If you live on a computer it happens but there are fixes

3M Mouse

The first time I got it, I thought I was going crazy. My fingers started to cramp up and it hurt to click the mouse. Being left handed I switched right and within a month I couldn’t touch the dang mouse.

For a lifetime computer user, it was almost worse that the post polio syndrome.

Stopping, resting, operations – none of those things work. The problem is the rapid repetition with the hand turned 90 degrees. My fingers are tingling as I type since I wrote all day. 

The solution is an ergonomic keyboard and the 3M mouse. The Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 is as good as any. There are some $200 to $600 keyboards that people swear by. I like this one and I’m to cheap to put out more than $100, until my hands hurt too much.

The keyboards were on sale at Staples for $49.99 at one time. They run from $40 to $66. The low prices are always offset by freight charges.

The real key to carpal tunnel is the 3M mouse. When your hand grips a regular mouse and you click, the nerve passing through the carpal tunnel is pinched because the wrist is twisted 90 degrees. Withe the 3M mouse, the wrist is straight with the arm and elbow.

The palm rests on the base the the rest is pure pleasure. In more than four years of use, my carpal tunnel has never come back. I keep a Microsoft mouse on the left but it still hurts to use it. The 3M mouse comes in two sizes, medium and large.

Don’t buy the wireless one – it is hateful. The cord also keeps the mouse on the desk. I broke a cordless one when it fell to the floor.

I bought mine for $79 from a specialty shop I found with Google. Amazon.ca is selling them now. I wish Staples did as well but they don’t. At least Amazon.ca has free freight.

There is a good overview of carpal tunnel on ComputerWorld that takes the standard route to a cure.

Where to buy – USA

Where to buy – Canada