Numbness In Hands (Page 3)

How often are you exercising?

I am 54 years old and have just recently experienced numbness, tingling in middle finger, thumb and then fingers in between when sleeping at night. I am fairly active, an art teacher who uses my hands constantly and have never really had a problem. I am probably about 20 pounds overweight, but very active and healthy. This has just started happening and it wakes me up at night, tingling, etc. I am a 20 year survivor of breast cancer and did have some lympth nodes removed from under my right arm, but that is not related to what I am experiencing now. It is really freaking me out, because I don't like my sleep being disrupted! As a teacher of junior high kids, I need all the sleep I can get! It doesn't matter what position I lay, it happens. Some positions are good for a while and then they aren't. This is driving me crazy trying to figure it out....help!!!

Well I thought I was crazy! It's very reassuring to read that other people have this problem. I'm calling my chiropractor today, but there's one other thing I'm going to try as well. I was out of town recently and slept in a bed with a much firmer mattress than the one I sleep on at home. Popped out of bed after the best night's sleep I'd had in months, only the slightest bit of numbness. Definitely buying a new mattress - the one I have is ancient. Hope this will help someone else who, like me, goes from zero to will-writing in the blink of an eye!

Hi,

I am a 35 year old, relatively healthy woman. I have been experiencing my arms going numb while sleeping for about a year now. It started with my wrists, then progressed to both arms going numb and walking me multiple times a night. Sometimes I could wake them easily, and others it would take 5-10 minutes to get the blood flow back. My arms also tingle during the day doing some activities, like holding them up in the air.

I was going to a chiropractor at the time and she said it was due to my neck (see previous posts for more information. I found wikipedia to be a great resource as well). She recommended wearing a wrist brace at night in addition to regular adjustments. I found some improvement, but the numbing still occurred.

Due to the busy holiday season, I haven't seen my chiropractor in a couple of months. My right arm was consistently falling asleep every night, often multiple times a night. I also had a good kink in my neck. A new yoga studio opened up a couple blocks from my place and I decided to go for my general health.

The first time I went, it was difficult to have my hands support my weight. They tingled and ached but held. The instructor said to hold our tummies in, drop our shoulders, and keep our head up straight. I tried to do all three during the class, throughout the rest of the day, and also at night. That night, only my right hand went to sleep. The next day, my neck readjusted a bit.

I went a second time, and my wrists felt stronger, although they still hurt to hold my weight. That night, I had no numbness. It's a week later now and I've gone one more time and still, no numbness at night. It's amazing.

I can't say if it will work for you, but it is definitely something to try. I had faster and better results with a couple of sessions of yoga (Vinyasa) than I did with chiro. My guess is that there are two things that helped: 1. Stretching my wrists in the yoga poses, 2. Dropping my shoulders, even while sleeping (ie. better posture).

I hope this helps! Best of luck.

Hello everyone.

I have been experiencing the same symptoms as the rest of you, of which have dramtatically worsened over the last 3 months to nightly. I was told a couple of years ago I might have carpal tunnel too, but I dont think its that. Its more of either a nerve pinch or blood flow blockage or cut off to my upper limbs as if I awake in the middle of the night with the symptoms, it is aleviated by lowering my arms/hands lower than my chest by sitting up, or hanging them over the edge of the bed. This seems to increase blood flow or unblock something and the symptoms are alleviated soon afterwards. It is extremely scarry to say the least. I am on our honey moon and it was happening daily. My husband remembered that when I took my vitamin B complex and Iron in the weeks before the wedding that I had less symptoms. But we forgot the vitamins when we arrived on our first week of honeymoon. The symptoms go very severe and almost unbearable. The second half of the trip we started making sure I took the vitamins with meals and it seems that I barely have any symptoms on the days I remember. IT took a couple of days to get my myself full of the vitamins but the symptoms are almost gone. Now 2 weeks longer, I have only had one night of real tingling and barely any numbness. Still a little stiff in the morning, but nothing like when I didn't take my many vitamins.

I plan on getting tests and seeing a doctor when we go home in 2 weeks, but at least my life is must more better for having been able to sleep more at night and feeling more rested, and for not having to wake to such horrible feeling symptoms as much. Best of wishes to all of you.

