Possible HAVS / Hand and Finger Pain

[southsoundtree]

How is the anti-vibe system on the saws you're using?

Ground work, pre-mini, gave me problems.

Ergonomic tools, like the Woodchuck pickeroon, and the like have helped, but nothing compares to have a machine for doing machine work.

 

[TCtreeswinger]

I have the same exact issue youre experiencing. More saw time= longer time of numbness in the morning. Ive always wrote it off as white finger and my chiro said the same as rico..comes with the territory. Hand wrist and forearm stretches seemed to help the most for me. Since going into sales it has vanished. Im more of a beer drinkin steak eating cig smokin type too so its part my fault i reckon

 

[islandarb]

You seem like a young fella who has decided to be a tree-man as a career path. Now I hate to be a bearer of bad new, but if you do walk this road you better be prepared to feel some sort of discomfort somewhere on your body for the rest of your life. A fucked up lower back, a jacked-up shoulder, a tweaked knee, nicks and cuts from handsaws/chainsaws, a big splinter buried up under your fingernail (damn that hurts), or a sharp stick in the eye. Its always gonna be something, so you better get used to it!
As far as your current issue, there is no way any of us nitwits around here are gonna be able to diagnose the problem. Way to complicated. Neck issue, shoulder issue, elbow or wrist issue, posture problem, nutrient deficiency, genetics? Who the fuck knows. Go see an Osteopath or a Chirocracker.

Now this is the reply of the year....awesome....damn I am dealing with a jacked shoulder blade and a tweeked knee....this week. Who knows what is in store but hey just roll with it....life in de trees....they all heal in a few days....I used to get that same numbness but I have 2 broken hands from fighting in my youth....it went away as they got used to running saws....don't panic.....

 

[rico]

Now this is the reply of the year....awesome....damn I am dealing with a jacked shoulder blade and a tweeked knee....this week. Who knows what is in store but hey just roll with it....life in de trees....they all heal in a few days....I used to get that same numbness but I have 2 broken hands from fighting in my youth....it went away as they got used to running saws....don't panic.....

So now the Teufelberger male model is talking about “fighting in his youth”? You ain’t fooling anybody pretty boy.

 

[islandarb]

So now the Teufelberger male model is talking about “fighting in his youth”? You ain’t fooling anybody pretty boy.

Ha ha ha.....

 

[TreeSmithAK]

I fully echo Rico's sentiments in every way possible! From my late teens all the way through my late 30's I was superman. Get up grind out a tree day go to bed get up grind out a tree day rinse & repeat & 20 years flashes by, then all of a sudden them little grunting sounds I used to laugh at older coworkers about, started happening to me. Along with the little annoying aches & pains. Believe it or not this is likely one of the most severe repetitive labor motion jobs out there. Our worksites change daily, views are never the same, but every single little thing we do in the course of a days work is exactly the same as the day before. Staring up pole sawing fruit trees, yarding up our in tree saws after refulings, dragging brush & chucking wood all it is is repeat repeat repeat... I just hit 42 & got my first cortizone injection... hello tennis elbow goodbye invincibility!

So far as your symptoms go, you may be looking at something as simple as HOW you sleep.. if you're a side sleeper you may very well have your arm/shoulder resting in some fashion where you're pinching a nerve or restricting blood flow to your hands.. if the tingling & pain goes away once you're up & at it, that could very well be what you're dealing with...

 

[misfit]

The fundamental rule for all long-term and repetitive work with our hands is to keep the hand in line with the forearm. Repetitive bending of the hand at the wrist either up or down or holding it bent in that position for a long time will aggravate the nerves passing through the carpal tunnel causing numbness or pain in your hand and most of your fingers. Bending side to side will aggravate the nerves in the ulna tunnel and cause numbness or pain in the little finger. So be aware of your hand position while using the saw and try to keep your hand in line with your forearm. Easier said than done, I know. At least take frequent breaks and relax your hands.

 

[cBiscuit]

I have had the numb fingers when I wake up to. It usually occurs alongside really tense shoulder muscles. I have strained my rotator cuff a couple times. A climber I worked with that's in his late 40s said it was tense muscles pinching nerves. For me it's so random so I haven't found a "solution"

 

[Dan Cobb]

I have had the numb hands in the morning many times, but not in the last few months despite not changing anything. Numbness used to linger for the first couple of hours after waking. I never established a definite correlation between the numbness and running saws, blowers, etc.

 

[ghostice]

Buncha recent stuff here too:

Issues with hands after using professional saws Dailey at work.

For the last few months I’ve been using professional saws. At work we operate the ms 361 , and the 440, 500i etc. I noticed after using the saw all day five days a week my fingers click whenever I clench my fists. My hands get so numb when I’m asleep the heat and stinging wakes me up and I find...

www.treebuzz.com

 

[RyanCafferky]

One thing that was suggested to me was to wear stiff wrist braces while I sleep. It keeps the wrists straight to prevent the tension in the tendons from naturally curling the hands inward while you sleep. I found that the wrist braces were more annoying than the numbness but it did work. Another thing to try is stretching and using a forearm roller or massaging forearms after work. Hydration is huge and something that all of us are likely guilty of neglecting at times. For me, the most important thing and the thing that has helped the most is periodic maintenance which I do by seeing a massage therapist on a regular basis.

