RSI? sore wrist/shoulder

[Xopher]

Just wondering if anyone had any tips to avoid it or simple exercises to help.

I been trying to hold the pen/pencil with a softer grip, and take a 5min break every 25mins or so, but just thought Id ask what you do to avoid or deal with it.......

Would standing help instead of sitting....

note:
I have a full back support office chair and a architects table with it tilted around 45 degrees, but I adjust it depending on what I am doing.


Doesn't bother me that much but don't want to make it worse.

I did find these 2 links:
http://conceptart.org/forums/showthr...-Hand-(Cures-)
http://conceptart.org/forums/showthr...12475-sore-arm

But any other advice?

[Frostblade]

Go see a good physiotherapist. Only trained professionals in that field can prescribe exercises and press out any muscle knots (or whatever) that you have built up with minimal risk of causing more damage.
Everyone's body is different and some of the generic exercises may not suit your situation. You really need a physiotherapist to teach you how to do the stretches to see if you are doing them correctly.

If you have health insurance, the cost is quite low.

Maybe check out this place http://www.optimasportsmed.com/physiotherapy.html
Or some place with a very good reputation. Not all physiotherapist are the same.

[Arshes Nei]

Daarken had some stuff on this on his site, since he also had issues:

http://enliighten.com/blog/category/rsi-2/

[ebi]

I wrote a huge blog post on RSI some time ago (I've had it for app. 5 years and counting :/), that I still need to sort out/revise before I post it…

But here are some things that might be useful for you, taken from the post (I would post the whole thing, if it wasn't freaking 2000+ words long):

In any case, as a disclaimer I will say that I'm not a professional and therefore you should only use what I say as a support for when you're doing your own research and such and that you should definitely seek out a professional who knows what they are doing..

1. Trigger point therapy - This only works if your physiotherapist knows where to find the correct trigger points. For instance, I mostly had pain in my elbows (though at that time my RSI had already advanced to such a stage that I couldn't even tell the difference between being relaxed and being stiff), and so my physiotherapist who didn't know anything, only look for trigger points around my lower arm. While in fact, the trigger points that were causing this pain were located near my neck and shoulder blades! By the way, you can easily treat yourself with trigger point therapy, especially if you can find someone (maybe your girlfriend/boyfriend) who is willing to massage you. But I'll recommend you some books down below.



3. Exercise – Exercise= great. But, I think the main reason that this works is because it's great at relieving stress. So, for instance when you're taking a short breaks in between work, try to go for a short walk or if you have something like a stationary bike/elliptical go on there for a couple of minutes each time. Or if you don't have paper thin walls/floors, just turn up the music and dance!

5. Stretching- Stretching has helped me a lot. But, as I'm hyper mobile, I do have to be a little bit careful that I don't overstretch. Being hyper mobile, by the way, means you're more prone to injuries like RSI (so you might want to check if you are hyper mobile or not).

Just a disclaimer: these stretches are targeted at people who have trigger points in their neck/back, so, as I don't know what is causing your pain, these might not work for you.

The stretches that have helped me the most are as follows:

The starting position for pretty much all of these exercises, unless otherwise stated are:
feet apart at shoulder width, stand up straight, keep your knees relaxed (just a natural position really)

Try to do each at least one time a day, but preferably 2 to 3 times a day. They only take a couple of minutes, so you should be able to fit in somewhere.

A) slowly move your head down, as if you want to touch your chest with your chin. Do not bend your back/hunch over. Keep your head down for about 6 to 8 seconds. Then slowly bring your head up again. I'm not really good at describing the following, but you should feel something around your shoulder blades/neck/the beginning of your ribs.
Like all of the exercises, repeat this exercise for a total of three times.

B) Now, move your head down to the left, as if you were trying to touch your shoulder with your ear. Don't be tempted to raise your shoulder. Only move your head. Keep your head in that position, again for about 6 to 8 seconds. Then slowly raise your head again and repeat on the other side.
This counts for one time. So you need to do 2 more.
You'll definitely feel a stretch in your neck, and possibly in your upper arms.

C) Now, move your head to the left as far back as you can, as if you're trying to look over your shoulder (but don't overdo it) is. Sometimes when I do this exercise I get a little lightheaded, so I'll know when I'm overdoing it. Again keep your head in that position for about 6 to 8 seconds. Then slowly move your head to the right and do the same thing.
Repeat two more times. You'll feel your neck stretching Though probably in a different spot than the previous exercise and you also feel a stretch in your arm (for instance, if you're looking to the left you'll feel the stretch your right arm, mostly around your shoulder).
D) This is a little bit hard to describe but it's such an easy exercise. The shoulder roll. Basically you just roll your shoulders, and 10 times to the front and 10 times the back. And you can do this as many times as you want because it feels really good, kind of like a mini massage. Well this is in the stretch, this can really help relax the muscles around your neck.

E) Whilst keeping your feet firmly planted in their position, slowly move your torso to the left, as far as is comfortable for you. (Is if you have a hard time picturing what the hell I mean, just imagine those little kids who swing their arms around… actually I don't know if that makes it any more clear view but I hope you get what I mean). stay in that position for about half a minute and then slowly go back. You should feel a stretch in your left shoulder/shoulder blade. Obviously repeat for the right side.
you only have to do this exercise once. But if you really want to you can do it a second time.

These were prescribed to me by my doctor. Below you'll find one that I also like to do just because.

Raise your arms up as high as you can, and look up (don't tilt your head all the way back as if you want to touch your back, just look up.. ). Just pretend you're trying to reach for the stars. Then stay like that for a little while and bend your torso to the left, stay like that for a bit, go back to the starting position and then go to the right. Just pretend you're trying to be some tree during the second grade school play or something.

The stretching should feel very comfortable.

3. If you're having trouble sleeping because of pain, you might want to try the topical painkiller. You have these creams that you can buy at the drugstore that have diclofenac in it. It really helps if you need a good night’s rest. And especially if you're RSI is triggered by stress, this will definitely help you because a good night’s rest means less stress. I would discourage you to use this cream during the day, because when you don't feel pain, is very tempting to ignore your condition and then the next day the pain will be worse. Only Use It during the Night. Same Goes with Regular Painkillers. Don't Take Them Too Much.

And, if you are used to sleeping on your stomach, try to train yourself so you'll sleep on your back with your arms straight against your body or on your side with a pillow propped between your arms (I've never done the sleeping on my side thing, because my arms can’t handle that, but that's what this book says that I have).
If it gets really bad, if you have a mattress with springs in it, you might want to exchange it for a mattress with memory foam.
Sleeping on your stomach and the mattress with springs, are two ways that your blood flow can get cut off a little, which can trigger RSI, at least from what I've read.

4. If you use the computer a lot, try to get speech recognition software so that you can get some relief when typing e-mails and such.
I couldn't type all of this without it!

The two books I can recommend are:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1608821277
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1572243759
There are other books on the market about RSI, but for me most of the text in there is just fluff and you don't really get to learn how to treat your symptoms. It can't hurt to read them, but if you're short on cash the above two books, especially the first one, will be the most helpful.

And here is a site about trigger points: http://www.triggerpoints.net/



Hope that helps!

[Xopher]

Wow what a post lol, thanks ill give it a try