Give your wrists a rest
Repetitive activities like typing and working with tools can increase your risk of carpal tunnel syndrome. This is especially true if you spend several hours every day doing these kinds of tasks, but taking a break from repetitive activities can help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome. This is because these breaks take the wrists out of the position they’ve been stuck in. In turn, this gives your wrists the chance to move in other ways, and these movements can increase blood flow to the area and help prevent irritation of the median nerve.
- Stretch your wrists regularly
Stretching your wrists can also help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome. For example, you can use the wrist extensor stretch when you take a break from repetitive work activities. To do this stretch, hold your right arm straight out in front of you. You’ll also want to have the palm of your hand facing the floor. Next, bend your wrist so that your fingers are pointing toward the floor, and use your left hand to gently bend your wrist downward until you feel a stretch in the right wrist and forearm. Hold this stretch for about 10 seconds before releasing, and then repeat these steps on your left arm to stretch your other wrist.
Excel Sports & Physical Therapy in Saint Charles, MO, can help with carpal tunnel syndrome treatment and prevention
Our team at Excel Sports & Physical Therapy is proud to offer high-quality physical therapy services at our clinic in Saint Charles. We have experience treating many injuries and medical conditions, including carpal tunnel syndrome. Our team can help you treat this issue with a personalized treatment plan, and this plan may include therapy methods like:
Also, our therapists can help you learn ways to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome from happening in the future.
Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment to get our help with your carpal tunnel syndrome.
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