
The Functional Programmer – Keeping Repetitive Strain Injury at Bay [video] - ArturT
https://blog.lunarlogic.io/2018/the-functional-programmer/
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hfdgiutdryg
Having been through several bouts of RSI-type injuries, here's my advice:

1) take up active hobbies that strengthen vulnerable body parts. Rock climbing
did wonders for keeping my De Quervain's tendinitis from returning.

2) stretching is an enormous part of recovery, if you've already developed
tendinitis.

3) fix your posture. I didn't realize that I was craning my head forward over
the years to compensate for poorly corrected astigmatism.

4) vary your environment. A convertible sit/stand desk along with an
adjustable monitor arm should allow you to change up your position many times
per day.

5) never spend extended periods with your arm extended to the mouse, resting
your arm's weight on your wrist. This is probably the single worst thing for
your wrists (aside from impact injury).

6) invest in a decent mechanical keyboard. Consistent, light key resistance is
more important than ergonomic layouts, not that I have anything against
properly executed ergo.

7) WALK! Get up, stretch your head back and your arms up. Go for a walk around
the block while maintaining proper posture. No staring at your phone. It does
wonders to reset your body and would have saved me years of pain if I'd done
it regularly.

~~~
bearhall
This is a great list. One thing I want to add is that when I was suffering
from tendinitis, I wasn’t able to really start building strength until I got
cortisone shots. They’re a temporary solution but they can buy you the time to
be able to function and start exercising. It’s a very powerful tool.

~~~
hfdgiutdryg
Yes. Also, consistent, responsible use of anti-inflammatories. For example,
one 200mg ibuprofen three times per day, evenly spaced, seemed to pay off more
than 400mg in the morning and 400mg before bed. And, of course, you have to
remember that you're still injured.

To anyone suffering RSI, get into physical therapy. They'll teach you valuable
stretches and exercises that will be useful for the rest of your life.

Probably the single most important thing is this: try to deal with injury
before it becomes chronic. If your wrists seem sore or you get tingling
sensations, seek help before you develop an injury that's going to take months
or years to heal!

~~~
0xcde4c3db
> Probably the single most important thing is this: try to deal with injury
> before it becomes chronic. If your wrists seem sore or you get tingling
> sensations, seek help before you develop an injury that's going to take
> months or years to heal!

The problem I have with this is that I don't feel much difference between
regular fatigue and pre-chronic-injury kinds of damage. Typically by the time
I can even identify the discomfort as non-transient, I'm already in for
weeks/months/years of recovery.

~~~
hfdgiutdryg
I'm going off the top of my head and only from personal experience here, but
for me the difference is primarily about joint vs muscle pain. Joint pain is
almost always bad. If you just did a ten mile hike and you don't normally do
that, a couple of days of knee pain is normal. If you're mousing for your
usual work day and your wrists hurt, it's a problem.

I have managed to cause instant tendinitis where it basically felt like
intense muscle pain, but that was a rare shock-load situation.

Most fatigue is just a drained feeling, followed by some muscle soreness for
one to three days. Soreness in tendons and joints is almost always a problem,
in my experience. If it doesn't clear up in about three days of relative rest,
you're heading into chronic injury territory.

~~~
0xcde4c3db
> Most fatigue is just a drained feeling, followed by some muscle soreness for
> one to three days. Soreness in tendons and joints is almost always a
> problem, in my experience. If it doesn't clear up in about three days of
> relative rest, you're heading into chronic injury territory.

In my experience, if it doesn't clear up in three days, I'm already there (and
usually also have _no fucking idea_ what I did to cause the injury).

The more I look into this, the more I suspect that in my case it's a sensory
deficit, i.e. I literally can't feel the initial pre-injury discomfort that
trains most people not to move/position their bodies in ways that acutely
damage joints or connective tissues.

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clircle
I had emacs pinky when I was in grad school. Now I have a job and I'm still
pretty concerned about my RSI. Here's a few tips I've used, and a few things
I'm considering:

Things that have worked well for me (cheap solutions):

\- Use a keyboard that doesn't encourage you to 'bottom out' to execute a key
press. I used to use a keyboard with scissor switches that I think just
encouraged me to press the keys harder. I switched it out for a cheapo mech
keyboard with MX brown switches and I think this helped a bit.

\- Remap common keys like control to other keys that can be easily hit with
your thumbs. Currently I map control to left alt and backspace to right alt.
Makes a difference for me but ymmv. Try not to hit so many keys with your
pinky. For example, when I need to hit return, I make an effort to use my ring
finger instead.

\- Got a lumbar support pad for my office chair and car seat. I have a lower
back and hip pain. This helps with the sciatic nerve painI have had since
college.

\- Use a very tall wrist rest. The cheap ones don't really elevate your wrists
much, but find a quality one that provides an inch or more of lift. If you
have a desk with a keyboard tray, lower it to comfortable position.

\- Lift weights. I spent a year in grad school lifting hard with a buddy three
times a week. Did wonders for my back pain. I would love to find a new lifting
partner and get back into it.

What I'm considering (expensive solutions):

\- A standing desk. I'm seeing a lot of people in my office switch to these
and I want one.

\- A split keyboard with lots of thumb keys. This is always on my mind now and
I'm trying to decide between a kinesis and keyboard.io.

~~~
didibus
I just use opposite keys. Like right control and right alt with right hand,
and the keys to the left of the keyboard with left hand.

As soon as I switched to this opposite side leader key, my emacs pinky went
away.

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tlarkworthy
My anecdote is I switched to a vertical mouse[1] and a split keyboard[2] and
it solved it for me. I went from constant dull throbbing pain and fear of
career death to not even thinking about it anymore. Yay!

[1] Evoluent [2] Kinesis Freestyle2

~~~
toyg
Split keyboard did it for me too. It allowed me to correct the whole posture.

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Havoc
It's quite comical that in an age where companies are willing to pay 100s of
thousands for their top knowledge workers wrist issues bring all that heavy
caliber thinking to a screeching halt.

~~~
donbright
so i wonder if its like sports... they aren't paying for workers to be or stay
healthy. like a football team, they are paying a handful of superstars until
their bodies are used up and broken, then they can discard them for the next
generation.

~~~
Havoc
Definitely. I mean they are ultimately workers.

Well cared for workers tend to be more productive workers though.

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vertak
For personal health at the office, I think the biggest bang for your buck is
to buy a water bottle that takes minimal effort to drink from (I’ve found
those green sport Gatorade water bottles are prime) and sip continuously
throughout the day. You will feel amazing from all the H2O alone. You will be
forced to get out of your seat multiple times a day to visit the restroom. You
will will get more facetime with people in your office from walking more. And
walking more gives you more opportunities to fill up your water bottle. The
virtuous cycle!

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humbleMouse
I use KT tape all the time on my forearms and shoulder/neck to keep repetive
strain injury away.

~~~
hfdgiutdryg
KT tape is a scam. You're not going to affect tendons and muscles by applying
colorful tape to the surface of the skin, it's absurd.

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3v0k4
Wow, thanks for all the comments here! It’s a gold mine of tips

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smittywerben
Avoid Diablo-esque games if your hands are susceptible to injury.

My brain likes picking up loot, but my hands don't :(

