Monday, October 20, 2008

New Development: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

It appears that all my computer time, writing for school and this blog, crocheting, bread dough kneading, etc., has led to my having carpal tunnel syndrome. A couple months ago, I was noticing that as I would write or knead bread dough, my right wrist would seem really weak and would hurt at times. I didn't think anything of it, as I thought it would go away. When I was in Indiana, however, I made a batch of my wheat bread, and after kneading it for 24 minutes!!(due to the weather and atmosphere, I suppose), I looked down and noticed that there was a bump on my hand, just above the left side of my wrist. I felt it and noticed it felt fleshy. Later that night however, it felt hard. I then knew something was up! I have since been doing research on the computer(I'm very thankful for Google, I must say! :)), and have come to the conclusion that I'm now suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome. I read that when someone has carpal tunnel, they always suffer from swollen soft tissue in the wrist or hand near the wrist. I also have most of the symptoms and there is also a history of carpal tunnel in my extended family. I didn't even know teens could suffer from carpal tunnel(I always thought adults were the only ones who got it), but discovered I was wrong when my dear friend Jasmine did a blog post about her CTS. I also read online that CTS can be caused by a previous wrist injury(such as a fracture) followed by a whole lot of activity with that hand. About 5 years ago while I was in Indiana, I was pushed down by the daughter of one of my mom's childhood friends, and this resulted in my falling on my right wrist. It hurt pretty badly, but I thought it was probably just a sprain or strain. It turns out that may have indeed been all it was, or it could have been a minor fracture. Either way, we're pretty sure I have CTS. We bought a wrist brace while in Indiana, but it's not one specifically for CTS, so we'll be purchasing a new one soon. In the mean time, I will be taking a break(about a week long unless I notify you otherwise) from the computer and my blog. This will be really hard for me to do, but it's important that I take care of my wrist at this time, to prevent it from getting worse(I don't fancy the idea of wrist surjury at all, but especially seeing as how I'm right handed!). Therefore, adieu for this week, dear readers!!

I'll miss you all greatly.

14 comments:

  1. Praying for you Rebekah!
    In Him,
    Bethany

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Rebakah,

    I will be praying for you Rebekah. I am afraid that on today I am going to get CTS because I have heard that it can also be caused by playing the piano often (which I do).

    Lulu

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh, dear! I pray you feel better soon and that everything goes smoothly.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Sorry, I hope you are feeling better!!!!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ick! Bummer! I'll be praying for you!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi Rebekah,

    I had both wrists operated on over the past 4 weeks. My CTS was to the point of severe/permanent damage. The release surgery was quick, but the recovery was/is painful.

    PLEASE take care of yourself!

    Angela

    ReplyDelete
  7. Rebekah,
    I just found your blog off of The Heritage Sisters.
    I am sorry to come upon you when you're handicapped, but perhaps we can get to know each other better when you're in ship shape again.
    I broke my wrist a couple of years ago and still have some of the poppings and pains that you are probably experiencing. I hope it does get better,
    Everly Pleasant

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi Rebekah,
    I came across your profile in a search for girls who like the Vision Forum books! I'm so sorry your not doing to well! I hope we can get to know eachother a little better!
    It's so encouraging to see womean claiming and living their God given roles!!! I'll be praying for you!

    I really love that picture of you and your daddy!

    Blessings in Christ!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I am adding you to my prayer list! I found your blog through the Kindred Spirit Network and am so glad that I did! You are in my thoughts and prayers!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Dear Rebekah,

    I have given you the Kindred Spirit Award. I know you probably won't be able to blog about it because of your CTS. But I am giving it to you anyway.

    Lulu
    http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/LivingforJesus/592075/

    ReplyDelete
  11. Rebekah,
    Praying for you! I'm praying that your CTS will heal (or whatever has to happen...I don't know!) and that you'll be able to bless others again with your posts.
    May God be glorified,
    Allison

    ReplyDelete
  12. By the way, I have given you an award over at my blog too!! :)

    Blessings!

    ReplyDelete
  13. My husbad suffered with CTS in the past and he heard of some exercises you can do to ease it... it worked for him, so I thought maybe you could try them too. Here's what you do:
    Put your arm straight out in front of you. Using your other hand, gently pull back on your fingers as though you were signalling someone to stop (palm outwards). This will hurt and you probably won't be able to pull back very far. You're not supposed to cause yourself too much pain, so do it gently and stretch it a little. Hold this for 10 seconds. Then turn your arm over and pull your fingers backwards in the same way. Hold this for 10 seconds as well.
    Now putting your arm straight out with palm-upwards with your thumb out. Gently push your thumb downwards with the palm of your other hand. This may not actually cause much pain, but it will help.

    These instructions were given to my husband by someone who was saved from a multi-thousand dollar surgerical operation by using them! It even surprised his doctor quite a bit because he no longer needed the surgery after doing this for awhile (I think 3 months). Obviously if you're not that bad then it won't take that long to notice a nice difference!
    I hope this helps and you get relief soon! :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Hey! Beka!
    We are trying to send out christmas cards!
    Could you please email me your mailing address! here is my email address alyssascott@rocketmail.com!
    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete

Hi!! Thank you so much for visiting my blog! Please come back often. Thank you for your comment as well; your input is always most welcome! Even if you disagree with something, I encourage you to leave a comment; I just ask that you do so in a loving and Christ-like manner.

God bless you!

~Rebekah S.