I pray and hope all of you feel better soon!

Gloria of
Oregon

I wake up all hours of the night with numbness in my hands. Now all of a sudden, my left arm, starting at my shoulder, and in the front is numb and has been that way for the last two days. The hand numbness goes away with in minutes once I wake up but this arm numbness is scaring me because it's not going away. I was in a really bad car accident and taken to shock trauma for broken ribs. That was three years ago so I didn't think that could be the problem. I'm really getting worried.

I started waking up several times a night, every night over a year ago. Symptoms started as 'dead' arms. Could be left, right or both. It felt like I had no circulation and it took a few minutes for me to be able to feel them again. This was very worrying as it felt that I was doing damage to my arms. I went to the doctors and explained. I was told that as I only get this when sleeping, it was a trapped nerve and nothing to worry about. This opinion had pacified me for quite a while and I just put up with it.

3 months ago I moved house and bought a new bed - pocket springs and memory foam. Very comfy and designed to support more of your body and aid nerve problems. The new bed had only made my symptoms different. I still wake up 5-10 time in a night (I usually get 3 good hours to start with) but now both my arms are only 'numb' and not 'dead'. When I try to go back to sleep, if I am on my side I start to feel the numbness coming back within 1-2 minutes so I change position. I also sometimes get the feeling in my legs and arms if I slouch on the couch.

I'm going to go back to the doctor as it is horrible to put up with this for so long. Puts me in a grumpy mood.

I used to be about 240 lbs but now down to 210 lbs, aiming for 196 lbs. I'm 30 years old and male. When 24, I dislocated my right shoulder and fractured the humerus - took over a year to fully recover and now does not cause me any problems.

From what I have read above, I feel that after going back to my GP, a visit to a chiropractor will be a good idea. I used to be such a good sleeper, I can't remember when I last slept right through

Glad to see im not alone! I have had this for years (im only 20!) it seems to come and go for several week periods, last year it got to where my whole body was getting numb! I was a doctor who had me get an MRI which came back with no useful results and the issue was just..dropped. (if you have kaiser you may know what i mean. pff)
it
eventually went away but recently has returned, but this time its only really my hands (every once in a while my foot..) and just like debsauve stated, its really painful to get out of and wakes me up all the time in the night. I too have hard time sleeping so this is not a good thing.

guess its time for another trip to the old doctor

I read a previous message from Wendypops (Oct. '04) which was so helpful in understanding this morning hand numbness thing. I'm absolutely sure it has everything to do with a chronic neck problem I've had for several years & have been treated for. I'm convinced my sore neck & inability to turn & look over my left shoulder is because of nerve damage due to carrying a heavy purse or tool bag for work on my left shoulder. Now it makes sense that the numbness is an extension of the aggravation I'm causing that bundle of nerves at the base of the neck by continuing using my left shoulder to carry all that weight.

It's hard to break old habits, but some of you women who may also carry weighty purses may want to try buying a purse without a shoulder strap. For the period of time I did use one, I did see relief in the amount of neck pain. And it just might end the numb hands if I try it again.

I am a 30 yr old male in generally healthy condition. For the last week I have been waking up and my hands are numb. This only happens upon waking and after shaking them for a minute the feeling goes away. It is important to know that when this happens my arms are at my sides, and m hands aren't between my legs or anything to cut off circulation. I am 5-10 140 pounds (lean build) and have hypothyroidism. At no other point during the day does this happen. I am very worried this could be the opening signs of something worse. Please, can someone help? Has anyone had similar occurences that have been resolved? I would like to hear from the males in the room. Thanks a million

ConcernedAmerican, have you ever been to ithyroid.com this site will be invaluable to you & everybody else.
B vitamins along with other nutrients have a roll in helping nerve function, calcium , magnesium & vitaminD3( sunshine UVB rays)are all essential for correct muscle function, if you get this out of balance you end up with a neck or back muscle out of tone. anyone using magnesium should have a kidney function test (urine)done as those with disfunctional kidneys cannot always process magnesium correctly. check out ithyroid.com for info.

