How to Exercise After Carpal Tunnel Surgery

With any surgery, rehabilitation is important after your procedure. When you have carpal tunnel surgery, rehabilitating your hand is extremely important. While suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome, it's likely that you lost some strength and movement in your hand. Now you have the chance to exercise after carpal tunnel surgery and regain the complete use of your hand and wrist.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Restore Hand Movement After Carpal Tunnel Surgery

1. Extended your fingers straight out from your hand. Your thumb should be pointing in the same way, although you can relax it.
2. Bend your fingers slowly inward towards your palm. Be sure that your fingers are bending from the lowest joint, which is where they connect to the hand.
3. Stop bending when your fingers make a 90-degree angle with your hand.
4. Bend your fingers inward from your other joints so you make a closed fist.
5. Hold this position for 5 seconds and then reverse the procedure so that your fingers are fully extended again.
6. Do this exercise 10 times each day. It will help restore movement to your fingers and strengthen your tendons.

Increase Thumb Movement After Carpal Tunnel Surgery

7. Relax and extend all your fingers.
8. Reach over to your pinky finger with your thumb. Bend your pinky if you need to.
9. Touch the pad of your thumb to the pad of your pinky finger.
10. Gently apply pressure on your little finger with your thumb for about 3 seconds.
11. Relax both the little finger and the thumb.
12. Repeat this process with your thumb and your other fingers. You should do this a couple of times each day. This exercise may help reshape the inside of your wrist after surgery as well as restore strength and movement to your thumb.

Tips & Warnings

• You should see a physical therapist after surgery for medical rehablitation. Be sure that you only start exercising your hand after you get the go ahead from your surgeon, physical therapist or primary care doctor, however. Working your hand too soon after surgery can slow the recovery time and potentially cause re-injury.
• Strengthen exercises may make your hand feel tired. This fatigue is normal, but stop doing the exercises and talk to your therapist if you feel any pain.
• Some people find typing to be a natural way to exercise after carpal tunnel surgery but be sure you are using proper ergonomics and not overworking your hand.