Laptop Users: Anybody Else Suffer Repetitive Strain Injury?

[andym172]

I've been using my Macbook quite a lot over the last month or so and have recently noticed a tingling sensation bordering on numbness going through my forearm.

It's not sore per-se, but is getting there.

It has all the hallmarks of Repetitive Strain Injury. Does anybody else suffer this when using their laptop? If so, how do you combat it?

 

[Lau]

I've had a similar thing in the past, and I worked out the most likely cause was resting the underside of my wrist on the sharp edges of my (then) PowerBook, which made my arms go tingly. These days, I try and keep my wrists raised up or at least resting on the flat parts.

It may well be something else doing it for you, but it's definitely worth working out what it is before it gets worse. Not something you want to escalate.

 

[PlaceofDis]

my wrists would get sore when i was only ever useing my powerbook due to, as Lau said, resting my wrists incorrectly along the edge. once i realized the cause of the soreness though it immediately went away when i changed my habits.

 

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

I used to... even got myself a wrist support for a very tender wrist...

...but now I've begun change positions on the sofa every now and then, and with that the way I write, and try to sit as "properly" as possible when I'm going to write fro prolonged periods of time, and hasn't had a single problem since...

 

[dcv]

Does anybody else suffer this when using their laptop? If so, how do you combat it?

Never from using a notebook only from using a mouse, so I have a trackball at work instead.

I've had a similar thing in the past, and I worked out the most likely cause was resting the underside of my wrist on the sharp edges of my (then) PowerBook, which made my arms go tingly. These days, I try and keep my wrists raised up or at least resting on the flat parts.

You could perhaps try an iLap, which gives you a nice cushiony thing at the front. I can't imagine using my PowerBook without it. Plus of course means you can use it as a "lap"-top without it getting uncomfortably hot...

 

[Lau]

You could perhaps try an iLap, which gives you a nice cushiony thing at the front. I can't imagine using my PowerBook without it. Plus of course means you can use it as a "lap"-top without it getting uncomfortably hot...

Hmm, maybe I should. I'm currently typing with my left arm on the arm of the sofa (in the style of a casual driver ) and the other on the flat bit of my iBook. I haven't had tingliness for ages. Maybe I'll make an iLap. I made one of those draught excluders to go under the door, it's probably a similar principle.

 

[dcv]

Maybe I'll make an iLap. I made one of those draught excluders to go under the door, it's probably a similar principle.

Ohhhh, you must And I bet it'll be brilliant, you creative genius, you!

 

[n8236]

If you look up the correct posture, it's actually bad to use wrist supports. You want to be pivoting about your elbow, not your wrist. Make sure you're leveled w/ ur laptop.

 

[displaced]

Never from using a notebook only from using a mouse, so I have a trackball at work instead.

I keep toying with the idea of a trackball instead of a mouse at work... I tend to hold my mousing arm's shoulder a bit too tense (wigwam and a teepee! ... hehe, sorry). I get the usual dull ache in my shoulder, and a weird numb line running from elbow to the tip of my thumb. Should probably try to fix this stuff before I break properly.

You could perhaps try an iLap, which gives you a nice cushiony thing at the front. I can't imagine using my PowerBook without it. Plus of course means you can use it as a "lap"-top without it getting uncomfortably hot...

Neat. I like the wrist rest idea - I get a groove in my arm where the edge of the laptop digs in. The heat isn't a problem. Asbestos Groin.

 

[Savage Henry]

I frequently get my larynx strained from repeatedly shouting loud profanities at the Lenovon hunk of garbage they force me to work on ...

Other than that, not really these days but I did use to get the keyboard aches and shoulder hunch. I just regularly changed my position and stuff seems less bothersome.

 

[displaced]

If you look up the correct posture, it's actually bad to use wrist supports. You want to be pivoting about your elbow, not your wrist. Make sure you're leveled w/ ur laptop.

Yeah, I see what you're saying. Unfortunately, we don't have a desk that allows that -- it needs to be about 4 inches taller than it is, really. At the moment, I can adjust my chair so that my arms are in the correct position, but then my legs are scrunched up underneath. So after a while, I raise the chair to get some blood flowing again, but then I'm slouched in front of the screen and needing a wrist rest.

 

[n8236]

Fix your posture before it gets worse w/ age. It will eventually catch up w/ u. Get a new chair or something. If it's your work, ask for a new one or swtich to one that will make you feel comfortable. They are responsible for your physical condition if it affects your work performance.

 

[iGav]

Not exactly, I've had to use a support bandage on my right wrist ever since I broke it, and this seems to combat/alleviate any symptoms that the break caused, and the pressure of the bandage and the warmth that it helps generate seem to keep my tendons nice and smooth too... though sweat bands do the job in their indelible style.

Though I highly recommend a A4+ sized WACOM, over either a trackball or a mouse, as they're less stressful on the wrist.