Wa gwan.

Been getting numb hands on the bike and at night and other times, getting worse for maybe a year or so now.

In the last few weeks too I’ve been getting a lot of pain on the top of my left hand, from the wrist towards the little finger.

So painful is this I thought I may have broken something without realising(I have been known to fall off bicycles)

Had some tests at the hospital and they’re saying I have a ‘bit of’ carpal tunnel to my right hand, but the left is ok (the left is the sharply painful one) and that the left is tendonitis.

I have to wait to see a surgeon for the carpy one, but meanwhile, any sufferers of either care to give me some tips to reduce the discomfort, pain and weakness?

I do a physical job and I’m struggling a bit with it.

I reckon my hand probably looks a bit like this underneath..

Run and swim instead of riding a bike for while if you don’t already. Once you’ve rested the one with carpal tunnel syndrome for a while get a nerve speed test done, or the basis of what the neurologist says you may want the op. I just had the worst one done which cured it (it was also my guitar fretting hand so I couldn’t play), the other hasn’t got any worse.

Don’t use vibrating power tools.
Avoid doing things wrist bent.
Ride a full suspension MTB rather than a roadie because you’re sat more on your bum and road vibrations on the roadie will irritate it.

Had carpal tunnel in both left and right hands just over 18 months ago had operation on the right and ultra sound injection on the left,  took nearly a year to sort from first visit to GP to Operation.

Right hand is generally ok left hand starts to hurt during rides which means can’t tell how hard I’m pulling the brake.
Not a lot you can do according to my surgeon,  as Edukator states above really keep use of vibrating tools and equipment to the minimum. FS bike better than hardtail.

Tried wrist supports but didn’t seem to make much difference and hindered gear changing some how.

Are you right or left handed?

I get a flare up in my right hand and then try to use left for mouse on PC, really helps (takes about 8 weeks)

Right handed..I use power tools every day in my job.

I guess I tend to hold the tool in my right hand, but hold the thing I’m working on in my left. So they both do equal work, if not more with the less dominant hand.

I was getting similar (if less severe) symptoms. My physio recommended taking a high dose of vitamin B6 and using a wrist rest when on the computer (I spend a lot of time typing rather than on power tools). Cleared up in a few weeks and no further problems in 2+ years. As I understand it, B6 deficiency is common and can cause CT symptoms. However, not all CT symptoms are caused by B6 deficiency. Caveat, IANA Doctor.

I have had it several times in the right hand from mouse/keyboard use in the day job. Not much to do but rest and change the use patterns (wrist rest, mouse with the left hand, type more with the left hand, etc) for a good while (several months).

One thing to be very careful with is impact drivers , never hand hold anything that is being impacted , the repeated blows can cause damage to ligaments/tendons and they take months to recover.

I’ve had Carpal Tunnel in both hands. While I could still bike, I found that ergon grips worked to relieve the pressure, but road riding was impossible. Had both operated on, at different times thank God! Got a trigger finger on the left hand, recurring tendinitis on the right, and suffer from white finger in both!
My only advice for Carpal Tunnel is that if it get too painful, and they offer surgery, then take it! I got to the stage where I was sleep deprived due to the pins and needles in the night, couldn’t ride bikes and started to lose all feeling in my hands. Don’t let it get too far!! And don’t go back to work too soon after surgery, it’s a bigger deal than you think it is!

Had both operated on, at different times thank God!

Have you, or has anyone else experienced a reduction in grip strength when fully recovered?

This is what I worry about with the operation. My job is physical. I grip things, I lift things, I tweak things, I bash things. If I can’t do my job then duck knows what I’m going to do.

Anyone found grip strength has suffered in the long term? Of course, I expect it initially to suffer.

Right handed..I use power tools every day in my job.

Take a look at the Tech sheet that comes with your power tools and check what it says about vibration. Some tools are better than others when it comes to protecting the user against vibration exposure.

Following this with curiosity.

Going to see the docs tomorrow for my right hand as my index knuckle is numb from the knuckle upwards and occasionally gets very painful. It appears if I press down on the left topside of my wrist I get some crazy tingles in the knuckles and sharp pains and some feeling very briefly comes back but then disappears straight away, wondering if this could be the start of CTS…

No reduction in grip strength here. I was careful with the hand for about a year. It’s now the hand I use for heavy work because I know it won’t be painful in the night after unlike the one that hasn’t been done.

I’ve had a problem with the ulnar nerve in my right hand this year. That’s been helped with a wrist brace and a shift to an upright mouse when at work. I’ve also fitted Ergon grips and 27 degree sweep bars to the mountain bike which has helped. It’s rigid and I did have to stop riding it for a couple of months. Conversely I’ve had no issue with the road bike and back to back hundred mile rides caused no issues art all. While it’s not Carpal Tunnel some of the things that have helped might also be beneficial with Carpal Tunnel.

No long term grip problems here. I did struggle and take it easy to start with, driving was awkward. They say you’re ok to drive as soon as the stitches are out, but I managed to leave it a couple more weeks! I did get a trigger finger after the first op but that could coincidence!

Tendonitis in my wrist is really bad at the moment.

