I never thought it would happen to me, and then - OUCH! - my right thumb was killing me.
Turns out I had a classic case of repetitive action injury. From using my computer mouse hours every day, over
and over, I had caused inflammation of a tendon, and it was making it hard to do my job.
So the best cure is to prevent it in the first place. As a result, the kind folks in my
company's Health & Safety department gave me a few ideas on how to keep my thumb and the rest of me
pain free while working for hours at a desk. I hope you pick up some pointers here too.
Oh - and I did get a new mouse. It very high tech looking and allows my hand to rest in a more natural
position. I'm now pain-free and much more productive. That's a good thing, right?
Create a comfortable neutral position by adjusting for these areas:
Adjust your chair so that your elbows are even with the desktop
If your feet are not flat on the floor without pressure on the back of your legs, use a footrest to support your feet
Adjust your keyboard so that your arms rest comfortably and your elbows are bent at 90 degrees.
Adjust your monitor so that the top of the monitor is at the same height as your eyes
Your monitor should be positioned approximately an arm’s length away from you
Sit in your chair so that your back and legs are at 90 degrees . Your knees should be at about the same height as your hips.
Add a lumbar pillow or adjust your chair’s lumbar support so that your back is supported
Don’t slouch. Sit up with your lower back against the lumbar support
Adjust the lighting so that you have no glare from lighting. Clean your screen frequently
Use gel pad wrist supports if needed
Use gel pad mouse pad if needed
If your chair has arm rests, position them so that your shoulders relaxed when your arms are resting on them.
After an hour of sitting, get up and walk around to stretch your muscles and keep the blood in your legs circulating.
Use a headset if you are on the phone for long periods to avoid holding the handset between your jaw and shoulder.
If you have hand pain or weakness, explore alternative mouse devices
