Thread: Arthritis and woodturning

Thanks Paul and Ern, will investigate splints, I think I've seen them in chemists but will explore what type I need to be able to turn.

Happy to help you get back to turning Tiger.

You may have missed the addition to my last post:

there are many types of soft splints so a professional recommendation is essential.

If you want to DIY, then here are some choices and good luck: click

Originally Posted by rsser

You may have missed the addition to my last post:

Thanks Ern and noted. Have you had to change the way you turn at all to accommodate the glove?

LOL.

I've had to give up doing big/heavy faceplate pieces as a consequence in general of the arthritic thumb/sometime carpal tunnel syndrome in the non-dominant hand/recovering broken wrist in the dominant hand.

For me the best solutions - and like you I'm focussed on avoiding drugs and surgery - have come from the specialist hand physio.

Among those, the best is a custom thermoplastic splint to stabilise the thumb in the dominant hand. With that I can cross-country ski for days without kick-back.

Just need to find a big enough leather glove so it will work with motorbike riding as well.

None of these are cheap solutions.

So if you can find a way through Medicare .... ?

I'm not a fan of GPs in general for these kinds of probs but there are sport physicians that come with Medicare rebates at some level. Try Alphington Sports Medicine. Not that far from you. I've been down there for a buggered knee and thought they were no BS.

I have Osteoarthritis in the joint of the left thumb, not too serious. It keeps well with the gloucosamine a couple of tabs a day, so far so goods.

My answer to your other thumb is yes. Arthritis likes a friend, If the bad thumb gets worse it will go to the other thumb. I never really had it in a thumb, mainly fingers, but that was my experience.
If your Thumb gets hot cool it down. Never ever ever let it get too hot. I burned out the muscles in my rude finger in one night because I didnt know the cure. Ice it down. I have been sitting watching TV with my foot in a bucket of water and ice cubes, same with the hands. In all my years of this, I only have damaged that one finger, but even that is improving with time.
It sounds like you have RA, for that you will need a good specialist and I suspect you will need drugs. If it is RA do not believe you can fight it without help, life is too short and you can get in a mess very quickly. Having been through the stage of taking half an hour to get out of bed to where I am now which is just able to feel my arthritis.

I managed to get onto the lathe last night and did about 30 mins of turning. Prior to getting on, I did numerous stretches of the thumb and I think that kept the blood there and kept the pain at bay. Even while turning, I stopped for a few seconds and tried to move the thumb around keeping it flexible and trying to stop it becoming stiff. There were moments of pain but not as bad as a few months ago, mind you I only did 30 mins of turning as opposed to a few hours like I normally would. It does seem that moving the thumb around and keeping it flexible helps however the thumb and hand were still very swollen afterwards. I did not notice a lot of pain though. If anyone else is going through this, keep the part moving and give it a rest every few minutes - that seems to help.

Not mentoned here previously but incorrect posture while doing driving/office work/ not taking breaks often is probably one of the worst things you can do for your back in promoting arthritic strain. What is especially bad is crossing your legs under a desk and wedging yourself in while you use a computer or sagging back or slumping forward as this leads to weakening of stomach muscles which puts all the pressure on your back.

Lower back pain can destroy your everyday activity levels and mean that using your arms, shoulders upper body etc to do woodwork is greatly reduced because you can't bend over or for that matter exert any significant force for sanding/planing/screwing/sawing as it can go straight to your lower spine. Doing work while bending awkwardly or twisting can and does ruin my whole day. i can't push a mower around and even sitting on a rideon causes pain.

my hands and arms are fine but I have to be careful not to put even too much pressure on my lower back because inflammation flares and can go right up your spine in spasms.

A hot water bottle or heat pack is best followed by osteo panadol, then di-gesic, tramadole and finally when all else fails Endone which basically knocks me out for up to 6-8 hours.

There are warnings about Voltaren as it can cause strokes. use it very sparingly around the inflamed areas..

The one greatest thing that can be done to your turning tools, in order to alleviate hand pain, is to leave your turning tools thick handles...they have a tendency to keep your fingers from getting all cramped up.
Rude Osolnick taught me the proper size to make the handles, and my hands have not given me any serious grief since.

Originally Posted by Ed Reiss

The one greatest thing that can be done to your turning tools, in order to alleviate hand pain, is to leave your turning tools thick handles...they have a tendency to keep your fingers from getting all cramped up.
Rudy Osolnick taught me the proper size to make the handles, and my hands have not given me any serious grief since.

