Mom with De Quervain's Syndrome

I had that after the birth of my twins. What fun it is! I had several rounds of steroid injections but nothing worked. It was getting really hard to take care of my kids, so surgery was the only solution. If I can take care of 9 month old twins with one had for a month, you can too!!! (actually, I had carpal tunnel surgery on the same hand at the same time and was one-handed for 6 weeks+) It's amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it. I haven't had any bad side effects. Sometimes lately I think I overdo it, lifting heavy stuff, etc. and my wrist gets a little sore, but overall it's no big deal. GOOD LUCK!

Hi, I had this in my right wrist ten years ago, before I had any children. I was in college and it got so bad I couldn't grip a pen anymore to take notes. I had to have knee surgery so I asked them to take care of my wrist at the same time. I was a bit concerned about being on crutches after having had wrist surgery, but it turned out much better than expected. I had absolutely no pain after the surgery and it completely fixed the problem. I even used the crutches without any problems. They didn't give me a cast or sling for it--just an ace bandage. I could take a shower and everything, as soon as the stitches were removed. Ten years later I still have had no problems and only have a paper-thin white scar about 1/2-inch long on the inside of my wrist. The only negative thing I have to say about it is that they cut through a nerve when they did the surgery (somewhat common, I guess), so the skin around the incision sight is very slightly numb to the touch. But this hasn't caused any problems either and I don't even notice it. Hope this helps--good luck!

I have deQuervain's in BOTH wrists-- it was worse in the left-- started with hormonal changes when I was 5-6 weeks pregnant with my first child-- seven years ago!!! This was not carpal tunnel, not an "injury." Doctor said in most cases, it goes away after you have the baby, but mine didn't. I limped along for YEARS on ice packs, ibuprofin (both do help a little) and periodic cortisone injections. I learned how to pick my children up without aggravating it too much, but it was a consistent and significant problem for me. I had even scheduled the surgery once a couple of years ago, but got freaked out about the cost of it and put it off. Well, eventually I decided I deserved not to be in pain anymore and did the release surgery on my left hand (the worst one) for my 35th birthday. (Baby #2 was about 10 months old at the time.)

I did have some pretty significant pain after surgery for a few days-- I remember wondering if I'd done the right thing. And one side of my left thumb was numb for several weeks. I don't think I was very limited as to what I could do (baby-care-wise, I mean) after the first few days. My husband had to take over doing the dishes, though. (Wish that had lasted!) Anyway, after healing from surgery (which wasn't that bad) I have had NO pain in that hand related to the DeQuervain's. (Apparently I may be pre-arthritic in that hand as well, but it's a totally separate issue. Figures, doesn't it?) I'm lovin' the results so much, I'll probably do the right one as well if it starts flaring up on me again. (Although I'm VERY happy that it hasn't been bothering me.)

In short, I'd say don't jump right in to surgery if a cortisone injection takes care of it for a long period of time. Also, my doctor had a handout outlining how NOT to aggravate the condition. (You've probably figured a lot of them out on your own-- picking up baby under his armpits between your thumbs and index fingers is a big one!) I'm guessing if your son is 14 months old and you're asking about this, it's been a pretty significant issue for you. Having been through it, I'd say the worst part was financial. So get the facts from your doc and your insurance company, know what you're getting into so you can plan for it, and don't be afraid to do the surgery if that's what you need. Recovery was definitely a bigger deal than my doc made it sound like, but was bearable and manageable, even with a 10-month old and a 6-year-old. If you've been living with deQuervain's, you're pretty tough! It gets better quickly after surgery, then no more pain! I had stitches and was wrapped-- no cast, no sling. Check with your doc, and good luck!

Sorry about this! I had it with my third boy-- very painful!

On my doctor's advice, this is what worked for me:

1. Get a hand brace (must be cock-up, the kind with a metal insert) Helped immensely.

2. What cured me was acupuncture-- I was totally skeptical, but amazed that it totally worked. And I had wrist pain for months. It has not returned!

3. I found that I was curling my wrist while I was sleeping. This also was causing pain. I wrapped a towel around my wrist and elbow to keep them straight while I fell asleep.

Good Luck!

J.

Try to avoid surgery -- only as a last result.

I had it in both wrists leading up to birth, but afterwards it was much worse and it felt like my wrists were going to shear off. With the use of anti-inflammatories and the wrist stabilizers, it went away about 10 months after birth. Don't rush into surgery yet. I deeply understand that it is painful, but give it a bit of time and realy use those wrist stabilizers; they really will help.

Well as for me, I was waitressing when I had my second son and never have heard anything about this being associated with new motherhood, It got progressively worse and I was very scared when I found myself unable to carry plates (big part of the job ) changing the baby sometimes left me in agony and I could not imagine what I would have done if it persisted. Luckily one of my regulars was an orthopedic hand surgeon and he diagnosed me and I went to a DR. who decided to try a steroid injection, he tried it in one hand and said if it worked we would do the other one in 2 weeks, he gave me some ortho splints to sleep in and within 2 days both of my hands were back to normal. Don't you love happy endings?

Interesting. I was court reporting when I had my first child and I experienced this. I had been prone to tendonitis and arm pain, but after the birth of my son and when I went back to work, my hand really began to turn outward. I went to a chiropractor who specializes in this technique where he would take this special curved metal plate and would rub the area of my wrist where it was turning out as well as the big muscle at my forearm. It actually cleared up with no further problem. I'm not court reporting anymore and have had another child who's six months now. My arms are doing great. I would seek alternative treatment before I had surgery on my arms. It's a repetative type injury. Try a brace and things to minimize the strain.