Numbness and Tingling in Arms and Hands!!

I had the same problem with my last pregnancy. My doctor said this was due to excessive swelling in pregnancy and there wasn't much I could do. The only thing that helped a little was keeping my arm elevated with a pillow or something when lying down. The pain in my arm was at its worst in the middle of the night while I was sleeping.

R., I can completely relate to what you are going through. I had to deal with it for the last 3 months of my third pregnancy. It is a type of carpel tunnel that comes only with pregnancy. It was very painful for me cause I am a customer service rep and it was very difficult to type and sit for long periods with this sensation in my arms. The good news is that it will go away after the pregnancy is over, the bad news, there is not much you can do. Drink plenty of fluids to try and keep you body flushed and get plenty of rest. Don't keep your arms in one position for any length of time. Other than that, the pregnancy is almost over and it will go away as quickly as it came on.

R.,

I also had the exact same thing when I was preggo with my twins. Couple things that helped... swimming in a pool or a hot tub (but only warm it up to warm, not hot) helped my entire body. Also, the thing that helped my hands/wrists the most is wrapping them into something that applies pressure such as Ace bandage.
As everyone else said, it will go away after you deliver. This probably wont make you feel much better, but you're lucky that this didnt kick in till your 8th month. I was in complete h*ll by the time I was 7 months preggo.

Good luck R. and hope you can find something that gives you at least a bit of relief.
N.

I had the same problem when I was pregnant with my twins. The doctor called it Pregnancy Carpal or something like that. I had it all up in my arms just like you and I crochet so that didn't help any. Make sure you let your doctor know. My doctor told me that there wasn't really anything to do but wait it out. I was also told to lay off the salt a bit to try and keep any water weight and swelling down and that eased it just a bit. But as soon as my boys were born and I got rid of the extra water throughout my body from the iv I was fine. I know this probably doesn't help. But it will go away and know that it isn't something unusual. Check with your doctor first but cold packs and even wrapping a heating pad or thermocare patch around my arms also helped. And it's like they say, you won't really remember it once your baby arrives. Best of luck and congrats!

Hi my name is A. I just had a baby about six months ago. You deffinitly want to consult with your doctor. Your doctor knows you better than any one giving you health related advice. You want to be careful and maybe change your position to advoid the stiffness. You might also want to seek out a massage therapist they can be helpful.

This article might help: http://www.babycenter.com/refcap/pregnancy/prenatalhealth...

And some exercises you could try: http://rehabengineer.homestead.com/carpalexcersise.html

If it gets bad, maybe your doctor could refer you to a physical therapist.

R., that happened to me with my 2nd baby. It started at 7 mons and lasted till after I have birth. It was terrible!!
They said it was the way the baby was laying and the increased swelling.The only thing that relieved me was the braces and I had to wear them at night b/c that was the worst time, but then I had to wear them during the day as well. So ask for the braces. It helps but doesnt cure it, if u know what I mean.
Now I pregnant with my 3rd and I am only 14 weeks along and I already feel it starting!!

Hi R.
I am a physical therapist. I had carpal tunnel with my pregnancy also, but only numbness in my hands. This condition is not caused by the baby pushing on your nerves. It is caused from a combination of swelling and laxity in your joints that encrouch on a canal that runs through your wrist. Unfortunately if the nerve is also being pinched in your neck, secondary to muscle tightness, posture or laxity in the joints you get a "double crush injury" to that nerve and it causes problems all the way down your arm. One of the simplest treatments that helps some of my patients is ice. Ice at your wrist and possibly even at your neck and shoulder on that side (or both if both are hurting) Ice for 10-15 minutes a couple times a day. When I told my Dr that I was getting carpel tunnel during my pregnancy, but was icing a couple times a day. She asked "does that work, I never thought to tell my patients that" A lot of Dr just chalk it up to normal complications with pregnancy and it will go away. If you need more help, I suggest getting a referral for physical therapy to help assess for any postural issues,and or muscular tightness. This condition can also cause muscle cramping. However, so can an electrolyte imbalance. Make sure you are taking in enough water, calcium and potassium. I hope this helps and I wish you lots of luck
K.

If you're not already....Try taking in more potassium (like bananas). It will help with your circulation. I used to eat a banana @ breakfast, lunch & before I went to bed. It seemed to help a lot.

I've actually heard that this is something that can happen during pregnancy. I've actually had that problem since my son was born....most likely from holding him and all, he's a very large baby.
You should talk to your healthcare provider about this! Better to try and deal with it now than after s/he's born.

Accupuncture helped me a lot with this same problem. Mine started in my second trimester and I'm a massage therapist and it was nearly impossible to work until I went to my A.P. She explained that when you are pregnant, so much of your resources go to your core to nourish the baby and sometimes it doesn't leave much for your limbs, thus the common complaints of carpal tunnel and sciatica. And of course, compresed nerves are a contributing factor as well. I used massage, chiropractic and accupunture throughout my pregnancy with great results. Alternative forms of medicine are really your only option right now, traditional medicine will tell you that you will have to wait it out until your baby is born. This is not necessarily true! My A.P. is in Tarpon Springs, Christy Giallourakis ###-###-####, she is excellent!

sorry to tell you that it probably isnt going to stop until after delivery. I had it from about 7 months on and it took me about 1 month after delivery for all the feeling to come back to my finger, I got to the point in my pregnancy that I never got "real" feeling in my fingers. sleep with your arms elevated, and talk to your ob about getting braces for your wrists

I got pregnancy carpal tunnel really bad first pregnancy - my doc gave me 2 wrist splints to wear to bed each night (you get used to sleeping that way) and it really helped. I couldn't even hold a hairbrush anymore mine got so bad...
So, try asking your doc for the splints - my insurance covered the cost, I am not sure how expensive they are otherwise.

Hi R.
I am brand new to the board (this is my first posting), but I knew that I had to respond to this. I had the same problem during my first pregnancy and my doctor basically told me just to wait it out, but that if I wanted to I could use carpal tunnel braces. You can buy them at Wal-Mart. I did that and it helped SO much! Other than immobilizing your wrists, there really isn't too much you can do. The braces help a lot with the pain and other symptoms. You don't need a prescription, but I would ask your doctor about it just to make sure they are okay with that... I wouldn't think that they would have a problem with it, but you never know. I still sometimes get carpal tunnel flare ups, but I type a lot, so that affects it too. Good luck, I hope this gets better for you soon.
N.

I'm a physical therapist and work at Sacred Heart Rehab on Davis highway ###-###-####). We accept Medicaid. I've seen a few patients like yourself. It definately sounds like you have CTS due to fluid retention from your pregnancy. There are things we can do like teach you home exercises and make you night splints. Please call us and make an appointment...all you need is a doctor's prescription for physical therapy. Hope this helps!