Question for any Neanders with carpal tunnel issues...

[Hasin Haroon]

I've been struggling with carpal tunnel in my right wrist for some time now, and it makes sawing for any extended period of time rather painful.

Some saws are worse than others - my favourite are my Lie Nielsen tenon/dovetail saws, as they were modified by the previous owner to make them more rounded, and have less of a hump that sits in the palm. I imagine prior to the mods the LN saws would have been rather uncomfortable judging by photos of new ones. My veritas saws are also rather uncomfortable, and my one bad axe saw is a bit less so.

I have two questions for any of you suffering from similar issues:

1. Any sawing tips to reduce fatigue?

2. Any suggestions for saws that have comfortable/ergonomic handles?

Thanks!

[Steve Kaminska]

During my time as a BMW mechanic, I had a lot of issues with ulnar neuritis, also known as tennis elbow (same problem, different nerve.) I got treatment at the Kerlan-Jobe clinic, they've treated Dodgers pitchers, Lakers players, etc. Aside from a LOT of physical therapy, the two most helpful things I took away from that experience are:
1. Keep your wrist as straight as possible. Any bending or twisting of the wrist puts all of the nerve tubes in tension, increasing the likelihood of abrasion.
2. Avoid repetitive motion as much as possible (hard to do when sawing)

So, I would suggest adjusting your stance, saw station, etc. as much as you can to eliminate movement in the wrist as you saw. Keep a relaxed grip on the saw, this is something I have to remind myself of about every third stroke when I'm sawing. If you can saw with both hands, switch hands frequently to reduce fatigue. I found wearing gloves with some cushioning in the palm helped a bunch when I was running air tools all day, maybe give that a try also.

As far as saw handles go, the more comfortable the grip, the better it will be for you (obviously). I'm sure plenty of people will give suggestions, but you may have to make your own handles, or modify your existing handles to fit.

[Zach Dillinger]

The most important factor to prevent sawing fatigue is to ensure that your saw is sharp and properly set up for the wood you are sawing. If either of those conditions are not met, you will start to force the saw through the wood rather than letting the saw do the work, and you will bear down on the saw and throw your wrist out of alignment. Before you know it, your cut is far off line and your arm / wrist / hand hurt.

[Bob Andre]

Hasin,
Before you permanently damage the nerves distal to your wrist go to the medical forum. I had carpal tunnel in both wrists (I have rheumatoid arthritis ) years ago. The surgery to correct this is simple with a very small incision and short downtime resulting in a permanent cure. Repeated pain from this indicates that the nerves are being compressed and will result in loss of sensation in your fingers. In the meantime as Steve suggests try keeping your wrist as straight as possible as bending (flexing) makes it worse. There are wrist splints you can use to help if needed, but my best advice is to see a hand specialist for the best answer. May not be what you want to hear, but I believe it is the best advice.
Bob

[Jim Koepke]

If you can saw with both hands, switch hands frequently to reduce fatigue. I found wearing gloves with some cushioning in the palm helped a bunch when I was running air tools all day, maybe give that a try also.

As far as saw handles go, the more comfortable the grip, the better it will be for you (obviously). I'm sure plenty of people will give suggestions, but you may have to make your own handles, or modify your existing handles to fit.

Fortunately sawing left handed has helped me when my right hand isn't working. Besides a bit of carpal tunnel, my right hand and shoulder suffer from old injuries.

Sawing left handed may feel weird, but it surprised me my first time trying it. My cuts were a bit better left handed. It must have been the difference between a sore hand and a hand that felt okay.

My chisel handles are mostly turned on my lathe to accommodate my hands. A couple of my saw handles are also shop made for a comfortable grip. My other saws are often modified to fit my hands. Same with plane totes when needed.

jtk

[Paul F Franklin]

Second the advice regarding seeking medical advice. I waited too long and have some permanent loss of sensation in my thumbs and first and second fingers. There is a simple test they do where they stimulate you nerves with electricity and measure how well the impulses reach the hand. (It's actually kind of fun to see your hand and fingers twitch by themselves during the test).

I had the release surgery on both wrists about 10 years ago and wish I had done it sooner. The surgery takes about 10 minutes and is outpatient. If you notice any loss of muscle tone in the thick part of your thumbs, (atrophy of the muscle) go right away, you are entering irreversible damage stage. The surgery is quick and initial recovery short, like a few weeks, although it is longer before you can lift heavy weights or regain full strength.

Short of that, wearing wrist braces at night is recommended (I still wear them every night) and always wear gloves when doing any sort of work involving vibration. There are hand exercises you can do that help in mild cases.

