Monday, April 13, 2009

I'm falling apart


I've been advised to give typing a break for about two weeks. If I must, I should use the "hunt and peck" technique, which is not conducive to me writing well. See? It already shows! Why? My thumbs hurt. They hurt a lot. I've got "de Quervain's tenosynovitis." No, I can't have carpal tunnel like everyone else - I must have something that sounds exotic. It is not a rare problem for typists, knitters, and people who play racquet sports, but somehow it hasn't gotten the press that good ol' carpal tunnel has. Too bad, for it's painful and could be avoided if people knew about it. Those of you with laptops - take it off the table if you're going to typing for a long time! Put it in your lap, or get yourself a separate keyboard. I just ordered one.

This was a dry entry, but it's also a preemptive apology. I will be trying not to blog for a while. I must follow doctor's order in order not to develop a permanent condition. We hope we've caught this in time!

Image note: I may have been studying medical transcription, but I've never heard of the Thenar Snuffbox until now. Have you?

5 comments:

Melissa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
jmcleod76 said...

Trust me, you don't want carpal tunnel ... that shit doesn't heal after two weeks. Of course, most of what people call "carapl tunnel" isn't really. Mostly it's just repetitive stress injuries.

Anyway, I hope you'll be feeling better, and typing away again soon.

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear that pain has reached your thumbs, Julie. I'm not being facetious. I did three washloads of clothes today and hung them outside to dry (a wonderful activity)and had a very hard time getting my right arm to reach up far enough to clip the clothes-pins onto the sheets, pillow cases, and so forth. I think it's bursitis, but I'll be darned if I'm going to spend half a day at the hospital waiting for a diagnosis. I admire you simply for going to the doctor. I'll miss your blogs, but please give the thumbs a rest.

Anonymous said...

I'm anything but Anonymous. This is your friend Donna from Belgium talking about hanging out the wash. Should have signed my name.

TMC said...

oh dear!