15 Best Ways to Prevent Hand and Wrist Pain

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15 Ways to Prevent Hand and Wrist Pain

• Renova Hand and Foot Centers
• May 2014

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Practical Tips for Healthy Hands

• Hand and wrists pain can be caused by a wide
  variety of conditions and behaviors. Issues like
  carpal tunnel syndrome and trigger finger are
  often caused or exacerbated by repetitive
  strenuous motions of the hands and wrists. To
  prevent injuries like these, and to lower
  soreness and cramping in your hands and wrists,
  try some of these simple tips.

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Stretch Often

• 1. Many of our daily activities like typing,
  texting, and driving, cause us to hold our hands
  and wrists in stiff, awkward positions. To
  counteract this, try stretches that help limber
  up your fingers, palms, and wrists. Simple yoga
  poses, like prayer pose and upward bound finger
  pose, can help.Women stretching at yoga class.

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Shake and Hydrate

• 2. After you stretch your hands, simply shake
  them out. This can relieve a bit of tension and
  improve circulation, which will help prevent
  cramping in the fingers and thumb.
• 3. Muscle cramps can be brought on by dehydration
  and loss of electrolytes. Staying hydrated can
  help prevent painful hand cramps, particularly if
  you have been experiencing cramping after you
  exercise.

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Vitamins and Breaks

• 4. In addition to dehydration, muscle cramps can
  be caused by a lack of Vitamin D and potassium.
  Boosting these in your diet may help prevent
  further cramping in the hands.
• 5. One of the most important ways to prevent a
  repetitive strain injury (RSI) is to allow
  yourself time to rest. Whether you are playing a
  sport, sewing or crocheting, or using tools at
  work, finding time to rest your hands can help
  prevent and alleviate hand pain.

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Change Your Routing / Talk to Your Doc

• 6. Modify your routines. You may find that
  altering the way you carry out your daily
  activities alleviates stress in your hands and
  wrists. If you practice yoga, for example, there
  are many ways to modify poses so that you are not
  putting more weight on your wrists than they can
  handle.
• 7. Talk to your doctor. While adapting healthy
  behaviors can help prevent and alleviate hand
  pain, most conditions wont go away on their own.
  Talk to your doctor about any symptoms you have
  been experiencing to find out of you could
  benefit from medical treatment. Visiting a hand
  doctor

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Wrist Position / Hand Protection

• 8. Hold wrists in a neutral position. The best
  resting position for the wrist is a neutral one.
  This means that the wrist is not bent up or down
  and hands are held with the palms facing upward.
  When your hands are at work, try to keep from
  resting your wrists on the counter or desk.
• 9. Wear protective gloves or splints. An
  over-the-counter splint can help if you struggle
  to hold your wrist in a neutral position. These
  can be useful while you work as well as during
  sleep. If you work with tools that vibrate,
  wearing gloves that absorb shock can reduce
  stress on your hands and wrists.

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Improve your Posture

• 10. While you may think that posture only affects
  the back and neck, hands and wrists can also
  benefit from good posture. This is especially
  true when it comes to the way you sit while
  working at the computer. Prevent hand pain from
  computer use by keeping your forearms lowered or
  parallel to the ground. An ergonomic office chair
  with low or removable arm rests can assist this
  position. This is a helpful way to prevent stiff
  or awkward hand and wrist positions as you type.

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Movement / Rearrange Your Workspace

• 11. Ultimately, the best posture is a varied
  posture. Holding your hands in the same position
  for too long will do more harm than good. Try to
  mix up the way you type, write, hold a book, etc.
  throughout the day to keep from causing extra
  stress to your hands.
• 12. Make it easier to shake up your routine and
  alternate your posture by rearranging your work
  area. Create an ergonomic office by repositioning
  your monitor, moving your keyboard, or even
  placing your water bottle on a different side of
  the desk. Simple changes like these can help keep
  you from staying in the same position for too
  long. Hands typing on a keyboard

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Writing Utensils / Always Ice

• 13. If you write for long stretches of time, you
  may be looking for a way to prevent hand pain
  when writing. Reminding yourself to relax and
  hold your pen less tightly is important, but that
  can also be difficult when you are writing under
  pressure during a long exam. In that case, it is
  helpful to find pens that are comfortable to hold
  and use. Try out pens with different grips and
  thicknesses and see what feels best.
• 14. If your hands feel swollen and hot after
  exercise, using an ice pack may help. Make sure
  to wrap the ice in a towel so that you do not
  apply it directly to the skin.

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Proper Form When Exercising

• 15. Learning proper form for exercise can help
  prevent serious strain and injury to the hands
  and wrists. You may discover that pain in the
  wrists and hand joints is the result of using the
  wrong equipment or using incorrect form when
  doing activities like weight training or yoga.

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