Comment from: redhead, 55-64 Female (Patient)Published: October 06
Four months ago I had a sudden onset of numbness and pain in both hands. The pain was almost unbearable. I purchased the braces which did help and also at night would extend my arm downward and shake the hand when pain persisted and this helped, too. After a nerve test that showed I had severe carpal tunnel in left hand and moderate in the right, I had surgery on the left hand. This has helped the pain but I still have the numbness in my thumb and three fingers not the little finger. Now I have been told that I possibly have rheumatoid arthritis. This week I had blood work and x-rays taken. Symptoms are worse when I try to get out of bed and the stiffness may last for hours even though now I am taking 20 mg of prednisone. When first taking this drug my pain and stiffness were gone in less than 2 days, but now it is returning.
Comment from: Paul F., 25-34 Male (Patient)Published: September 18
I started my new job six months ago as a script writer, so I spend a lot of time at my new desk. I started getting numbness in my left hand and fingers and then pins and needles. It's almost a constant thing now; it's really painful to sleep, as most positions hurt. I have recently been diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome. I had the nerve conduction tests (I nearly passed out) that diagnosed the problem. The doctor is suggesting surgery. I just want my hand back to normal.
Comment from: earlbowden, 45-54 Male (Patient)Published: September 11
My tarsal tunnel syndrome started about eight years ago. My feet started to feel as if they were burning. I thought it might just be my shoes, or socks, or just tired feet. But the burning didn't go away, it got worse over time. It was almost unbearable some days. Then I started getting the tingling and numbness. I finally went to the doctor, and he did some diabetes tests and then prescribed some medicine.
It took a couple of tries, but we finally settled on Amitriptyline and Lyrica. They worked, somewhat. The side affects included drowsiness - I had zero energy almost all day long, and I would fall asleep soon after getting home from work, causing me to not be able to get to sleep later in the night when I usually went to bed. We adjusted the strengths and times for the medicine, which did help with the drowsiness, but then the strength of the medicine wasn't enough to give me any real relief from the pain.
By now, I'm getting shooting pains all over my feet, too. I'm about going out of my head with the pains, the numbness, and the tingling. I think I may have found doctors who can help with surgery, but I found out they don't work with my insurance carrier. I'm that close, and now I can't pay for relief. Hopefully I can work something out with these doctors or with my insurance carrier. Maybe there's other doctor's in the Denver area that do the surgery, and can work with my insurance company.
Comment from: Christine, 45-54 Female (Patient)Published: September 11
I am 46 and also have rheumatoid arthritis. I'm guessing that the carpal tunnel syndrome is related to that. The symptoms started in my right hand around two months ago and seem to be progressing quite rapidly and badly. I have a lot of numbness in my thumb and first three fingers, as well as pain and difficulty gripping. I'm thankful that I have a voice recognition software program on my laptop otherwise I would need to be able to type this. A cortisone shot in my hand did not help at all. I'm playing the waiting game right now and do not yet have an appointment to see a specialist about the carpal tunnel syndrome.
Last fall, I had surgery on my ankle and the surgeon accidentally stuck one of the screws into the tibial nerve and that resulted in a tremendous amount of burning and numbness in my left foot, and my walking is still very limited. It may have a tarsal tunnel association, and I'm waiting to see a neurosurgeon about that.
I'm feeling pretty gimpy right now - between my right hand and my left foot, I don't seem to get a lot accomplished. It's kind of a double whammy. I tried acupuncture for the nerve damage in my left foot and did not receive any pain relief from it. I may try acupuncture as I'm waiting for treatment for my hand and see if I have any more about what that.
I tried wearing a wrist brace and it seemed to make the pain and numbness even worse. I am wearing a splint at nighttime to try and keep my hand from curling up.
Comment from: cassie, 13-18 Female (Patient)Published: September 26
I am 15 years old. One day I noticed my hand was numb and I wasn't even doing anything. Well, I just left it alone thinking, “Oh my hand is just asleep.” It kept happening. I remember a girl in my class telling me some of her symptoms, so being curious I looked up some symptoms on the internet. It sounded like I might have it. So, I went to the doctor to get a shot before school. She told me to get a brace. So I've had the brace over two months and its getting to the point where in the middle of the night the pain goes from my hand all the way to my arm and causes me not to sleep. I have to go back to the doctor for a couple things. She said we are going to set up an orthopedic appointment. Now I am wearing my brace almost 24/7, and taking two ibuprofen a day, morning and night. By the way I have hypothyroidism and my dad has had the surgery in both hands so I most likely got it passed down to me. I think I might be getting the surgery.
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Suggested Reading on Carpal Tunnel Syndrome And Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome by Our Doctors
A pinched nerve can be caused of a variety of conditions, for example, carpal tunnel syndrome, herniated disc, sciatica, arthritis, spinal stenosis, trauma, and more. Common symptoms of a pinched nerve include pain, numbness, tingling, and weakness. Treatment of a pinched nerve depends on the cause of the pinched nerve.
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that causes chronic inflammation of the joints, the tissue around the joints, as well as other organs in the body. Because it can affect multiple other organs of the body, rheumatoid arthritis is referred to as a systemic illness and is sometimes called rheumatoid disease.
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If you think you have a medical emergency, call your doctor or 911 immediately.
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Four months ago I had a sudden onset of numbness and pain in both hands. The pain was almost unbearable. I purchased the braces which did help and also at night would extend my arm downward and shake the hand when pain persisted and this helped, too. After a nerve test that showed I had severe carpal tunnel in left hand and moderate in the right, I had surgery on the left hand. This has helped the pain but I still have the numbness in my thumb and three fingers not the little finger. Now I have been told that I possibly have rheumatoid arthritis. This week I had blood work and x-rays taken. Symptoms are worse when I try to get out of bed and the stiffness may last for hours even though now I am taking 20 mg of prednisone. When first taking this drug my pain and stiffness were gone in less than 2 days, but now it is returning.
Related Reading: rheumatoid arthritis | prednisone