PAIN!!

[*CLAIREBEAR*]

Hello all!


please can someone give me any advice on if you have experienced this also......

for the last few days (and nights especially)
i have had pretty severe pain in my hands and wrists,i saw my GP about it yesterday as i am swelling up alot in my ankles,feets and hands/fingers.
he has not diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome but has said it appears to be just like the symptoms of this but pregnancy related (ive never experienced anything like this before)

i do a job were a type all day,so he has put me on sick for two weeks to rest them,as it is aggravating it,i feel really ratty and weepy as i am not sleeping as it keeps me awake and is so frustrating and draining.

during the day my fingers feel almost "pulled" ,like they are strained IYKWIM.
on a night the real pain starts,its like pins and needles initially and a heavy feeling like they feel like lead.
i get electric shock type pains going up my arms and when i get up in the morning my fingers feel stiff and it feels like they are weak and my grip on things is not as strong as it should be,they feel numb all the time.

my GP does not feel it is anything too much to worry about at present as my blood pressure is normal,but i am just wondering how i am going to manage if i have this for the next 11 weeks.

any input would be apprechaited please!!

 

[Melly+2]

sounds like carpel tunnel, o had it with Hope, id get a splint or a tubi grip and see if that helps, it did with me, its such a pain though

 

[DJ Mom]

Yes had it for ages, its fluid retention, wait til your feet look like the marshmallow man's, my wee boy nearly cries when he looks at my hands and feet and says he has forgot what i really look like!!!

Rub hand cream in to your hands whenever you can for as long as you can this helps to disperse the fluid other than that its their to delivery, sorry!

 

[emmie]

I would go back to docs hun see if you can get a splint and see if it helps, hope they ease off soon

 

[Julie84]

My hands and feet are all swollen - my feet hurt when I try to shove them in my shoes but are otherwise okay. My hands however hurt all day and at night I keep me awake with awful ins and needles.

My midwife said it was just fluid retention and normal but to keep an eye on it in case it gets significantly worse.

However, I would have thought since you still have a little way to go they would want to look into a bit more. I had swollen ankles (I think more from some excessive shopping at the Baby Show more than anything else ) at about 30 weeks and my midwife was quite concerned and said if they remained swollen I needed to go for blood tests.

Have you taled to your midwife about it? I have found midwives to be much more understanding and clued up than GPs.

 

[*CLAIREBEAR*]

thanks all!
i dont see the midwife now til end of december,i will ask about the splints...........doc just prescribed rest and paracetamol............hard when you need to use your hands!
im also worried as i have found out today that they are making loads redundant at my work,im worried that they will get rid of me and i wont get my company maternity pay which is much better then SMP.........

 

[Charlie:-)]

Hello again Claire,

Yes sounds exactly like what I had/have.

I started with it at around 28 weeks and midwife and GP both said it was tendonitus linked to carpal tunnel syndrome and usually goes when you give birth. Unfortunately I still have it and it comes and goes, some days are worse than others but night times are the worst. At first when I gave birth I thought it had gone I was pain free but I had a c-section and once I stopped taking the painkillers they has prescribed it was still there, just goes to show how strong the pain killers were. When Maia was brand new and when she woke in teh night because my hands/wrists had been resting they were particularly numb and painful so I used to have to go to the toilet just to get them "working" again or I wouldn't have been able to pick her up it was too painful and she would be laid in her basket crying her little heart out waiting for me

I have been to see my GP since who prescribed me ibuprofen - did nothing. Then I was prescribed ibuprofen gel - did nothing. Then I was referred to a specialist who gave me a splint to wear in bed but again it hasn't helped. They also gave me some exercises to do but again no difference. The only thing that I can do now is to have a steroid injection but I have to wait until I stop breastfeeding. The injection will clear it up straight away. The specialist has said that it is a tendon that is linked to my thumb which is causing my pain. The tendon is covered by a protective sheath and it runs through the carpal tunnel which in turn is very small and during pregnancy everything has swollen up making the tendon touch the sheath which is causing the pain.

They're not half as bad as they used to be some days I have no pain at all then other days it is really bad.

 

[*CLAIREBEAR*]

Hello again Claire,

Yes sounds exactly like what I had/have.

