losing wrist movement

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Hi
Was wondering if any of you have lost movement in a joint and then it has come back?

i have RA and my left wrist has over the past year lost a lot of movement, i cant turn my wrist to make my hand palm up or bend my wrist to make hand go down wards, i can move it up/back a little.
anyway this has happened gradually over about a year and i just wondered if anyone else has had this type of thing and then got the movement back?
i did lose movement in my finger and thumb and had jabs and got the movement back but this came on quickly and was dealt with quickly, so think wrist may be different.

Sharon

dreamdaisy

I have no idea but how frustrating for you. Others will be along who will be more helpful I'm sure. Dreamdaisy

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Hi DD
i keep forgeting, when in a shop and hold out my hand to take change and cos i cant turn hand up i drop the money, i get a few strange looks
Thanks

dreamdaisy

It's always the little things that catch you out, isn't it? Something basic and everyday. I know I'm having a good day when I can wipe my feet on a doormat. Mostly I can't so it's always a lovely little surprise. I'll think about the change thing and see if I can arrive at a solution. DD

tillytop

Hi Sharon I too have RA and I guess it depends whether the problem is due to active inflammation or actual joint damage. My fingers used to lock and frequently dislocated temporarily at the knuckles. I know that my finger joints are eroded so I thought it was permanent. But, after a time on Infliximab, the locking and dislocating stopped. If it is just one wrist, and your inflammation is under control, it might be worth seeing if you can get it xrayed to see if something is trapped or otherwise damaged. Good luck. TIlly x

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Hi DD
well i hope you get more days being able to wipe your feet on the mat and for me i guess i just have to remember to put out my other hand to collect my change

Thanks tilly
will ask rhuemy if i can get x-ray on wrist. my other wrist swells but i still have full movement in it, well i think i do!

ironic

Hi Page, Yes I had this and I got to the stage where my wrist felt broken. It got worse over a two year period. I finally got some help and got a steroid injection in my wrist and in a finger. The wrist one was combination of two types and it worked. I’ll whisper this it was supposed to last for three months, that was six months ago. The finger one did nothing so I still cannot form a fist. Hope you can get it sorted soon. Ix

puffin

Hi Sharon,

Have you got any problems in your neck? Have you got any pain travelling down your left arm? Does your arm feel heavy?

I ask because the problem might be an inflammed nerve root in the neck. (Have had this and my left hand was badly affected.)

Has you doctor mentioned Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (pinched nerve in the wrist)?

Puffin.

lindalegs

Hi Sharon,

I've lost all movement in my wrists and it happened gradually over a long period of time. I can remember trying to do the exercises given by my physio and they were so painful that I gave up trying, thinking that I would do them when they were less painful, so they stopped working and then the pain went :roll: ...and they were stuck :shock: When I asked my, then, Rheumy about them, they were x-rayed and she just told me they were wrecked and would never move again :shock: :shock:

What I've learnt from that is get help whilst they're painful but still move, scream from the rooftops if you must but get your Rheumy team to listen now. It's too late for me but not for you.

As for collecting change in shops, I either ask the assistant to put it in the palm of their hand so I can pick it up or I give them my very small change purse and ask them to put it in there for me.

Luv Legs

skezier

Hi Sharon,

Oh flower right there with you on the left and almost on the right...... I keep hoping the mtx will help but mine isn't just the wrist so get yours checked out..... They say mine is the elbow and shoulder as well..... never had an xray mind but the signs are there especially the palm turn over thing.

I really hope you can get some improvement and you let us know. Its so unfair and I so wish you didn't have all this... e well you know I am old and haggard.... still make a decent cake though Love bubbles and ((( )))'s Cris xxx

Hi legs,

thanks so much for all that.... I am really finding it hard to a) remember I can't turn that hand and b) ask for help......

luv and ((( )))'s Cris who is on too step a learning curve xx

Hi Puffin,

That's some interesting about your neck.... mine is shot and has peripheral nerves being effected so maybe I will ask the pain clinic doctor or the rumo a few questions...... Mine isn't ct yet but the swelling and lack of movement meant they sent me for tests. You take it easy and I really hope your neck gives you a break soon. Cris x

frogmorton

Hi Sharon

Oh no

I am so sorry.

I think i would beg the rheumy to try a jab...need to try to get it back. Might work, but if Daisy CAN wipe her feet and other times CAN'T maybe it will come back?

Do let us know what he says.

