Is it just me?

[Katchkan]

I have recently been working with yarn.

Now anyone who knows me knows I am a dyed in the wool threadie. But occasionally yarn is the right choice.

 

But everytime I use yarn anymore my hands get to aching after a day or two. Now they dont ache when I am working with thread and the small hooks. ( Anyone who knows me knows I crochet alot too ) They ache only when I change over to the larger hooks and yarn.

I have been noticing this for awhile. At first I thought I was imagining things, or something else was causing the discomfort. But it is happening too consistantly for it not to be the change of medium.

I know this is opposite from what most people complain about.

 

So I was wondering if I was strange, or if others have noticed this also.

[Amy]

Kathy, I bet it's because your hands are so used to the position you use when working with thread, that the new yarn position is stressful to them, causing the muscle and/or joint aches.

 

The discomfort might ease up the more time you spend working with yarn as the muscles/joints become used to the new positions.

 

Even though the difference in position can seem really small, it can be significantly noticeable!

[HomekeepingGran]

Mine hurt when I crochet with yarn, too. I think they hurt less with thread, but they hurt least of all when I knit instead of crochet. Aside from just wanting to learn to knit, much less pain is a real plus for knitting. However, I love both crafts and probably won't give up either one!

[WendyLee]

I would have to agree with Amy. The way you are holding the yarn and the tension you are putting on your hands is different when holding thread. I often switch between thread and yarn and it usually takes awhile before I am completely comfortable crocheting the project. Some times I have to stop and stetch my fingers and wrists because I am so tense.

[Addey]

I'm a yarn person, through and through. However, I notice that when I do a double-strand afghan with one of those large plastic hooks (N or larger), my wrist and elbow start to bug me after a while. The bigger hook makes you hold it differently than what you're used to so it's really not surprising you're having issues going from thread to yarn. I have simmilar problems going from yarn to thread as I tend to strangle my thread hooks, but am looser on my yarn hooks.

[Sbg4evr]

I am the opposite. My hands hurt after using dk weight or thinner yarn for a few days. I find the best thing to do is to alternate days using different weights of yarn.

[Auntie Kellie]

Whenever I feel like switching from yarn to thread, I take a few days to get used to it again. My DH hates this because then I have two projects going at the same time. If I haven't used threads in a long time, I'll work the thread project for half an hour then switch back to yarn for half an hour. I repeat this process until my hands are used to working with the small hooks and threads again and feel no cramping.

 

Hugs and Cookies

Auntie K

[mimi_mia]

I don't get sore from regular yarn but when I use the cotton yarn my hands hurt...

[Miss USA]

by the end of one yarn project I will have an intense craving for thread. Sometimes instead of an actual yarn project, I will work with some lustersheen or cotton yarn to make a wearable. My hand always hurts though, but this is most likely because I do hair for a living as well as crochet in my spare time