NEWSLETTER What to do when your hobbies make you hurt... By: Laurie Walters, OTR/L, CHT
INSIDE: • WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR
Knitting is one of my favorite hobbies, one that took me years to get beyond the initial learning curve. Knitting has been proven to boost self- esteem, lower heart rate, lower blood pressure and reduce cortisol levels (stress hormone), but it can alsomake aging or injured hands hurt.This seems to apply to almost all hobbies doesn’t it? So, what should we do, just give up? NO! As an occupational therapist, I just cannot accept that as a solution. There is always a way that we can modifyour activities and hobbies so that we can live our lives to the fullest. If you are also a knitter, try some of the following techniques to help with upper extremity pain (many of these can be applied to any type of repetitive activities/hobbies): • Take frequent breaks: Doing anything for hours on end will make you sore. Cut hobby time into smaller more frequent chunks of time vs. long marathon sessions.
HOBBIES MAKE YOU HURT... • TENDONITIS IN THE ELBOW AND WRIST • HAND EXERCISE
• Use the best posture possible for the task: Back straight, shoulders down and back, use pillows to support your arms as needed and to support your work so that you don’t have to look down so much. • Support your joints: Try using some crafters compression gloves or talk to a therapist about some options for supportive splints. • Drink a lot of water: being hydrated helps all of our tissues feel better with use. • Change your knitting method: Continental or Portuguese knittingmethods have been shown to require less movement of the hands and shoulders, thus decreasing some of the stress. Look these methods up online – there are tons of videos! • Change your equipment: Using wooden or square knitting needles can help decrease the strength you need to hold on to your project bymaking them easier to grip. When you can pick projects that use larger diameter needles. Also, use the shortest needles possible to decrease the weight placed on your hands once the project gets bigger (or instead of short needles use interchangeable cable needles so that the cable can distribute the weight.
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