Is there a standard size recommended?

Bee stings are one of the best things for arthritis. I keep bee's, and when I get a good stinging, I am pain free in my hands and knees for circa 6 months. Do a search on the WWW for apitherapy.

As an aside, beekeepers have one of the lowest incidences of cancer amongst all the trades!

There is much written about this subject, but relax those tender joints. I am not going on about that for fear of being banned from the forum.

However, here are some things for your consideration. As has been said before every case is different, but in particular there are many forms of arthritis. This possibly is part of the explanation for remedys working for one person, but not another.

Whilst rhumetoid and osteo are the two most well known forms, there are others including the juvenile arthritis mentioned before and of course gout. It is a little ironical the the larger joints are the ones we have the ability to replace, while the fingers and toes we have to suffer with.

If you have a problem with aches and pains, get it checked out, but be prepared to be insistent with your medical practioner as there are a lot of entrenched philosophies. You may hear comments to the effect that there is nothing you can do about it or you have to wait until you are older.

That may be the case, but it is no excuse for not having an x-ray and referral to a specialist. Modern thinking has altered in that prosthetic joints are superior to the older tyes and last longer. You may not be asked to survive until the wintery years are upon you before they will operate.

Some arthritic sufferers experience little pain, but their condition may still be extreme. Others are in severe pain for apparantly little reason. Either way it should be checked out. If you hurt a lot or have mobility issues there is a problem. It may be possible to do something about it.

I confess to having a problem with the pharmesutical drugs. I would certainly encourage people to seek the so called "natural remedies" . Glucosamine, apple cider vinegar and fish oil are some well known remedies. Note that some fish oils are better than others. You have to be aware that with all these "cures," including the prescription drugs, you are probably only buying time and putting off the inevitable.

On a positive note I relate the case of a friend whose father had had both knees and both hips replaced and at 78 years old went trekking in Nepal. It may encourage those of you with discomfort to do something about it and help you to enjoy life.

Be aware that any operation has at least a remote possibility to go wrong. It should not be viewed in the same light as cosmetic surgery, for example. A prosthetic joint is never the equal of the original joint. It is just better than the degraded joint.

Regards
Paul

The one greatest thing that can be done to your turning tools, in order to alleviate hand pain, is to leave your turning tools thick handles...they have a tendency to keep your fingers from getting all cramped up.
Rudy Osolnick taught me the proper size to make the handles, and my hands have not given me any serious grief since.

Totally agree with Ed on this. I have always made my handles largish around 32mm or 1.25". My rule of thumb is the handle needs to able to slide through the circle that my left hand index finger thumb can form. Just tight enough not to separate the finger tips. This is my minimum size for my handles and works just fine.

David Ellsworth, hollow form pioneer has a book out titled Ellsworth on Woodturning: How a Master Creates Bowls, Pots, and Vessels , 2008 Fox Chapel Publishing - Woodworking books and magazines for the inspired woodworker

In the AAW's American Woodturner Summer 2009
I found Betty Scarpino's favourable review intriguing enough to want to read it but have not purchased it yet.
In chapter 8 "The Body" he discusses using a hanging bar to rejuvenate his body & improve his posture.

Due to my physical condition this does not present a viable option for me but perhaps the idea is something for some standing turners to consider.
link to amazon US
Amazon.com: Ellsworth on Woodturning: How a Master Creates Bowls, Pots, and Vessels (9781565233775): David Ellsworth: Books

Most of the time when I visit my GP I'm too busy explaining other maladies to even mention hand, shoulder and neck pain.
Seeking out a specialist and a proper diagnosis is the best way to
address a problem.
Find a physician that listens to you .
I've had Dr.s tell me I'm out of luck.
For much of what I deal with (spinal cord injury 1978)
that may be true but it is sound wisdom to seek another opinion if you are not buying into what someone tells you.
Natural remedies I've dabbled with may lend themselves to relieving pain for a while but in no way would I claim that they "cure" anything.
That kind of a claim would make even me, an occasional natural medicine proponent quite suspicious .
If there were bees around I'd be tempted to experiment during times the joints become screaming banshees.

I took my 74 year old mother to her Dr. today for lower back pain.
Ice & heat, Vicodin doesn't touch it, bedrest for days. The new anti inflamatory Meloxicam has all the above mentioned side effects that are enough good reasons in themselves to consider safe and well researched alternatives.
The bottom line for me is I will keep using whatever tools I can
to spend some time at the toolrest.
John