computer injuries

do you have lots of injuries form working too long on the computer?

I thought I was immune form this but recently I have got the worst tennis elbow.

Its 'very' slowly getting better, but my little finger and the one next to it are still numb.

Caused by leaning on my elbow whilst working:)

Also because I have been working really long hours and my desk is a bit messed up , I have been getting swollen ankles. what a pain.

The only solution for the ankles is to get up and walk around regularly.

I got an elbow pain thing in the past week playing GTA III - it went away when I started playing TOCA Race Driver 2 - coz I was steering with my right hand via the arrow keys, rather than with my left hand with the WASD keys.

Carpal Tunnel syndrome, comes and goes every 3 months or so, can almost set my watch by it.

you should patent that idea Yeshu777- carpal tunnel clock:)

:)

No amount of wrist wrests, gel pad thingies have helped, just have to live it with it..

Only beer seems to ease the pain. ;)

I once had a large IBM AS400 lowered onto my foot. Luckily i had quite hard boots on (still hurt like hell though until it could be raised up again)
Now im left with Minicomputerintransitophobia.

[quote]
Carpal Tunnel syndrome, comes and goes every 3 months or so, can almost set my watch by it.
[/quote[

Oddly enough, same here. pretty much every 3 months!

I had really bad RSI that wouldn't go away for months. I was working onboard a ship at sea for a month and all the computers had to be strapped to the desks. The working conditions were really cramped and we were working stupid hours.

Also had a nasty cut when I decided to touch a spinning cooling fan in an open development PC.

Oddly enough, same here. pretty much every 3 months!

Thats just uncanny.

My fingers really hurt (RSI), i had to learn how to use my mouse wiht my left hand so that i can switch when one hand is hurting too much. I also type with a pen (one which has an eraser so that it doesn't slip on the keyboard)
I click the mouse with my thumb because i can't use my index finger anymore.
I'm used to it now even though it really hurts sometimes.
Taking breaks away from the computer helps a lot too.
Since, i have always wondered how other people can cope with it.

Some RSI and numbness for me, it's been improoving since I stopped playing games on my PC and switched to my Xbox 360. Modern console controllers are much better designed these days and don't seem to cause these problems.

Darkheart

I got permanent eye sharpness injury, and sometimes my mouse hand and ass hurts when I play too long. Sometimes my neck muscles get also totally stiff for several weeks, which causes often also headache.

Maybe it's just that we're all getting old.

I think you should see a doctor about these things. Overtime they can cause pernament damage to your body.

yes. RSI can cause permanent problems. you should stop as soon as pain shows its face.

Doctors will tell you about ergonmic positions and such, which i already know about.
I don't want to see them, it's like when i got acouphen, i went to see doctors and specialists and they didn't know nothing about how to cure someone efficiently.
It's not like they have any medicine for that kind of things.
Better to deal with it myself.

that's right.

my brother (36) has rhumetoid arthritis and has done since his 20's when it kicks in its a bugger for his guitar playing

myself the bits wrong with me i cant blame on pc's (or tv or rap music or GTA4 or mary whitehouse), id be down the well if i was born in sparta (i aint no quasimodo but them spartans were well fussy parents :p )

Doctors will tell you about ergonmic positions and such, which i already know about.

One thing I've learnt is that second-guessing what doctors will say is not a good idea!

True. But then every time I go to my doctor it's "Take 2 paracetamol and 2 Ibuprofen 3 time's a day and rest for 3 days for a back injury".
Lets just say it doesn't work.

The only computer related injury's I ever seem to suffer from are head aches ( to much thinking or could that be beer ? ) and eye strain.

RSI / Carpal Tunnel syndrome, I've had that flare up a couple of times, however, each time I have attended physio and it's solved the problem. I now have a bunch of exercises (stretching muscles / tendons and nerves) that I do that keep everything moving, and not had any problems for a good 5 years now. Granted you look like a complete arse doing the exercises but it works for me.

And of course, get up from your desk every hour. Not only good for your legs, but also your eyes, shoulders, arms, back and general well being!

i dont work at a pc (instead ive got a giant fridge to freeze my brain with) so i dont normally have to worry bout these things

5 foot from the monitor which is good and bad as ive had to whack the res down to read/write online
but i sit on my bed so it aint the best seating positon
nor is having the keyboard on my lap but atleast i get a wrist support (or sorts) from my thighs

I have a tinnitus in my right ear which happens really rarely when I use computer very long times. Especially when I stay 'til morning.

any injuries from computer? nope...none at all
The only injuries I got was failling down the stairs due to careless! lol

You're lucky - I have it in both, although my left ear is worse. And its constant. I can't sleep when its quiet, I need to have some external noise to drown out the tinnitus.

Too many years of playing in a band has done its damage. :/

Last year I was forced to learn to mouse wrong-handed due to carpal tunnel. I blame Oblivion... Haven't had any trouble since I stopped gaming though.

I get odd shakiness in my right hand after too much gaming, I would assume thats carpal tunnel kicking in.

EDIT: It only seems to happen when I play Ultima Online, as I use very precise movements (I keep my hand stiff, and to move the mouse at the right speed I change the pressure between my wrist and my mousepad) to grab items and such - you seriously don't want me stealing from you :P (or looting you, for that matter)

The opposite of right-handed is left-handed, not wrong-handed. :)

I used to get left wrist pain all the time, then I changed to a natural keyboard, made sure it was the right height and also bought a smart glove. No pain at all now, it's great!

As for other injuries, when I used to build PCs for a living, I bled into several of them from case cuts.

Quote of the year! :-)



Those Smartgloves are awesome, for me they are all I need. When wearing one the pain in my wrist goes away within minutes!

I do get RSI every so often - usually lasts a week, during which I either have to use my other hand for mouse operations or try to avoid using the mouse at all.

Sometimes when I do an all-weeker programming, I get pretty sick. Same thing after a drinking binge:

My last computer was able to drink my blood. Sucker had really sharp insides.

Has anyone ever hidden something in their computer - like food, etc?

I forgot, I was shocked once while fixing a friends computer. He didn't say there is an electricity leakage in the case.

In your case, I would assume some stained plastic sheets?

Puki: Just AOL CD's, laying inside the computer case of a rabidly anti-AOL co-worker's machine.

@Rob a pdf of your excercises would be appreciated.

I've even been waking up with pins and needles in my 'weak' - less dominate arm recently.

Back on thread, drop the feet on the top of your keyboard and try to have your hands in alignment with your arms instead of arched up slightly.

well my feet swelling has eased as I reguarly take breaks now.
The carpal tunnel thing is still getting better, but far from perfect.