When symptoms started in 1993, I had pain in the wrist and fleshy part of the palm. Some numbness, some loss of strength, and I dropped things a lot. My handwriting had worsened, but I could still write about a page before it both hurt too much and became illegible, even to me. I saw a noted local Doctor, who gave be two rounds of cortisone injections, six months apart. They didn't really help. He then said the "S" word: surgery.

I improved my work area and habits, and by 1998 I wasn't even thinking about it anymore. However, in 2000 forearm pain began. My handwriting began to worsen more, and now I can not sign my name. If I take time, I can carefully print a clearly legible message, but signatures or cursive writing is out.

Here's the twist: I am a computer research manager, and I can now, and have always, typed faster than anyone in my department. Typing does not hurt. However, if I type in a poor position, that will cause my arms to hurt.

I sure hope someone has some suggestions. It has really become a problem. Luckily, very few salespersons actually compare the signature on the back of my credit cards with what I am able to scribble on the credit card slip.

I,too, had problems with writing. I have Carpal Tunnel in both hands and also surgery on both. Sometimes if I do too much I still have problems with the hand cramping and writing but nothing like it used to be. I just try not to write for too long at a time. I still can type just as fast as I used to. That was not effected. Good luck!

Dear ccpalmer,
I just read your post. I don't know how much help I can be but I am wondering what kind of Dr. you saw. I went to a hand surgery specialist after putting up with increasing pain in my left hand for over 3-1/2 years. I also got an injection in the joint at the base of my thumb and was on Motrin for a couple of months. The conservative treatments didn't work too well and I did have surgery. In my case, it was osteoarthritis - I just plain wore that little but very active joint out. The pain is gone now and my hand is functioning well - stronger than before. I know there are a lot of different conditions that affect the hand and the Dr. I went to was very knowledgeable about the various conditions and how to treat them. Did your Dr. give you a diagnosis? What kind of surgery did he/she say you needed? Did those injections hurt like heck? Mine did! Seems to me like the Dr. should be naming some diagnosis if he/she is proposing surgery. I was just wondering if you saw an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in hand problems. I don't have CTS as far as I know but something is going on with my right hand - I didn't mention it to my hand surgeon because I just wanted to get my left hand taken care of and my right hand is not bothering enough to go looking for more trouble. From what I understand there are specialized tests that are performed to aide in the diagnosis of CTS. Did your Dr. order any special tests? I wish you luck and I hope you get some relief and regain full function of your hand.
Brookej

Yes, I had several tests, including nerve conduction survey, some measurement of how much my hand would swell after heavy use (writing until I couldn't), and the diagnostic of whether or not the injection helped (e.g., if it helped, the I have CTS). The Dr declared it CTS and wanted to do arthroscopic surgery to snip the tendon over the canal to give everything more room.

Check my post below under "non-evasive treatment" for carpal tunnel. Active Release Therapy is a type of "massage" that works really well for carpal tunnel(and other myofascia muscle problems). Search, Dr. Leahy, Active Release Therapy for more information. A lot of chiropractors practice it now.

I have cts and the injection did nothing but make the pain worse. I have been dealing with this for 1.5 years. The unfortunate part is that this is w/c and I am getting the runaround with the dr, however, work has been really great about it. Sounds like you do have cts. I wish you lots of luck.