Have any other fellow d/ic/ks dealt with cubital tunnel syndrome before? I was diagnosed with it and haven't been able to draw for several months due to the pain.
If you don't know what it is, it's similar to carpal tunnel in the sense that it's pain in your wrist/hand, though primarily on the pinky side and in the 4th/5th fingers. Basically a nerve is compressed at the elbow and causing pain in the hand.
I'm considering surgery since it's gone on so long, but I wanted to know if anyone else was able to heal without it.
rip. did you do any regular hand warm up exercises before this happened?
>>2509879
Yeah, I'd seen a doctor a few years before about hand pain and he wrote it off as tendinitis. Since then I've made sure to stretch every day, but apparently it didn't help.
>pain in your wrist/hand, though primarily on the pinky side and in the 4th/5th fingers
i've been starting to feel this for days recently and was wondering what it was
>>2509896
Get that shit checked out anon. Conservative methods didn't work for me but they might help you since you just started feeling pain.
I got this when I was around 14 from sitting at my desk, leaning on my elbow for long hours while doing my homework. It went away after I was more careful about my elbows.
Make sure to rest and stretch, 5 minutes of stretching or just plain resting for 1-2 hours will usually do.
Time is everything, but your health is of equal importance, to compensate for the "time lost" make the best use of your time when you are indeed drawing.
If the pain persists, go to a specialist for a proper diagnosis
I don't know how to say this without sounding like tumblr, but my brain isn't exactly right and I tend to be extremely meticulous on everything I do, this goes for art too, and at times my hand really suffers because of this.
Good luck.
>>2509925
Thanks for the advice, I've been trying to rest/stretch as much as possible but sometimes I'll get pain even if I'm doing nothing.
Drawing right now is definitely out of the question though, I felt the worst pain from drawing a small sketch a few days ago.
>>2509872
what kind of pen/pencil do you use? with pencils using a softer lead seemed to help me, and for pen, normal ballpoint pens make my hand hurt sooner rather than pens like a hi tec c or even a brush pen
>>2509957
No kind in particular, though I mostly do digital with a wacom pen now. Holding any kind of pencil/pen seems to cause the same problem so I've just been avoiding them altogether.
>>2509967
sometimes the height of elbow to the desk can really effect my hand/wrist, it's usually that my chair is too low
>>2509990
I considered that as well, but I've actually stopped using a mouse/keyboard and instead opted for voice recognition. I just have my arms at my sides or in my lap now.
Try drawing with your other arm
>>2510046
It's in both arms unfortunately.
what can be done to avoid this?
breaks? wrist exercises? the way you hold the pen? posture?
Try chiropractic
I have a chiro for my carpal tunnel
And for about 5 months he's been doing regular adjustments, and then for the past month he's been doing deep scar tissue removal. The chiro adjustment only goes so far, as long as you ice it down. The deep tissue has worked wonders, my hands and wrists are loaded with scar tissue that we're trying to smooth out. Scar tissue from repetitive use could also be part of the pain.
Going to see a massage therapist would work as long as you tell him you're having trigger points in your arms and upper back.
I went to physical therapy and while they did give me standard hand stretches, they really got me worried about posture and keeping the neck as good as possible, since the ulnar and medial nerve originate from there.
My chiro says since this will be my life's work - using my wrist - this is something I have to keep under control, kind of like brushing my teeth. As long as you don't have any flare ups in a decent amount of time, and you give yourself breaks and stretches from time to time, it'll heal.
I know it's cubital tunnel, but it's still nerves getting affected.
Quick note:
If you're really flexible, then do some light weightlifting (once you've started treatment). That way, you can strengthen the area around the nerve.
If you aren't flexible, then work on stretching and loosening up.
I'm waiting for the day when I can get mechanical wrists.
>>2509872
Kind of a topical thread, I just happened to start putting a towel, rolled up and bound with rubber bands where I'd normally put my elbow today. Resting your elbow on a hard surface becomes painful over time and I don't know why I didn't do anything about it sooner. I suggest if you feel any kind of discomfort at all do your best to rectify it because who knows what consequences it may have down the road. I can already tell that something as simple as a small rolled up towel has prevented a lot of stress on my arm.
Don't be afraid to improvise if you have to.
>>2510090
That's actually some really good info, I was actually just noticing that my upper back was having pain as well as my triceps. I'll definitely look into chiropractic treatments, thanks.
>>2510074
Pretty much everything you just mentioned as well as not leaning on your elbow for extended periods of time or sleeping with your arms bent.
>>2510091
I'll probably end up giving this a try when I can start drawing again, thanks for the tip.
>>2510103
Oh, also get a brace
Every night I wear two cock-up wrist splints.
Check these out for cubital tunnel
http://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Cubital-Tunnel-Splint-Medium/dp/B002BUH8RU
I'm not sure if they come in different positions, so I'd ask your doc/chiro/pt/mt about what would be the best position.
If it IS really bad, wear them during the day as much as you can for about 2-3 weeks to keep flare ups from occurring.
Splints help during the night because that's like 5-8 hours of healing each night.
>>2510112
I do have some sprints I wear at night, though they're a bit different than those. Mine keep my arms pretty much straight and at my sides.
>>2510138
Splints* even
>>2510138
>>2510140
lol no hard feelings
but I'm imagining you turning into a plank of wood when you go to sleep
>>2510213
Accurate description, it's not very comfortable.
I also found this video last night which shows some really useful massages/stretches. It's for thoracic outlet syndrome but it gave me instant relief when I tried them:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9DIwIVfEiE
I get a problem with that if I'm not careful. As long as I'm careful, it's not an issue. I wouldn't call my experience with it severe, since I've always been able to get the pain to go away within a day or two when it flares up. I found keeping my arm as straight as possible and never leaning on my elbow is the only real way to prevent pain. I just massage the ulnar location, do exercises and stretches so it doesn't get compressed and never sleep with bent arms.
To work at a desk, I made a weird desk setup using a fluffy pillow where my arm just rests on the pillow and can stay mostly straight while I draw. It just works. No pain when I do it, so I'm pretty attached to drawing with the pillow now.
I also have a shoulder problem, and with both problems, they seem to always come back if I stress either location in ways they shouldn't be stressed. Even with good habits, it's never "cured", as it can come back just from doing bad habits again. That's my experience with it at least.
I guess I got lucky.
I remember I used to draw 8 hours a day with my elbow floating as I'd lean my drawing pad on the table. Fucked up my arm, but nothing permanent. After a 3 week rest, now I draw on a flat surface where my arm can rest, but my clavicle bone gets this strange sore/burning feeling (never pain though) when I draw.
I can draw hours on end again, but I still worry about that burning, simply because it hasn't gone away yet and it's been a month. Doctors tell me it's nothing since I can psychically do everything on that side of the arm, but I still kind of worry. Practicing Yoga now via random youtube videos, they tend to get me some relief.