 

[evo]

I've been having the exact same issue for well over a year, maybe a year and a half fairly consistently. The issue is it is not always the same, or the same hand/side, sometimes I go a week or more without it happening, other times even after not doing anything that would provoke it goes off.
As I said it's very specific or diverse in location. It's always pins and needles but not exactly the same, less intense but more electric.
sometimes its my thumb, index and thumb side of my middle finger on my left, other times it's pinky side of middle finger ring and pinky. Sometimes both hands, or right or left. BUT always its the same fingers on either side or both sides, never a different set in the same "event". Some nights it wakes me 6 or more times some once or not at all.
Went to a doc about it, and he just gave me a referral to a PT.. After a bunch of google research and paying attention I've learned that it only happens side sleeping and in our bed. After really paying attention to it, and going though "analytics" it started with our "new" mattress, the one we got because my wife was having body pains from our old one. Why it happens to both at once I'm clueless but could be in my neck. IT does seem to get worse or be worse with normal work activities, but the only days I've had it happen while awake was while driving on bid days.

 

[Chaplain242]

I've been having the exact same issue for well over a year, maybe a year and a half fairly consistently. The issue is it is not always the same, or the same hand/side, sometimes I go a week or more without it happening, other times even after not doing anything that would provoke it goes off.
As I said it's very specific or diverse in location. It's always pins and needles but not exactly the same, less intense but more electric.
sometimes its my thumb, index and thumb side of my middle finger on my left, other times it's pinky side of middle finger ring and pinky. Sometimes both hands, or right or left. BUT always its the same fingers on either side or both sides, never a different set in the same "event". Some nights it wakes me 6 or more times some once or not at all.
Went to a doc about it, and he just gave me a referral to a PT.. After a bunch of google research and paying attention I've learned that it only happens side sleeping and in our bed. After really paying attention to it, and going though "analytics" it started with our "new" mattress, the one we got because my wife was having body pains from our old one. Why it happens to both at once I'm clueless but could be in my neck. IT does seem to get worse or be worse with normal work activities, but the only days I've had it happen while awake was while driving on bid days.

Have you spent time sleeping in another room and it behaving better? Do you get other pains in body - not just hands?

we found out the hard way that underground streams shallow enough under the bedroom bring on a lot of these symptoms.

Apparently 80 years ago builders never built on top of an underground stream for this reason.

We ended up redirecting the stream and completely fixed the issue - people could now sleep in the room during wetter seasons without fear of rheumatism.

 

[cBiscuit]

I've been having the exact same issue for well over a year, maybe a year and a half fairly consistently. The issue is it is not always the same, or the same hand/side, sometimes I go a week or more without it happening, other times even after not doing anything that would provoke it goes off.
As I said it's very specific or diverse in location. It's always pins and needles but not exactly the same, less intense but more electric.
sometimes its my thumb, index and thumb side of my middle finger on my left, other times it's pinky side of middle finger ring and pinky. Sometimes both hands, or right or left. BUT always its the same fingers on either side or both sides, never a different set in the same "event". Some nights it wakes me 6 or more times some once or not at all.
Went to a doc about it, and he just gave me a referral to a PT.. After a bunch of google research and paying attention I've learned that it only happens side sleeping and in our bed. After really paying attention to it, and going though "analytics" it started with our "new" mattress, the one we got because my wife was having body pains from our old one. Why it happens to both at once I'm clueless but could be in my neck. IT does seem to get worse or be worse with normal work activities, but the only days I've had it happen while awake was while driving on bid days.

I'm on a contract out of town, working harder than I ever have. My shoulders and back feel better than ever which is really weird. I woke up one morning and there was no tension in my shoulders or lower back. It was like magic. Pretty sure it's the bed at the motel I'm at. I just have to avoid falling asleep on the couch now.

 

[evo]

Have you spent time sleeping in another room and it behaving better? Do you get other pains in body - not just hands?

we found out the hard way that underground streams shallow enough under the bedroom bring on a lot of these symptoms.

Apparently 80 years ago builders never built on top of an underground stream for this reason.

We ended up redirecting the stream and completely fixed the issue - people could now sleep in the room during wetter seasons without fear of rheumatism.

I do have body pains but the ‘norma’ tree guy type. Falling asleep on the couch hurts but the hand issue resolves, I plan on trying out the guest futon for a few nights then make the decision to toss out the bed or not

 

[southsoundtree]

Futons are not good comparisons.

I get it about getting out of the suspect bed.


My traps and/ or rhomboids cause the hand numbness, rarely, and is fixed with lots of water and good massage work.

I've got a tight spot now.
Going to get some massage today.

 

[ghostice]

Some of us (school buddies of mine) have been following medical literature regarding COVID's longer term effects. I found this workup in medline about a 30 yr old construction guy:

Guillain-Barré syndrome presenting with COVID-19 infection - PMC

A construction worker in his 30s presented three times in 4 days with progressive upper and then lower limb weakness. On the first two occasions he had no systemic symptoms, but on the third presentation he had fever and cough, starting from day 4 ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[Neill]

Anti vibration gloves have helped me before. They might seem silly to some but I use them if I know I’m going to have a particular long day running a saw

 

[Mowerr]

I have also found this pain to be much worse and more often when sleeping on sides. So when it happens I will put more pillows behind my head, neck and sometimes under back to prop up my upper body and try to stay on my back.