Disclaimer: RSI can have many different causes and what works for any one person may not work for someone (or anyone) else. But here is what worked for me:
I had completely debilitating RSI in both arms for years, eventually getting to the point where I was using Dragon Naturally speech recognition for any computer interaction, and a hamfisted stylus for using my phone since actually using fingers with any dexterity hurt too much.
On my better days typing for short periods was ok, but any interaction with a mouse was immediately painful. Once I discovered I could use a trackball mouse on the floor with my feet I was able to get back to a point where I could work professionally again. But if I ever went too far I would be out for at least the next few days without being able to do much.
A year or two after I realized that the pain was generally worse when my arms were cold. After some experimentation I found that almost all of the active-use pain went away when I kept my arms warm.
Since then I've been able to get back into the full swing of things. I'm consigned to always be wearing sweaters, jackets, and hoodies while working, but that has been a small price to pay for being productive again.
Any time I forget and use a computer bare-armed it comes right back again, but so far keeping them warm has been the silver bullet for me. If you're at the end of your rope give it a try!
I have had pain in my wrists and arms for a years now. After spending tens of thousands of dollars on physical therapy and massages I saw a comment in a post from a couple days ago about keeping your arms warm. I just bought these (https://www.rei.com/product/119280/pearl-izumi-elite-thermal...) today and OH MY GOODNESS the difference is immediately noticeable.
Your experience matches mine exactly. I personally don't like wearing heavy shirts or long sleeves, and I work from home, so I have an office with a little heater and I keep the temperature up at 78-80F (26C or thereabouts)
You know what happens when athletes perform without warming up? They get injuries. It's the same thing. Don't type with cold arms. Beware armrests which suck the heat out of your arms. I have a Herman Miller Embody chair and I had to get some custom armrest covers made for it because I noticed they were sucking the heat out of my arms in the winter.
I had completely debilitating RSI in both arms for years, eventually getting to the point where I was using Dragon Naturally speech recognition for any computer interaction, and a hamfisted stylus for using my phone since actually using fingers with any dexterity hurt too much.
On my better days typing for short periods was ok, but any interaction with a mouse was immediately painful. Once I discovered I could use a trackball mouse on the floor with my feet I was able to get back to a point where I could work professionally again. But if I ever went too far I would be out for at least the next few days without being able to do much.
A year or two after I realized that the pain was generally worse when my arms were cold. After some experimentation I found that almost all of the active-use pain went away when I kept my arms warm.
Since then I've been able to get back into the full swing of things. I'm consigned to always be wearing sweaters, jackets, and hoodies while working, but that has been a small price to pay for being productive again.
Any time I forget and use a computer bare-armed it comes right back again, but so far keeping them warm has been the silver bullet for me. If you're at the end of your rope give it a try!