Same thing here people... I guess we're all not alone and yet we all have no idea what is going on! I'm 22 years old and I have had numbness upon lying down at night or when I'm inactive for about a month now. It's quite perturbing... I went to our local ER one night and had a CT scan done, they found nothing!

I now have an MRI at the end of the month b/c they want to rule out MS... but they think it'll likely be negative!

Everyone keeps trying to convince me to go and see a chiropractor but my doctor has scared me out of this... stating that if one of my nerves is pinched and the chiropractor adjusts my cervical spine that he may snap that nerve and leave me paralyzed. That frightens me.. and yet I wonder if it's just b/c he's not open to other types of therapies...

Can anyone give me advice on this?

Thanks.

- Too young for this stuff...

I have the same symptons but the pain I get is so intense I have to go to the bathroom and use lotion to take off my rings because of the swelling. I also have to wake up my husband to rub my neck and arms. It is so painful I cry and am awaken by this pain every night in both arms from upper back to finger tips. I also try diffrent sleep positions but nothing helps. This has been going on for a few months. I am a procrastinator so I am breaking down and going to call a doctor. Hopefully he will have the answer.

In January NUMB123 wrote about success with YOGA. If you are still reading this forum can you please update us! If you can share specific exercises or poses that have helped, that would be wonderful. I'm in the group that can't sleep at night because of severe numbness in now both arms and hands. My hands are now really sore in the morning. Lack of sleep is for many months is really taking it's toll on me. I've been seeing a Chiropractor for 3 months but it's not helping. I can't afford MRI's or CAT scans, or conventional docs...HELP PLEASE

Wow! Popular topic! I have been having numbness & tingling at night. This is happening between both of my hands. Some nights it hurts so bad I can barely move my arms. This has been going on for at least 2 years. SCARY! I have to agree with going to the chiropractor...I used to go religiously every 30 days to stay aligned, I have slacked off for several months and now the numbness is happening. I am going to call & make a appt & we'll see if this tingling/numbness finally subsides.

Every morning for the last 2 weeks I wake up with numbness and tingling in my right arm. It could also be painful. It seems to take about 1/2 hour at times for the numbness to go away. I did notice that I sleep with my hands above my head. I try to sleep with them down in hopes that this will work. Any ideas what this might be?
Greek

when i go to sleep at night i wake in the middle of the same night with numness in my arms down to my hands and my legs down to my feet this has been going on for about a month and i have soon goten new simdums at frist it was just numness in my pinky then it moved to both of my hands arms legs and feet and then i started to get dizzy when i coles my eyes and if i open them in the middle of a dizzy spell my eye sight gos bruey and then my jaw started to go numb and now just to night as i was trying to go back to sleep...tyring ... suddnly my jaw want numb and my toung want numb and started to swell up in my mouth and i was finding it hard to breath

im so scard can some one please tell me what it is?

Started about a year ago, lose feeling in my right hand when I sleep,(ring and pinkie fingers) have no feeling at all! I have to physically move them around to get blood flowing. It is very scary because sometimes I wake up and hope that my pinkie is not bent all the way back from moving around at night. I have read everyones post and I think a doctor will be the best option. Possible carpaltunnel, pressure on nerves while sleeping. I do mess around on the computer a lot, but no problems all day, just when I wake. I am a 42 year old male, 5'10, 190 lbs. I am going to get adjusted today, never thought about that quick remedy, use to get adjusted for my lower back once a month, but have not done it in a year.

For the last two months I have been getting woken up at 3-4 am, with both hands numb! Not tingly, just numb. If it was one hand, I wold understand - if I tucked it between my knees and it got compressed. But I wake up laying on my back. I vigorously shake my hands, and feeling returns within a few seconds. But why is this happening? I am not diabetic, overweight, etc. It doesn't happen every night, or even every other night. It always goes away, and dont happen during the rest of the day. Male, 33.

I get numbness in both hands every morning when i wake. I have a history of hypocalcemia and numbness in both hands is a symptom of this i have discovered (other symptoms can include facial twitches or muscle spasms). I am told that low vitamin D can also cause it. I was told by a neurologist that numbness related to neck problems is generally only in one hand not both, and if it is in both it is generally something else, like a vitamin deficiency. I believe other types of vitamin/mineral deficiency can also cause this.