In the last two months or so, I've become increasingly irritated while I type, and that irritation has now become pain. I'm still young and nearly everything in my life right now is computer related, so losing the ability to type is almost like losing the ability to walk. I'm wondering if others have developed this sort of condition, and what did you do to mitigate it? Buy one of those $200+ ergonomic keyboards? (Are they really worth it? And they have to work with Linux of course). Did you get some kind of wrist splint? Did you see a medical doctor?


I'm 23 years old, a graduate student in computer engineering, an employee at a microprocessor design company, and a programmer for a FOSS role-playing game (game link). I can't really reduce the amount of typing I do every day (only slightly). Any advice you can give would be most appreciated, because this really sucks and it is difficult for me to get work done like this. Thanks.

Sounds like RSI - go to see a doctor. An internet forum is not the place to ask for medical advice. Go now or the problem will get much worse and you may end up having to give up work.

I second the advice on seeing a doctor but I'll share my own experience -- see a doctor and don't rely on this.

Stop using your mouse (use it as little as possible). I found that the mouse was the overwhelming issue for my right wrist (and a secondary issue for my left). The mouse wheel in particular caused a motion which killed my wrist.

Short breaks more often.

Deep heating rub and ACE bandages when not typing -- it probably doesn't help much but made me feel a lot better.

I went so far as to switching my window manager to ION to stop using the mouse except where a specific program required it.

The mouse thing really helped me. Even without reducing my typing my wrists improved a lot. I later reduced my writing a lot as well and my wrists have improved dramatically.

Note: it was my sister who gave me the idea about the mouse -- she had a severe injury to her wrists and her doctor forbid using a mouse (she has to use a track ball and is instructed to not use that when she can avoid it) to keep strain off her wrist. And my left wrist got better because it no longer needed to compensate for my right hand being off the keyboard.

I will see a doctor of course, but I wanted to hear from other people's experiences.


My mouse actually doesn't hurt me at all. I bought a belkin mouse pad with a wrist rest a few months ago and mousing is absolutely no problem for me. I'm looking at ergonomic keyboards right now and I'm wondering if I should go with one of the cheaper commodity ones, or one of the expensive ones from Kinesis... I'd rather not spend a huge ($100+) amount of money on my keyboard, but I don't know if the commodity ones are just as effective or not. I also have the problem of having my desktop at home, my laptop, my machines at work, and at school, and there's no way I am going to buy an ergonomic keyboard for all of them, but carrying a single keyboard with me all the time just seems stupid.

Look at your desk set up. Too high or too low will kill your wrists. After that check angle of keyboard, chair angle, etc. It doesn't hurt to take a break now and then either.

I have also had problems with one of my wrists. Definitely see a doctor. My wrist has bothered me for the past 3 years. Sometimes it goes away for months. When it does bother me, I take Ibuprofen, and use a wrist splint to keep my wrist from bending. But again, the most important thing is to see a doctor.

You should read up on Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Pretty serious stuff.

I have found that the "Natural" style keyboards help when typing for long periods. They tend to make your wrists sit at a better angle. I know Microsoft makes one, and I think Logitech probably does one too. They are also not that expensive.

--Ian

I personally went to see an osteopath as they are specialists in skeleto-muscular conditions, but go and see someone as RSI is not really a self-help thing, not once you are suffering from it.

Do you slouch? Do you lean to one side or the other? Do you rest the heel of your hand below the keyboard? Do you lean on your arms? Posture is very important.

I find that the same hand-technique that I use on musical keyboards applies well here: I hold my arms up in the air, above the keyboard, wrists straight, pressing the keys only with movements of my fingers. When I am not typing, I remove my hands from the keyboard and rest them on my lap, not leaning against them. I periodically flex my shoulders, and get up and walk around every fifteen minutes. (I'm fairly addicted to coffee so that's not a problem...)