Carpal tunnel, ergonomics

My wrists were acting up badly, and the one thing that helped most was taking 3 minutes a day to do a set of complete range-of-motion wrist exercises with really small dumb-bells (3 pounds or less). Holding the weights palm-up and rolling them from fingertip to palm and back really did the trick.

I correct shoulder pain by doing 5-10 very slow pushups just before bed, or by holding a dumbbell over my shoulder and letting my hand dangle over the back of the couch while watching TV. A few minutes of that and my arm turns to spaghetti, but it feels better in the morning.

I've been told that not getting enough B-vitamins drops the effectiveness of other supplements you take; they'll be washed out before the body can use them, and they tend to get eaten up faster when under stress. I also take cod-liver oil to keep my joints nice and gushy. Your doctor may disagree.

Some links:

1. Ergonomics product list Updated: Tue, 22 May 2007

   Human factors and ergonomics meta-site.

2. Reducing eyestrain Updated: Sat, 5 Jul 1997

   Reducing eyestrain from video and computer monitors.

3. Ergoweb Updated: Wed, 28 Jul 2010

   • Workplace evaluation & design software
   • Database of products and services
   • Standards, guidelines, instructional materials, references
   • Learn how others deal with specific ergonomic concerns
   • News, reviews, opinions
   • Contacts and discussions

4. Typing Injuries Updated: Thu, 11 Mar 2010

   Advice for the initially injured and pointers to online and printed resources. Includes injury and ergonomics information and major internet information sources on listservers, newsgroups, FTP and WWW sites.

   • General info on injuries
   • Typing posture, ergonomics, prevention, treatment
   • FAQ's About Computer Ergonomics and Workstation Injuries
   • Publications, mailing lists/listservers, newsgroups
   • Info about keyboards, mice, software, and furniture

5. Exercises to Injure-Proof Your Wrists Updated: Thu, 2 Jul 2009

6. Ergonomic Computing (or Don't Let Your Computer Cripple You!) Updated: Sun, 24 Jan 1999

   Deals with repetitive movement injury:

   • Definition and Symptoms, causes, treatment
   • Habits for Healing and Promoting Health
   • Some Posture Guidelines
   • Workstation Ergonomics
   • Monitor Placement, Wrist Pads
   • Some RSI Resources

7. Dealing with typing injuries Updated: Mon, 9 Feb 2009

   Tips from a user about dealing with increasing pain in his forearms:

   • Putting the keyboard in his lap
   • Getting a better chair
   • Using the Kensington Thinking Mouse
   • Taking frequent forced breaks
   • Keeping his arms warm (he uses legwarmers)

8. Another typing injury FAQ Updated: Thu, 11 Mar 2010

   Online info for the repetitive strain injury (RSI) community since 1991.

9. A Patient's Guide to Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Updated: unknown

   These documents attempt to explain what Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is, how it is diagnosed, and describe the treatment options available.