I started with it at around 28 weeks and midwife and GP both said it was tendonitus linked to carpal tunnel syndrome and usually goes when you give birth. Unfortunately I still have it and it comes and goes, some days are worse than others but night times are the worst. At first when I gave birth I thought it had gone I was pain free but I had a c-section and once I stopped taking the painkillers they has prescribed it was still there, just goes to show how strong the pain killers were. When Maia was brand new and when she woke in teh night because my hands/wrists had been resting they were particularly numb and painful so I used to have to go to the toilet just to get them "working" again or I wouldn't have been able to pick her up it was too painful and she would be laid in her basket crying her little heart out waiting for me

I have been to see my GP since who prescribed me ibuprofen - did nothing. Then I was prescribed ibuprofen gel - did nothing. Then I was referred to a specialist who gave me a splint to wear in bed but again it hasn't helped. They also gave me some exercises to do but again no difference. The only thing that I can do now is to have a steroid injection but I have to wait until I stop breastfeeding. The injection will clear it up straight away. The specialist has said that it is a tendon that is linked to my thumb which is causing my pain. The tendon is covered by a protective sheath and it runs through the carpal tunnel which in turn is very small and during pregnancy everything has swollen up making the tendon touch the sheath which is causing the pain.

They're not half as bad as they used to be some days I have no pain at all then other days it is really bad.

thanks for the reply!
i hope it does go when bubs is born! the thought of having to put up with this for the next 10 weeks is bad enough,and thats going by his EDD,i suppose he can also be late,i really want to breastfeed so i suppose that will prolong treatment also.
how you have descibed it is how i feel too,i have to get my hands "going" before i can grip properly and pick things up,my hands and feet/ankles are so swollen,i was worried that it may have been pre-eclampsia but doc seems to think not as my BP is fine and on last water sample the MD said i had some protein in my water but seemed to think it was a water infection??

thanks again so much for the replies!!

 

[jolene]

i have this, to the point where my finger tips on my right hand have been numb for a few weeks now. Not much fun but like everyone says, i have been assured that it goes once baby arrives and the water goes. I tried wearing a splint but kept hitting myself in the face with it while i was sleeping

 

[*CLAIREBEAR*]

i have this, to the point where my finger tips on my right hand have been numb for a few weeks now. Not much fun but like everyone says, i have been assured that it goes once baby arrives and the water goes. I tried wearing a splint but kept hitting myself in the face with it while i was sleeping

lol! that sounds so funny!!! (sorry i know its not!)
what are the splints made of..wood?? sorry to sound dumb but i have not seen them.........they sound painful............doc just told me to take paracetamol and keep them warm?

 

[jolene]

i have this, to the point where my finger tips on my right hand have been numb for a few weeks now. Not much fun but like everyone says, i have been assured that it goes once baby arrives and the water goes. I tried wearing a splint but kept hitting myself in the face with it while i was sleeping

lol! that sounds so funny!!! (sorry i know its not!)
what are the splints made of..wood?? sorry to sound dumb but i have not seen them.........they sound painful............doc just told me to take paracetamol and keep them warm?

lol no dont say sorry. It made me laugh first time i did it, i woke up and wondered what the hell had just hit me. They have a big bit of metal in them to keep your hand in place that runs from the palm of your hand down your arm. Mine has metal some have thick plastic. lol

 

[*CLAIREBEAR*]

i have this, to the point where my finger tips on my right hand have been numb for a few weeks now. Not much fun but like everyone says, i have been assured that it goes once baby arrives and the water goes. I tried wearing a splint but kept hitting myself in the face with it while i was sleeping

lol! that sounds so funny!!! (sorry i know its not!)
what are the splints made of..wood?? sorry to sound dumb but i have not seen them.........they sound painful............doc just told me to take paracetamol and keep them warm?

lol no dont say sorry. It made me laugh first time i did it, i woke up and wondered what the hell had just hit me. They have a big bit of metal in them to keep your hand in place that runs from the palm of your hand down your arm. Mine has metal some have thick plastic. lol

ouch!
i think id do some serious damage with those aswell!!
they sound abit dangerous!! (and not very comfortable)

 

[*CLAIREBEAR*]

i had a really bad night last night with my hands,please please please can someone tell me the best splints/supports i need to buy to ease the pain!
i cannot go on like this,i need to get some pain free sleep!

 

[Charlie:-)]

Go to your GP hun and get them to organise you some. Hope you get it sorted soon

 

[*CLAIREBEAR*]

Go to your GP hun and get them to organise you some. Hope you get it sorted soon

thanks hun,im going to,i cant put up with this much longer its soooo painful!