3 ways carpal tunnel syndrome can hurt your daily life

On Behalf of | Apr 21, 2022 | Workers' Compensation

If you were to ask people about how serious carpal tunnel syndrome is, they might mentally compare it to other injuries and determine that it isn’t very severe. While carpal tunnel syndrome may not be as debilitating as a traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury, it can have a major effect on your job performance and your overall quality of life.

There are numerous ways that carpal tunnel syndrome can affect you on and off the job, which is why it is important to speak up when you notice symptoms or when your doctor diagnoses you. Making a workers’ compensation claim may allow you to connect with the best treatment possible or to take time off of work so that you can fully recover.

What are some of the ways that carpal tunnel syndrome could affect your daily life?

It will decrease your quality of sleep

Roughly four out of five people with carpal tunnel syndrome report that the pain at night is serious enough to wake them up. People may flex their wrists or clench their fists in their sleep, exacerbating their existing symptoms.

Even if you wear braces at night, the pain may affect how deeply you sleep or how long it takes you to fall asleep, and the effects of that constant sleep deprivation can trickle down into every other aspect of your life.

It will affect your safety

If you can’t grip a handrail firmly, you may not be able to catch yourself if you slip while going down the stairs. You could drop a tool on your foot or lose your grip on your steering wheel while driving. Issues with your strength and painful flare-ups can both put you in unsafe situations.

Symptoms can limit enjoyable activities

Do you love baking bread from scratch, woodworking or sewing? Do you enjoy golfing with friends on your days off? Your carpal tunnel syndrome can limit what activities you enjoy in your free time and what chores you can accomplish around your house.

When you speak up about your symptoms and seek workers’ compensation benefits, you can get treatment such as surgery and physical therapy to improve your symptoms and also disability benefits while you are at home to recover. Applying for workers’ compensation could reduce the lasting consequences, both personal and financial, you suffer due to your work-related medical issue.

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