A Terrifying Experience

When the fingers of my left hand began to go numb for long periods of time, I became frightened. After seeing my doctor and going through treatment, it became clear that I would need to undergo a Ulnar Nerve Release if I was to regain feeling in my fingers. This procedure is becoming more and more common, as people are suffering from all types of repetitive stress injuries

irst, Some Backstory

A little history to my story.

Having been born in the early 80s, I'm part of one of the last generations that remembers a time before technology took over our lives. There wasn't a computer in every home, very few had a cell phone (remember those? they looked like bricks!), and home video game systems were still pretty new.


But everything has changed rapidly. Now everyone has their own electronic leash, otherwise known as a cellphone. Computers are used for nearly every job out there and you most certainly have at least one for home-use. Video games have advanced beyond our wildest imaginations. Constant usage of these devices is creating an epidemic.


Not only are we reliant on technology but it is also harming us. Everyone knows about "carpal tunnel" and "repetitive stress injury". "Cell phone elbow" is another common one. I'm sure everyone who reads this knows at least one person affected. Maybe even you yourself have had problems.

 Trouble Ahead...

Heed the warning signs.

I've had a lot of jobs in the data entry field. This usually means a lot of time spent sitting at a computer, entering information. Which means a lot of typing. In some ways this is good, as it means I've got loads of experience and am proficient in typing (which means being fast with little-to-no errors.)


In the summer and fall of 2004, I was entering loads of information into a database. Six hours a day, five days a week. Sometimes I even worked Saturdays. It was a big job with a lot of responsibility.


I started to have problems with my left arm. My pinkie finger would feel numb sometimes, other times I would feel that "pins and needles" sensation like it had gone to "sleep". My elbow would sometimes ache. I had already been diagnosed with carpel tunnel syndrome but that mostly affected my right wrist. I found it weird that my left arm was hurting, mainly because I am right-handed. I mean, I can do lots of things with my left hand but it is not my dominant hand. So why was it hurting so much?


I saw my orthopedist and he sent me to have some tests performed. I had a nerve conduction study but the results didn't show any damage to my nerves and everything seemed to be functioning normally. It was decided I was probably just hurting from a repetitive stress injury due to so much computer work.


I ended up taking anti-inflammatory medication, has some physical therapy, and worked through the pain. Eventually my job came to an end and I moved on to something else. In time I completely forgot about it, as my arm no longer bothered me.

What is a Nerve Conduction Study?

A simple overview

A nerve conduction study (or NCS) is a common test that is used to evaluate the function of the motor and sensory nerves in the body, especially the ability of the nerves to conduct the electrical impulses.


Nerve conduction studies are used for determining and evaluating paresthesias (meaning numbness, tingling, burning) and/or weakness in the arms and/or legs of a patient. Common disorders that can be diagnosed by nerve conduction studies include:


peripheral neuropathy
carpal tunnel syndrome
ulnar neuropathy
Guillain-Barré syndrome
facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy
spinal disc herniation


The test includes motor and sensory NCS, which is performed by electrical stimulation of a peripheral nerve via electrodes placed on the patient's body. Each patch gives off a very mild electrical impulse, which stimulates the nerve, and the results are recorded. A F-Wave and H reflex study is also part of the test. A F-Wave study uses the supramaximal stimulation of a motor nerve to record the potential action from a muscle supplied by the nerve. A H-reflex study uses the stimulation of a nerve and records the reflex electrical discharge from a muscle into the limb.


Electromyography ("myography" means "an instrument for recording the contractions and relaxations of muscles") is often done at the same time as this test. An electromyography is when needles are placed into the muscles and a recording of the electrical signals is made. During the test you will actually hear the sounds of the electrical impulses, which is quite fascinating. Unfortunately, this part of the test can be painful and patients can experience muscle soreness.

Danger, Danger!

A close-call...

In 2005, the pain in my left arm flared up again. But I pointedly ignored it. I have a naturally high pain tolerance and tend to not heed warning signs my body gives me. I did some more data entry work but I tried to counter-act the pain with pain medication and using wrist braces my orthopedist gave me.


In 2006, my arm had had enough.


I was again doing data entry but found that even short periods of time on the computer caused my left pinkie and ring fingers to go completely numb. And soon the lower part of my left palm began to get "pins and needles". My left forearm would ache for hours; sometimes the pain felt like it was burning beneath my skin. My left wrist ached as if the joint was swollen up. My left elbow started to hurt all the time.


The day my left pinkie and ring finger went numb and stayed that way was the day I got frightened. My body was giving me signs I could no longer ignore.


I was terrified. Because I could not feel my fingers, I was afraid I would hurt them somehow but not know it. I scheduled an appointment with my orthopedist immediately.

September - November 2006

I can't go on in pain any longer.

My orthopedist took an x-ray of my left wrist. When I was 2, I broke my wrist and damaged the growth plate. As I grew older, and because the plate was damaged, I have a noticeable gap in the bones of my wrist. It has developed arthritis as well as carpal tunnel.


But that was not the cause of my pain. I was sent for a second nerve conduction study, and I requested that I have both arms studied in case my right arm also had problems. I actually saw the same doctor for the test but had no memory of the first one; this was a little awkward. But as the test progressed, it was clear that my left arm was having problems with the nerves and there was damage.


Having sticky electrodes placed on your skin is nothing much. They can make you want to itch and the stickiness stays after you remove them. Receiving electrical stimulation isn't painful, especially if you've ever had physical therapy. The hardest part was the electromyography. I don't have a fear of needles (I've got multiple tattoos and have had plenty of injections in my lifetime) but having needles, even small ones, stuck in your muscles hurts. For me this was the coolest part of the test. You get to hear the electrical impulses your body makes via your nerves to control movements and motor functions. There is something so fascinating about being able to hear something you normally never get to. (I asked if they would give me a recording of it but it didn't happen.)


The diagnosis was compression of the ulnar nerve of the left arm.


After my orthopedist received the results of the nerve conduction study, he prescribed me Tramadol for the pain. By that point, I was in constant pain to the point of being drained. While the Tramadol would relieve the pain, it also made me a zombie. I could barely function let alone get out of bed while I was taking it.


One of the hardest months of my life was November 2006. My maternal grandmother was moving from her home of 35+ years to her new condo. We had to pack all the contents of her old home, condense them down, and have movers truck them to her new home. And here I was, out of my mind from pain and the pain relievers that were supposed to be helping alleviate that pain.


I remember the day the movers came to pack the guest room bed I was sleeping in. I managed to drag myself out of it, gather my belongings and my suitcase, and dragged them into the alcove off my grandparents' bedroom. I went back to sleep and didn't wake up until the next morning. And that was because the pain in my arm was so terrible it woke me up.


The stress and anxiety I felt over my arm made my Costochondritis flare up. It also wreaked havoc with my anxiety disorder. When you live in chronic pain, you become depressed. Everything was set in a vicious circle and I was beginning to wonder if there was ever going to be light at the end of the tunnel.