OUCH! No pain....no gain????

[LittleJadeFrog]

I have been crocheting my little fingers...and hands off...literally. My hands are killing me! My fingers ache, my hand is cramping, and I am developing quite the callous, which I expected after crocheting for so many years but it hurts. I have not changed my tension, grip, or anything else, but it just started recently. I do not have arthritis. My hands only hurt WHILE I am crocheting. Not before...not after maybe alittle stiff the next day but not painful. I love to crochet. It is very relaxing and I do not want to give it up...not even for a few days to "heal". I will go CRAZY! What to do? I heard to soak in epsom salt and warm water...will that help for the "during crochet" pain?

 

HELP!!! :sighAny ideas???

[elegganthooks]

If you search "ergonomic crochet hooks" on ebay, you'll find a lovely handle with both small and large interchangeable hooks that will help immensely!

[mommy2jj3604]

In one of my newer Mags it has hand stretches let me go find it so I can give you more info. That might be all you need is to stretch them out a bit.

 

Ok I found it instantly. It is the Spring Preview '07 (feb/Mar) of Crochet Today! On page 39. If you don't have the issue PM me and I will tell you the gist of what it says.

[anthrilliel]

Maybe if you tried changing your grip for a while when you are crocheting ? I am 21 and recently I find out I am suffering from CCS It happens, of course I could not stay away from crochet for 3 weeks (this is what they suggested) so I had a wrist support and changed from knife grip to pencil grip , took breaks every now and then and now everything s fine Just a suggestion

[LittleJadeFrog]

I tried to change my grip...man I am SO clumsy. I guess if that is what I have to do then I can keep trying. To me it's like trying to write left-handed.

[nikki]

I've been dealing with the same thing recently, ring and pinky finger down my hand to my wrist. I've been using deep heat on it at night and it seems to feel better by morning. I know others have suggested using an ace bandage to keep parts of your hand immobile which does help for a little while. Good luck, I know it really sucks.

[Yearnin' for Yarn]

I was having problems for awhile, and I got a wrist support thing from Walmart. It helped some; I also took some pain relievers and used something like Icy Hot or Tiger Balm or whatever. Look up some finger and hand stretches on the Internet--that might help.

 

Nicole

[Sockmad]

Also put vitamin E oil on your callous it really helps! But make sure you get it from Kmart,Wal-mart or somewhere else that sells it cheap cause the pharmacy will rip you off!

[secretstasher]

It sounds silly but get a tennis ball and have it next to you while you crochet. When pain strikes put your hand round the tennis ball all relaxed it soothes it instantly.

Try to grip your crochet hook more loosely. good luck I hate pain and I couldn`t crochet last night due to pain while I was babysitting so I cleaned out the playroom instead (instant brownie points tee hee) xx

[antara]

Have you tried those fingerless gloves you can buy at craft stores? They might be the same thing Nicole was talking about, I'm not sure. I use mine frequently, and my wrists and arms feel SO much better!

[LittleJadeFrog]

Thanks for all of your ideas. Thing is that I can't loosen my tension since I am making amis. But I will try the vit e on the callous. I also found that if I hold the needle in a different spot (futher up on the needle) it doesn't hit the painful spot on my palm. I think it might be a sort of bruise and it's a little swollen. I had Tae Kwon Do class tonight so I just relaxed after. I did the last ear for Kristie's Kids pattern the Lazy Days Cat. And I started a new ami doll...but I didn't do too much . I am going to bed early because that is the only way I can think of staying out of the fridge and off of the hook (my only 2 obsessions!! :icecream & ) One prevents the other but sleep is the only thing keeping me from both.

 

Anymore ideas will be greatly appreciated!

[mythunderbird]

put a hand brace on and don't do it for more than 20 min at a time without stretching. thats how i do it my hands are numb but still hurt with arthritis and thats what i do, i hope that helps, is hard when you want to create isn't it:hug

[paperflowers]

Is there something you've been doing differently lately? I can type or crochet for days on end because I'm used to it, but if I pick up a video game toy, my thumb starts killing me.

[kazily]

If you don't have arthritis, tendinitis or CTS, it is probably using a smaller hook if you're used a larger one or having to crochet so tightly for the ami's. Some great advice has been given, that has helped me, especially using elastic fingerless gloves while crocheting. I buy them at WM, in the pharmacy dept., a 2 pack for $8.xx. Also I recommend ergonomic hooks highly, such as clover soft touch or even covering your old hooks with eraser clay (eraser clay is softer than regular polymer clay).

 

I have chronic tendinitis & my Ortho Dr. recommended taking breaks every 20 min plus squeezing a gel filled ball, as well as hand & finger exercises that you can find online here, with nice videos of each exercise.

http://www.handhealth.com/ffchallenge.asp

 

The gel type ball is just a .99 ball I got in the toy dept at WM lol

 

Mine continues to hurt at night, sometimes from thumb to elbow or even my shoulder, so I have had to get cortisone shots & wear a stiffer brace at night during acute tendinitis.

 

edit: I have also read about people putting band-aids on the spots where they get the most stress on their fingers. Especially if the callouses hurt when crocheting, this might pad them.

[LittleJadeFrog]

I like the fingerless gloves idea since the hook stabs me in the palm. I will have to check out WM to see. I have tried the bandaids but he hook slips too much in my hands. And yes I have been doing alot of amis with a smaller hook than I am used to. I usually use f or g but I have been using smaller hooks lately .

 

Thank you all for your ideas! I have noticed that me hands are hurting more often and longer. It might feel better during the day but as soon as I start to crochet... I also have been crocheting more and longer than I did before. This year I am making all of my gifts for xmas so I am trying to get it all done. I am going to try alot of these ideas. I just might just be developing arthritis. I already have it in my hips.

[geneinthebattle]

In my case, I do stretching with my hands, shake, twist and turning and massage it before and after crocheting. Like a warm up, cool down thing when you exercise.

[Ladykats]

I changed hooks. I bought several of Jimbo's hand carved hooks and I haven't looked back. If you use the small steel hooks I am sure if you ask him nicely that he can carve a handle and then drill a hole to except the steel hook. You would just have to glue yours into it. I don't use the small hooks much anymore but I do know that your hand will feel much better with one a hook like his and you wouldn't have to change your grip.

[Real Deal]

Yes, working with a smaller hook in order to make tight sts is part of your hand problem. When you make dolls or animals that need a tight fabric, you also pull on the yarn harder and it takes some stretch out of the yarn to help keep those sts tight. In no time, your hands hurt. I did it while making a snail this summer ~ an F hook with worsted weight ~ and the snail came out so adorable, but I'll never do another one. I named him Timothy. Poor Timothy will never have a mate. I gave him to one of my sisters where he now lurks among her potted plants.

 

My hook usually just slides over this one spot on one finger, but was pressing hard on that spot while making Timothy. In no time it hurt seriously bad. A bandaid there helped.

 

Also I have fibromyalgia, which like arthritis, does not take kindly to anything but moderation. If you prop your arm ~ we all need to get in this habit ~ on a big couch pillow or rounded end of the couch, it will make a difference with wrist and arm pain. Neck pain too. All too often, we sit down to crochet "for just a few minutes" on a kitchen chair, porch steps, etc., just to look at the clock and find 2 hours have slipped by!

 

I found I'm a lot happier with my J hook (with worsted weight at least), a good cup of coffee, more frequent breaks, and I decided it's not worth it to me to feel so stressed by pain when I'm doing something I should be enjoying.

Let's all feel good physically and emotionally about our yarn projects.

Real Deal