How to Stop Carpal Tunnel Before it Begins

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a debilitating condition, one that can greatly impede your ability to perform well at the office and that can easily lead to costly, painful surgeries. Thankfully, carpal tunnel syndrome isn’t something that develops overnight. In fact, it is a kind of Repetitive Strain Injury that develops from consistently repeating the same less than ideal motions. The good news is that you can prevent it from developing if you take a few preventative steps. A few things to pay attention to:

1) The placement and position of your table and chair height.

Both will significantly impact your posture. This is key not just for preventing the development of lower back and neck pain, but also in allowing you to naturally float our hands over the keyboard, exerting the least amount of stress on your wrists.

2) Your keyboard.

Most run-of-the-mill keyboards are completely straight, which forces your hands into a splayed position as you type. An ergonomic keyboard, on the other hand, splits in the middle to adjust to your unique body and typing behavior, keeping your wrists in a neutral position. Similarly, an ergonomic mouse will provide your mousing wrist with the rest and support it needs to safely navigate.

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3) The amount of pressure you exert as you type.

Most people apply far more pressure than they need to, pounding away at the keys. This overextends and damages the joints, wrists and fingers. As such, take some time to experiment with a lighter typing style, and see how much more comfort you enjoy.

This is really just the beginning, as there are so many more things you can do to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome. For more on this topic, we highly recommend reading this, two-part series, How to Prevent Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

How do you protect your wrists as you type? Let us know in the comments below.