Love

Toni xx

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Hi All
Thanks so much for your replies

ironic i am seeing rheumy on 24 may so will ask about steroid jab, that's what they done for fingers and it worked really well

puffin i do get pain and stiffness it my neck, which makes me feel sick sometimes will ask about that too, thanks.

thanks legs, i just have to remember and use other hand :roll: change purse is a good idea

cris your not old or haggard and your cakes are fantastic

Toni i wont ask you to come with me if i have a jab cos we will both be fainted on the floor

thanks again

frogmorton

Sharon

Will be waiting to hear how you get on - and yes I wont even iMAGINE it or I will be with you..

thud....you....


thud....me

Love

Toni xx

madness1985

Hiya,

I have the same problem when people try and give me change it goes everywee very fustrating. My movment i dout will come back but who nos. I hope the jabs work for you. Thought id let u know ur not alone.

x

tkachev

Hi Page

I have had some movement return to joints since having Humira injections.I think you may need to change/improve your medication.

Once had to do a funny handshake with a school teacher.Went to swap hands cos of the pain and ended up all twisted and awkward.I felt a right pr*tt.

Elizabeth

puffin

Hi Sharon and Cris,

Am just going to say how I tackled my hand problems when they were severe. ( I still have evidence of these--contracture of palms when I have used my hands too much, stiff fingers, 'dropitis', etc.)

Long ago I had extraordinary muscle wastage through misdiagnosis. I had foot drop, a contracted left leg which I could not walk on, a twisted pelvis, a left arm which 'hung' from my shoulder and a tilted head.
Getting no improvement from meds., finding some exercises for my arm too painful, and using a wrist brace at times, I was in despair, especially as I was/am left-handed.

Eventually I learned, through the Alexander Technique, that 'freeing up' the neck was very important, helping breathing and movement generally.

Lying flat on your back (easier said than done!), with your knees up so your spine is relaxed and resting your head on a firmish support can be a help even if you have many bony spurs and worn discs like me. It takes lots of practice to manage this. Eventually I was able to lie on the carpet, as well as on my firm mattress, and get relief from pain. ( The problem was then in getting up----an art in itself!)

I was forever rubbing and prodding the front of my shoulder with the opposite hand to try and ease horrendous pain but getting some relief by resting my forearms on chair arms when I was sitting. I decided in the end to take the weight off my bad arm by making a sling out of a scarf. I used this in the evening when I was watching TV as during the day I had to do things---- - like work. It helped.

Eventually, freed of the weight of my arm, my shoulder joint 'opened' ( best word I can think of), the pain travelling down my arm disappeared and gradually I was able to move my thumb and fingers again. The swelling at the base of the thumb went down. My neck muscles were less painful so easier to move.

Now it is stiffness of my neck first thing in the morning and use of more than say twenty minutes (sometimes less depending on the movement) of one activity that will cause my hand to seize up but touch wood, that excruciating pain has not returned.

If I have walked too much, especially without turning my head (as in looking around) then neck compression from being upright and using tight muscles will make my shoulder and arm stiff. The hot pad relieves it once I am home.

I try to keep my neck warm---- not easy as drafts come from all sorts of places. I actually shower my head along with the rest of me in the morning as this warms the nerves in my scalp, face and neck. ( This is easy because I have short hair. It is not practical for many people.)

If you have tried lots of different ways of relieving hand pain it is worth trying a sling for short periods to see whether the root cause is nerve compression/inflammation in the neck or shoulder. I don't think you can do yourself harm by this but you can check with your doctor first. It is worth remembering that worn facet joints slide and that after one problem is reduced or even solved, another starts. At least that is my experience. :roll:
Puffin.


I

dreamdaisy

What a doughty person you are Puffin. You are not going to let anything defeat you, are you? What a tremendous spirit you have - I am in awe. Dreamdaisy

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Hi Puffin
i looked in to doing the Alexander technique a few years back cos my posture isnt great,( but think that is true of most people), but it was expensive and the classes were a bit far away so didnt do it (this was all before arthritis) but think i might look into it again.

i seem to get the neck ache more when my jaw is bad, think that is cos i tense up. the joys of arthur ah :roll:
thanks for the info on what has helped you
best wishes
sharon x

dreamdaisy

The AT is so good for many things but only if you can stand for a reasonable length of time. I tried and failed for that reason. I would love to do Pilates but again, not being able to stand unsupported, it's difficult!

If you are able to try it then give it a bash. It is very effective and improves so many other things too. I wonder if you could get it on the NHS? They do fund other types of 'alternative' treatments such as acupuncture. DD

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Hi DD
I can stand fine, thankfully i dont have to many problems with lower body, its the top half of me that is on the way out
thanks
sharon

tkachev

Hi Sharon

Remember we talked about pilates. There is a class up the road from me but on a wednesday evening. Going to pop in to see NRAS meeting this coming wednesday and will ask about it cos quite a lot of them go(so it must be good for arthritis) but cant stop for more than a few mins as got to go to a school assembly.
Elizabeth

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hi Elizabeth, sorry somehow i didnt see yours and madness posts, thanks too you both.

well im up for pilates, if you find out about it i will give it a go, at least with 2 of us if we cant do it we can laugh at each other