Numbness...

[num1habsfan]

I have no clue whats going on with me, but its starting to worry me now!

For the last 4 days now I have had no feeling in pretty much my whole right hand--even to type i am missing half the keys because i push on them, but theres not enough feeling in my hands to push the keys down!

Its very numb--like that feeling you get if you sleep on it too often. So I thought maybe thats what it was and made sure that I didnt fall asleep on my right hand. But nope, that didnt make a difference.

Its my pinky and the finger next to it ... actually, the entire right half of my right hand.

Does anyone have any clue what this could be? (I'm a lefty, in case anyone is wondering...and I broke that wrist but didnt get it looked it)

Help...

~lisa~

[trents]

Sounds like pinched nerves. Carpul tunnel syndrome, maybe?

[Nantzie]

Sounds like cubital tunnel syndrome, which involves the pinky and ring finger, and the side of the hand. A lot of the time the ring finger is numb just on the side closest to the pinky. Exact same thing as carpal tunnel syndrome, except it's a different nerve. Carpal tunnel would cause numbness in the thumb, first, middle, and sometimes half of the ring finger. One of the signs of carpal or cubital tunnel syndromes is when you wake up in the middle of the night shaking your arm/hand because it feels numb or tingly/prickly.

Your doctor probably has a brochure in their office about what you can do to improve it with exercises and learning how important the position of your arms, wrists and fingers are when you use your computer. You can improve it with using non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) such as Advil, Aleve, etc., BUT, I'd strongly discourage anything but very rare use because it can cause stomach damage, and you don't need any more problems in that area. The best option is exercises and proper hand/arm/finger positioning.

I used to get the same thing when I was basically typing for a living.

Hope that helps.

Nancy

[trents]

I don't know if this is true about cubital tunnel syndrome but I know with carpal tunnel when surgery is called for it is generally very successful. Of course, surgery is always the last option.

By the way, it is safe for most people to take double doses of NSAIDS (e.g. Alleve, Advil) for a short period and then back off to the prescribed dose. I occasionally have joint pain and I find it effective to double the dose of the NSAID for the first 24 hrs. and then back off to a single dose. People who have kidney disease or history of GI bleed should not do this, however. By no means take more than the prescribed dosage of Tylenol, however, not even for a short time. You can easily damage your liver if you do.

I agree with Nancy, don't take NSAIDs on a reguar basis if you can possibly avoid it. After about 3 days of continual use with them I start to get gastritis.

Steve

[Fiddle-Faddle]

Before going the surgery route, I would go to a chiropractor. One of my friends is an MD, and she went to a chiropractor when she had carpal tunnel syndrome. You should ask around to find a well-regarded chiropractor (don't just look in the phone bood)--unfortunately, in addition to some brillian chiropractors, there ARE a fair amount of quacks out there. I've been to one of each!

[Ursa Major]

Fiddle-Faddle is right. I had the very same problem a year ago. My right hand was slowly going totally numb. One day all my fingertips were numb, the next day whole fingers, and it slowly crept up my hand. I was terrified. When I saw my chiropractor, he massaged a muscle in my shoulder, saying a nerve was pinched in that tight muscle. He did that every time I saw him for two weeks (I see him twice a week), and my hand went back to normal, and has been fine since.

Chiropactors aren't all like him (they usually don't do massage), so really, a massage therapist is the likely person to try in addition to making sure your spine is aligned properly by a chiropractor (an improperly aligned spine, or subluxation, will not allow your nerves to function properly).

A regular MD is the last person I would go to with a problem like that, as they know nothing but prescription medication and surgery for simple problems that can be fixed by chiropractic, massage or physiotherapy.