Subject: Re: Hand Protection

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 15 Mar 96 19:58:41 CST

On Fri, 15 Mar 1996 16:08:17 -0500  [email-masked] wrote:
>Hey folks, I've been beating 16 penny nails into my new shop for the 
last 6
>months and then I dug a 135 foot trench with a pick to bury the wire and 
that
>was the final straw. My elbow has been hurting like hell for the past 2
>weeks. Can't afford to give it a real rest until the shop's finished so 
I'm
>wondering -- should I be keeping it as still as possible or should I 
exercise
>it to work the stiffness out?
>
>--Jim McCarty

Sounds like the birth of tendonitis to me.  Been there, done that, got 
the T shirt...  

Pack your elbow in Ice after working.  Use heat later to ease the pain.  
Take aspirin, get a support band and for Gods sake, GIVE IT A REST!!!

Once that demon rears it's ugly head it is REALLY hard to put him back in 
the box.  Give your elbow warm up time when you need to work it, when it 
starts to hurt, give it a rest.  I know you have a deadline, but those 
injuries take a long time to heal.  Sometimes they never seem to.  I am 
not trying to scare you, just trying to help you avoid the same trap 
myself and many others have fallen into.  

Take care of yourself.  Nobody else will do it for you....
-----------------------------------------------------
Name: Franklyn D. Garland        A Hobby Is Hard work
E-mail: [email-masked]          You wouldn't Do For
Date: 03/15/96                     A Living.

http://www.mcs.net/~frnklyn/homepage/

For PGP Public Key finger [email-masked]
-----------------------------------------------------

---

From: "Szucs" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 18 Mar 1996 10:15:48 -0500

> >	...then I dug a 135 foot trench with a pick to bury the wire and that
> >weeks.

	135 foot long trench by hand?  Sick puppy.  I trust you've heard
	of trenchers and are familiar with the consept of equipment
	rental?  Seriously, you should be better to yourself than that.

> >Can't afford to give it a real rest until the shop's finished so I'm
> >exercise it to work the stiffness out?

	Can't afford to preserve your health?  You'd better rethink that
	becuase you may learn to regret your choices.  Please take it from
	a guy who up until 4 years ago was the pinnacle of good health until
	contraacting Lyme disease, that your health is indeed the most
	precious gift you can ever hope to have.

	If I could feel well again (I'm in nonstop pain, 24 hours a day, 7
	days a week) I'd toss the 6 figger income and live in a corrugated
	cardboard box on the Bowery.  No shit, no lie.

	Sorry to get preachy, but it's a sore topic with me of late, no pun
	intended.

> Sounds like the birth of tendonitis to me.  Been there, done that, got

	Yep.
> Take aspirin, get a support band and for Gods sake, GIVE IT A REST!!!

	Rest is essential.  Moreover, I strongly reccommend finding
	a good acupuncturist and letting have a go at it.  It's very
	effective at healing these sorts of injuries.  I've had it done
	on me many times.  Very relaxing, very effective, and not painful
	unless they stab a nerve, which is rare.

	Keep in mind that if you do this that you must lie quite still
	when you have 20 to 80 needles in your body. :) :) :)
> myself and many others have fallen into.

	Well put.

	-Andy V.