Patient F, "Frank"... and Posture

(Excerpted from the new book, "(Amazon) It's Not Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: RSI Theory & Therapy for Computer Professionals")

Our last case study patient is a simple success story, no parade of erroneous diagnoses, and no drugs or surgery, just well-conceived therapy. Despite its simplicity, it’s an especially valuable story because it reinforces the point that addressing symptoms early—with the right therapy—will remedy a relatively serious RSI situation.

Frank had been typing for over ten years as a software developer and tester when he started to have severe pain in the pad of his thumb. Unlike our other case study patients, Frank sought help within weeks of noticing symptoms&ldots; because Suparna was seeing patients at his workplace at the time. She showed him that his hand was just one of many sore areas; his arm, neck, and shoulder blade had several intense sore spots that he hardly noticed, but were surprisingly tender to the touch. It turns out that he was aware of other aches and pains, those in the shoulder and neck, but had been dismissing them as unrelated to work, just something to try to ignore. Suparna observed that his seated posture was collapsed far forward, and as is often the case, he had severe muscle imbalance because of this: the front of his chest was overly tense, and his shoulder blade area was very weak.

Throughout the remainder of the book, you’ll read how our techniques—massage, joint mobilization, strengthening, stretching, better work habits, and ergonomics—helped Frank heal in weeks, prevented him from becoming a chronic sufferer, and enabled him to work without pain. 

On Lifestyle...

     
    "    I used to be very active, playing volleyball and other sports all the time, but haven’t kept up with it lately. I think that’s part of the reason my shoulders got so weak."

    -- Patient F.

On Ergonomics...

     
    "A keyboard tray, monitor stand, and much improved chair are the main changes that have helped me, nothing fancy. I’m tall, so I noticed how much of a difference the proper chair made. Otherwise, just being very aware of how all of this affects my posture, has been the most important improvement for me."

    -- Patient F.

On Muscle Spasms...

     
    "I was pretty sore for the first few sessions, probably because I wasn’t even aware of most of the tender spots I had, and I had just gotten accustomed to working with minor aches. I thought my only problem was my hand but it was clear I had problems on my whole arm, and especially the neck."

    -- Patient F.

 

     
    "When Suparna first examined me, it was almost impossible to identify the borders of my shoulder blades. They had rotated from being pulled on by the constant forward posture, and by complete fatigue of the back muscles. They were so locked in place by the muscle imbalance, that she couldn’t move them at all, when she tried to restore their mobility."

    -- Patient F.

On Exercise...

     
    "The upper back exercises were key for me. They got my shoulders back in shape so my posture improved.

    -- Patient F.

     
    "The neck stretches really help me. When my symptoms flare up I tilt my head to the side, then roll it forward and backward. I’ll even pull gently to the side with my hand. I get immediate relief from this.

    -- Patient F.

 

     
    "Suparna was able to restore the freedom of motion to my shoulder blades by doing lots of mobilization of the arms. Then she strengthened my arms and shoulders by placing resistance against my arm while I lifted in various directions."

    -- Patient F.