I haven't read this whole thread, as it's gotten long.

But I've had a small bit of carpal from time to time, and some years ago I found something that helps keep it at bay. It isn't a cure by any means - it only helps keep it at bay.

Other advice here is good - such as stretching / exercising the arm and hand; such as with and [url=http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=finger+exerciser]finger grippers.

I do that but ALSO I trained myself to be "ambimoustrous". This helps me a lot. I just "switch sides" every so often and it really helps keep it at bay for a lot longer than "just" exercising and stretching.

It's not that hard to do, although it felt pretty awkward at first. Now (and for maybe a decade now) it's just natural.

Funny thing is I've given this advice to people "real world" and NONE have taken it up - even though they have problems. For some reason I guess it just doesn't seem appealing to folk even if it could help them.

Nevertheless, it has helped me a great deal and thus I present you the same advice. :)

Careful with trackballs, I ended up with RSI in my fingers and that heals wayyy slower than the wrist..

It's a good strategy, but without the other methods you'll just get RSI to both hands like me +_+

I do this for normal web searching but to play a game I need to use my right hand.

Funny to see this thread bumped. I actually radically toned down my gaming and the problem solved itself. I used to game for 2 hours a day and lately it's been less than that a week. Just not as enthused as I used to be, so playing a lot less. This might change if I ever upgrade and play stuff like Dragon Age 3 and Witcher 3, but I don't really want to pay to upgrade when I'm not gaming much, so... I dunno.

Glad to see people keep posting tips for sufferers though. :)

I like to play with a controller as i'm getting old (but still have trouble), some games takes a tull. I played yesterday blag flag and my nerves were going first than my sore wrists.

Usually taking a break makes miracles also.

I wish that europe wouldn't have release date of 21 in dragon. I even played dragon age 2 and saw that I didn't hate is much than I remembered.

How about your eyes? Mine gets tired or could it be angle in the screen or cheap screen like 60 hz though in flat screen?

Same here. My right hand was getting to the point where I too thought I was developing carpal tunnel. Pinching nerve pain, got to where I couldn't use a mouse for more than an hour or so before having to take long breaks. So like you, I cut way back on PC gaming for a bit... played some PS3 instead. Seemed to work. Wrist is a lot better. It's just not healthy for any human to have his/her wrist bent like a twisted monster claw over a mouse for hours at a time.

Also, do flexing. Flex the wrist the same way you would your neck or knees. Get that air movement and joint expansion going. Keeps the joints from freezing up. Gotta do that wrist yoga.

I am a treatment advisor for a company that deals with soft tissue injuries. I deal with people every day with carpal tunnel, and have seen many successes. Most have been able to avoid surgery and others, it has allowed them to either go back to work, or just enjoy the things they used to, pain free. I recommend looking into the Wrist BFST (blood flow stimulation therapy) wrap. It emits electro magnetic energy that promotes blood flow to the wrist. Always put a cold compress on your wrist after any kind of activity. This will help with the pain, but will also reduce any internal inflammation which will block the blood flow and prolong healing.

That's quite interesting. I had some severe pain in my "mouse-hand" several month ago (after prolonged time of gaming as I was stuck in bed all day long due to illness), and it never occurred again : may that be because I am used to wash my hand a lot with cold water several times a day ?


Edit : and welcome to the forum of course, enjoy your stay, just don't be nice to tinyE if you ever see him, because he's the yeti responsible for the snowfalls in U.P :-)

The pain was probably because of the prolonged use of your hand and maybe pinching the tunnel during, and when you weren't doing it as much, the pain subsided.

I use a controller 95% of the time, otherwise it's pain city.

There is a lot to adjusting chair/desk height as well. Positioning means a lot. Need to find a setup which minimizes the issue.

Well that's really crappy realkman666. After playing put a cold compress on your wrist (20 minutes from the freezer with something thin in between). This will help relieve the pain and get down any inflammation from playing.