Weird left hand issue. Advise?

[Taurus]

Some months ago my left hand seemed to tingle, this passed in weeks. But, since then every night if I wake up my left hand is somewhat stiff, and a little numb. Every morning as well. But, as soon as I'm on my feet and walk out to the kitchen, these symptoms vanish. I thought I might have a little arthritis, but,
it just doesnt hurt or ache. I do have arthritis in my right shoulder, from a dislocation and trauma, and baby, that does hurt. All this has been going on for about a year now. It hasnt gotten worse.

Part of my morning routine is DMSO on my right shoulder, which, I must rub in with my left hand. That does make my hand feel better.

My strength is not diminished, and after warm up, my playing is just getting better.

Any ideas on diagnosis or treatment?

 

[Spudman]

Boy, that's a tough one. Is it your whole hand, just the finger tips, the palm muscles or the back of the hand?

If it was the tips I would say that the nerves are being affected probably because the skin/callouses on your finger tips are not thick enough to protect the nerves from the pressure on the strings. If the whole hand you could have a back/disc issue especially if it goes into your wrist and forearm. Maybe it's from the way you sleep on it? What do you do for work? Could it just be from over use or repetitive use? I had problems from that when I was doing production assembly work.

 

[Taurus]

Spudman, it's the whole hand. Feels like it's 'asleep' every single morning. Then, by the time I get to the kitchen to make coffee, some 15 paces, the stiffness and tingling are gone.
I'm getting a little snap crackle and pop from that hand as well. like it's drying out. Not painfull at all.

I wonder if the wine with dinner every night, and the caffeinne blast every morning are doing a number. My 3rd and 4th favorite things, dammit.

 

[Tig]

I would have said the radial or ulnar nerve branch was being compressed during sleep if it was just the 2 smaller fingers or the thumb/index/middle that had the problem. Since the whole hand is like this, the problem could be above the elbow and at or below the shoulder. The main nerve branch from the spine could also be involved, like Spud mentioned. Also, compressing the blood vessels could cause numbness, especially if your blood pressure is naturally low and then lowered by the evening wine.

I'd look at that arm's sleep position(s) more, as well as what the hand is doing. I found my hands were clinched tight during sleep, causing similar problems. I have since managed to train myself to wrap my hands around a section of bunched up blanket to keep them in a more relaxed, semi-open position. I haven't had a problem since. Sometimes, I'll loosely grip the edge of the pillow with one hand to do the same thing.

Don't rule out seeing a hand specialist, either. There could be other issues that need to be examined and diagnosed.