Did a bit of bike riding at the weekend, FOD saturday then just a gentle spin out on Sunday. Wrist is absolutely knacked this week. Hurts to pick things up and generally to rotate the wrist. It’s obviously riding bikes that aggravates it the most, which sucks big style.

What can I do? Obviously, not riding bikes isn’t an option.

A recumbant ?

I had carpal tunnel for about 8 years before finally getting the surgery on both hands in 2016 – I delayed as I was worried about success rate and potential for lost grip or other neg side effects – I got to the point where I could not sleep properly. The surgery definitely worked well – and I am no longer effected by tingling / numb hands . I was careful in rehabilitating it and took my time getting fully back to the bike – However I am left with ‘dupeytrens syndrome ‘ ( 2 cm across raised lumps on both palms in my case ) – apparently caused by the trauma of the surgery – these are not painful or problematic and I still don’t regret the surgery – CT messed with my sleep for so long and it’s worth not leaving the problem long once you’ve been diagnosed . Re grip – I lift weights to train grip and on the bike use a carbon bar and rev grips to try and minimise further hand damage .

Not so bothered about the carpal tunnel at the moment. Plus if worsening could probably get sorted with an op.

It’s the tendonitis that’s ruining things for me now. So painful. My grip has gotten terrible at times. Not sure what I can do about it. 😩

Really all you can do is rest the hand and reduce the repetitive actions that are causing it. Sucks when it’s your job. I had carpal tunnel in right hand and had op a few years ago. Had to take a month off from my gardening job. Also last spring i got tendonitis in my right hand never had it before. Swelling on forearm and painful and felt grindy when using. Brought on from a load of pruning with secateurs. Iced it, rested it and it went and didn’t return.

Reduce gripping to a minimum and train the extensors, most problems of this ilk are caused by muscle imbalances, don’t bother with stretching it’s a false grail.

Reduce gripping to a minimum and train the extensors,

Cheers. So those stretchy bands that you open your fingers against sorta thing?

I swapped from renthal bars to sqlab 30x 12 deg back sweep bars and some fatter grips (big hands). Not cured the cts but reduced it substantially so that I can ride and enjoy it again.

I swapped from renthal bars to sqlab 30x 12 deg back sweep bars

A little question about backsweep in terms of hand position.

I’ve had this sketch professionally drawn up by a top artist to illustrate my query.

Now, to my mind, if you’ve got a bar with less sweep, then it leaves your wrists straighter. If you have more backsweep then your wrists are more bent Shirley?

Wouldn’t your wrists being more bent put more pressure through them?

I actually went to a straighter motocross bar on my motorbike as I was getting numb hands quickly. Hard to say as many things add up to a bad period of wrist pain but I reckon it might be a little better.

I’ve been barbering for 33 years and occasionally have felt myself getting closer to that constant humming buzz in my hands that niggles and annoys me constantly which I presume is me heading down this route.
I have kept it at bay by keeping my scissors sharp and taking glucosamine and omega 3, I’ll now add B6 to that list. I had used Naproxen too before I got it under control.

I have also tried to stop using my phone all the time as I can feel the difference if I do. I try to use my chromebook instead.

Back sweep Q – if you hold 2 pens/carrots/dowels in a loose fist in a riding position (elbows bent, hands out in front of you at bar with apart) see where the ends point. If I do it mine point forward. The line of my knuckles isn’t 90deg to my arm.

Similarly it probably explains why power tool handles aren’t perpendicular to the drilling axis, etc.

I think I have the onset of CT – I spend the majority of my day at a keyboard (code monkey) and have done for the past 20 years.

These days during more sat down pedally rides my hands go very numb – mainly the index finger and thumb – to the point that I can hardly feel them. Not great when trying to brake!

If I stop and rest for a few minutes the numbness goes away for a short period, but ultimately comes back. I then suffer a bit the next day with on/off pins and needles in the fingers.

Off to see the GP in a few weeks about getting a CT test done.

Resurrection for people with experience with tendonitis specifically.

My tendonitis in my left wrist has gotten really bad now. I’m trying to rest it as much as I can but as a self employed furniture maker that’s very hard. I’m wearing a brace all the time, icing every night and morning.

I have been giving the bike a miss for a couple of weeks which flares it up. Well, aggressive type trail/downhill does anyway. Not nice as really it’s my only exercise outlet. I can’t run because of bad knees and so difficult to do much else that doesn’t involve your hands in some way.

Anyway, my question for tendonitis folks is thus. When they say rest it, does that mean immobilise it completely or does it just mean don’t pick up any anvils for a bit?

The thing is, I’ve been looking at lots of stretching type videos on YouTube etc but am a bit worried that I might make it worse, take longer to heal (if it ever does).

So, to stretch, or immobilise?

I have been suffering for about 4 months. Saw a physio once a week to have some deep massage to loosen the tendons in the wrist and inside elbow couple with strength exercises (grip, wrist flexor and opening of hand) and stretches and it is getting better. I still couldn’t do a press-up but it is getting better very slowly. He advised against complete isolation as you want to maintain the flexibility.

Riding is now OK, unless I have to use the rear brake on bumpy terrain. Braking bumps for example really hurt still.

Still got no idea how I did it, but it progressively got worse over a few months. Probably exacerbated by painting a house full of skirting boards.