Welcome Dave,
I too have been told to get the surgery, and for four years have avoided it
by:
-- wearing the splints at nite when the pain and numbness flares up
-- making sure I take lots of breaks, like, EVERY HOUR or more often if
necessary, I stop working for at least 10 minutes and do stretches and relax
my hands
-- if you are open to aromatherapy message, may i suggest using a few drops
of lavender, rosemary, tangerine and bergamot oils in an almond oil base to
massage from the tips of your fingers, up your arms all the way to the spot
in between the shoulder blades - this way you are getting the whole nerves
relaxed, cause the problem is not just in the wrist!
-- i find using ice and heat alternatively for 10 minutes at a time helps a
lot too when i have flare ups
-- finally, drink lots of water, take B complex vitamins and if you enjoy
spicy food, eat more of it cause spices contain anti-inflammatories too :)
Best of luck,

Dee
Jewelry & Accessories, Inspired by Seaglass -
http://www3.nb.sympatico.ca/lunastar/crafts/seaglass.htm
"Get together, one more time..." with the dOORS- Tribal SoulKitchen-*-Ezine
http://www.tribalsoulkitchen.com
poetry-art- http://personal.nbnet.nb.ca/lunastar/caverns/
graphix/art/photography - http://www.gavroche.org/crystal
----- Original Message -----
From: "davec5465" <davec5465@...>
To: <repetitivestrain@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, July 01, 2005 11:41 AM
Subject: [repetitivestrain] newbie question


> Hi all, new to group...advice needed.
> I'm 40M with "carpal tunnel." 10 years ago, I was diagnosed and told
> I needed surgery. I declined, quit my job (that was causing the
> problem) and started something else. The problems all went away
> quickly.
> I started a new glass business about a year ago. This business has
> required lots of drilling and using a screw gun to assemble and
> install frames....lots of heavy lifting installing the glass, etc.
> About 2 months ago, the old familiar problem came back.
> I went to the DR and was again told to have the surgery. I declined
> and have been using the wrist braces at night. That has helped the
> night numbness. About 3 weeks ago, I started having problems on the
> outside of my elbows....I guess the splints brought that on.
> I hired a guy to help with the drilling and the lifting and now I
> don't do this all day every day...only about twice a week for a few
> hours. The more I do, the worse the hands are. Additionally, I have
> developed a strain in the tendon from the back side of the wrist
> into the thumb.
> I now use ice at night and no wrist splints and only have problems
> with numbness once in a while....only when I do lots of drilling
> and/or lifting. The elbow thing and the sore tendon to the thumb
> thing refuse to get better.
> 2 things really suck about it...1- The business isn't doing well
> enough yet to hire another guy and get me completely out of doing
> the things that aggravate the problem and 2- I work out alot and
> have not been able to work my arms, chest or back since this problem
> started. Legs, abs and cardio only. I'm losing muscle tone and I
> don't like it.
> Surgery seems like major BS to me...but I don't know what to do
> about it. Prednisone does me way wrong and I can't take it. I'm
> afraid I will cause the problems to be irreversible if I don't
> change something and fast. Any advice?
> Thanks, Dave
>
>
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