This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in March of 2024. For the original video go to https://youtu.be/ildCz2OdBeI
Brad: Wrist, finger, and hand pain. I've actually experienced this directly approximately in the last five years. Grabbing things, opening things, working with tools, and actually shaking people's hands got very painful and I decided I needed to look into this. I found some excellent exercises and treatments we're going to go over how they cured me or actually allowed me to manage it very successfully.
Mike: So as we age, it is very common that people start developing wrist and hand issues, making everyday activities much more challenging and it can be very frustrating.
Brad: Yeah, it's not fun. Okay, now we're going to go through the exercises. They're quite simple. You probably do not want to do these until you've been out of bed for a while, maybe a half hour, and let your body warm up. We're going to go through the hand, the wrist, and actually some very interesting other options at the end of the video.
Mike: So we're going to begin with the wrist exercises. So we're going to do wrist flexion, which is going down like this.
Mike: And then extension, which is going back like this.
Mike: Now you can just do them forward, you don't have to go to the angle we were doing. You can have your hands straight out in front of you as well. We're going to do 10 in each direction. And I have a little goofy wave going on and our cameraman is laughing at me right now.
Mike: Now the next thing we're going to do is rotations like Brad is showing. So simply turn in a circle what you can. Again, keep your arms in a comfortable position that works for you. Make sure to go clockwise 10 times and then go counterclockwise 10 times.
Brad: Alright, now we're going to show you the wrist exercise that I learned a few years ago that's been very helpful and we have a good response to it from other videos as well. We're actually going to do some decompression or traction on the wrist joint. In other words, we're going to pull the wrist joint apart a little bit, which allows the synovial fluid to get into the joints, and stretch out some of the tissues. It's a gentle exercise. So the key is, to keep this whole arm as relaxed as possible. Now I'm going to take this hand, grab around the knuckles just in behind the knuckles here like this. So we have a good grasp of this hand. And as everything is relaxed, if we get a good closeup, watch the joint here. It's going to actually separate. You can see it right there, possibly right there it's actually separating the joint. We're not creating pain, this should feel good.
Brad: Now, once you get used to doing this, it may take a little practice. We're going to add a little rotation. So I grab, relax, do the distraction of the decompression, and then watch I'm going to rotate my wrist, but my hand will stay the same. A little rotation there. We're not pushing it hard, it's gentle. We do about five to 10 reps back and forth and then repeat it on the other hand as well. So it's a nice stretch for that wrist joint.
Brad: Now let's go the fingers.
Mike: Okay, now we're going to get into the finger exercises. First is flexion-extension again but with the finger joints. So essentially for flexion, you're just going to try to make a fist. Obviously, if you have bad arthritis, you may get stuck. Just go down, which you can. We'll show some other options later. And then you're going to work on extending your hand all the way straight if possible. We realize some people don't have as much range of motion as Brad and I do, so we'll show you some other ways to get that range of motion.
Brad: Right, now I personally could not make a fist. My fingers would get about this far and it was very concerning to me.
Brad: This would be in the morning, so I would work these exercises back and forth and actually take, usually my right hand's a little tighter than my left hand, I'll go over all four fingers and I'll help them as long as it didn't create any sharp pain. Pressure on pressure off and after five or 10 repetitions, I would get further and actually get to the point where I could touch and then I would leave them alone, shake it off a little bit.
Mike: Now if you're struggling with straightening your fingers out, what you can do is put your fingertips together, all five of them, and just try to press them together and touch your palms if possible. This is going to push you into an extension pattern.
Mike: Obviously, if it hurts here, just stop there. Do what range of motion you have, you can comfortably do. Maybe over a while doing repetitions, you'll start to loosen up and you can almost touch your palms together.
Brad: That's right, now, one thing I realize is sometimes people will have one or two fingers in particular that are very tight, and myself, it's my third digit. Okay, that finger's very tight. So what I'll do with that finger alone is I'll grab that finger and I'm going to do a little traction just like on the wrist, but we're focusing on the joint at the base of the finger. So I'm just going to relax, gently pull. Again, this is gentle. Do a little rotation back and forth, the same concept as the wrist. Okay, and then flex it a little bit. Should get a little more bend.
Brad: Then I'll take my thumb, put it at the base of the finger, grab the finger on top, and then work this first joint. Okay, once that loosens up, I'll go to the next joint, assuming it's tight and we work just that joint. Again, you can put in a little traction, and a little rotation. You're really just trying to loosen things up getting all the soft tissue in there moving and the synovial fluid, and then the last joint, which I think most people don't have a lot of problems with, but it's always nice to be complete.
Brad: All right, good. We have three other nice things that are not exercise-related that have helped me quite a bit. Now the first of my three simple tricks that helped my hands get back into gear is heat. Now typically people that have arthritis in their hands respond well to heat. It makes them feel good, and you get a little more motion. So that can include things like doing the dishes where you actually get some range with the heat, taking a bath, a shower, you can use a hot pack. Now, one thing I wouldn't buy is just a normal hot pack because using water would be the same thing in the dishes or the bathtub. If you want to get some real deep therapeutic heat, there is a hot pack that's special and it's far infrared. The difference is this will heat more than two inches into human tissue. So when you wrap it around your hands, you're going to get the joints, and the muscles all heated through the hand versus if you were just in water, you feel the heat, but it does not penetrate. Mike, can we talk about this thermotex a little bit?
Mike: So this is a Thermotex far infrared heating system. This is their platinum model. It has three panels and this is the side that's actually going to be warm. So I'm going to wrap my hand up in it real quick and show you what it can look like.
Mike: So you can see, you can wrap it up like this using the strap and my hands are in here and stay nice and warm. You can use this infrared system on any body part by the way, it doesn't just have to be the hands, but it's very versatile like that.
Brad: That's right, they are expensive, but they do work well. They get that deep heat. Again, you can use an ankle, hip, knee, shoulders, your back. They're very versatile, so that's important to know. Alright, now the next thing is diet. Now we are not a channel that specializes in diet, but I know personally, particularly around Christmas time when there's a lot of chocolate, which is my weakness, I'm going to eat it. My hands and my joints do get more sore. So I cut the sugar out. Things get much better typically within a week. Mike, you have similar issues at your age even.
Mike: Yes, most refined foods, have a lot of carbohydrates, sugars, and salt as well. Typically, if I overindulge in them and I try to work out, my joints are much more achy the next day, and I'm more sore. If I'm eating cleaner, my body just feels better and functions better.
Brad: That's right. And the last thing, now this is something that I've done. I don't recommend it necessarily to other people unless you watch the video to make sure you're appropriate for it. I had a patient who is about 80 years old and he came in, he said, I started using apple cider vinegar and my joints feel so much better. So I thought, wow, that's interesting. Maybe that would help me as well. So I did some research on it to know how much to take, how to really take apple cider vinegar, and if there's really something to it. And sure enough, if I take apple cider vinegar, one tablespoon, it has to be with the mother organic, get the good stuff with four to eight ounces of water daily within a week I notice things are getting better and calming down. However, don't take my word for it. Make sure you watch this video. It's called "Apple Cider Vinegar, Can It Harm You?" We have a pharmacist who did a lot of research on if it's going to bother you, particularly, there are a couple of medications you do not want to take apple cider vinegar with. You need to know that. And of course, how to take it. This video is very complete and you'll find it very useful. Sorry Mike, I took all of your talk, maybe you want to throw something in.
Mike: Do not just take a shot of it, it's rather bitter.
Brad: Yeah, it's, you have to do it right.
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