[John K Jordan]

Wrist braces helped me a lot years ago. It wasn't carpal tunnel but similar. I used them for a long time but don't need them any more.

I wouldn't recommend using them without a medical evaluation and advice.

[Larry Frank]

Protect your hands as they are a valuable resource.

I would see a hand orthopedic doctor and find out what is going on and what your options are.

[Warren Mickley]

The Lie Nielsen, Lee Valley, and Bad Axe saws all have that horrible hump that sticks into your palm. I have one of the Bad Axe saws and unlike any of my other saws, it hurts my hand to use it for any length of time. The LV and LN hurt my hand just looking at them. I have mentioned this flaw on forums before, but I am not sure that many agreed with me.

I have used Disston saws since 1956 and have also used 18th century style handles. They have a much more rounded back of the handle, much more comfortable and not so abusive. This is another example of modern companies presuming they can improve on traditional designs.

[Matt Lau]

First, go see a hand therapist...some physical therapists specialize in that stuff.

Second, try a Japanese saw.
Sawing uses a "loose" grip and the whole body, like pulling a string.

[Andrew Seemann]

In a word, bandsaw.

I can't sustain the level of hand tool use that I used to, and if I tried, I probably would damage something beyond repair. Age and arthritis takes their toll. There is no disgrace in using power tools where it makes sense. It beats not working wood or damaging your body to the point where you can't.

And get that carpal tunnel checked out especially on the off hand chance that it isn't the sawing that is doing it.

[Luke Dupont]

Firstly, make sure you're getting a good diagnosis here. What you have may be Tendonitis. There aren't many doctors, yet alone individuals, who can accurately distinguish between carpal tunnel and tendonitis, much less provide effective treatment beyond recommending rest, which is exactly what you should be doing right now, in either case. Note that surgery may help carpal tunnel, but will not generally help and may even hurt your condition if it is chronic tendonitis.

Secondly, stop using your hand if you have any wrist pain. No keyboard, no mouse, no woodworking. Even if you need to take make major adjustments in work and life, do that right now and let it heal for 3-6 months, or you may be left with a debilitating chronic injury for life, or at least one that will take many years of physical therapy and extremely limited use of your hands in order to recover.

I urge you to take this advice to heart, because I'm speaking from experience. I've struggled with chronic tendonitis -- a degredation of the tendon tissue due to over use, in my wrists for about 4-5 years now. It's an extremely debilitating condition that may never heal completely in my case, because I didn't make drastic changes quickly enough and kept working through the pain. Remember, if you are feelinbg pain, you've already gone too far and have caused some level of damage and need to let that heal up -- and that takes longer than you think. The pain might be gone in a few weeks or months, but it will take weeks or months more yet for it to heal enough to resume normal work. If you start too soon and hurt it again, you'll be on the path to a condition that will haunt you for a long time and possibly impact your ability to work and generate an income.

Assess what is causing your pain. If you work with computers, throw out your keyboard and mouse and do some research into ergonomic keyboards / mice. Hold off on the woodworking until the pain goes away and be extremely careful. Take care of your hands and let them heal properly above all else; prevention is far easier than cure.

[Larry Frank]

Please take Luke's advice seriously as it is good advice.

I let my wrist pain go to far and my wrist joints were worn out. One doctor wanted to do a joint fusion. Luckily, I found a top notch hand surgeon who fixed them so that I have pretty good use of them. I still have a bit of pain sometimes but much better.

The surgery on my wrists was very painful but worth it. My advice if you are having hand or wrist pain is to see a orthopedic hand doctor and find out what is going on and how to treat it.

[Bill Carey]

2nd on taking Luke's advice.
I've had surgery on both hands and was fortunate enough to come out of it pretty good. Being a construction estimator for 40 years, I have used mice and the computer all day every day and I believe what kept me from carpal tunnel was the fact that I use 6 different pointing devices. Vertical mice, regular mice, trackballs, touch pads, finger mice, left handed, etc. And it stopped the repetitive motion problem. I highly recommend this practice. And I have had to make changes in the shop as well. I no longer do a lot of hand sanding - I use a power sanded. I don't use sharpening stones, I bought a Worksharp. I guess what I'm saying is that there is a way to maximize the enjoyment you get from working in the shop. Doing a lot of hand sawing may be in your past, but the fulfillment of building something does not have to be.

[Hasin Haroon]

Thank you everyone. I'll take your advice and ask for a referral to a specialist the next time I'm at my GP. I already ditched my regular keyboard and mouse at work for ergonomic versions, and it helps immensely.

Cheers