Here are 6 tips for treating your painful thumb and wrist that I teach in my Neuromuscular Therapy center near Boston. There are two basic stretches, three tips for self-applied pressure and one strengthening exercise.
Stretch for thumb tendonitis (deQuervains tenosynovitis): Enclose your thumb in your fist and cock your wrist till you feel a pull on the back side of your forearm. Now rotate your fist away from your body turning the thumb side of your hand toward the floor. With your other hand, assist the stretch, trying to close the angle between the pinkie finger side of your hand and your arm.
Self-treatment the adductor of the index finger: Open your hand and spread your fingers, then lightly hold the web of that thumb between the thumb and fingers of the opposite hand. Bring the index finger of the hand you are treating closer to your thumb and feel the muscle that tightens up. That’s the muscle that can pull the joint out of position at the base of your thumb. So if you squeeze that muscle where it hurts and hold the pressure until you feel a change (10-20 sec.), you’ll release the tension in the muscle and therefore the pressure in the joint that’s causing the pain.
Self-treating intrinsic (within the thumb) muscles: If the pain is caused by these short muscles of the thumb, there are two places to treat. The first is that same web as above between the thumb and index finger but closer into the angle where the bones meet. The second place is the fleshy part of your thumb called the thenar eminence. Just feel for places that hurt when you squeeze them and hold the pressure until the muscle begins to relax. Don’t be nervous, you can’t harm yourself. The places that hurt are the places to touch!
Stretch for intrinsic (local) muscles: Open your hand and spread your fingers. Grab your entire thumb with your other hand. Exhale as you try to stretch open that angle between your thumb and fingers, continuing to use the power of your own muscles to spread your hand. Hold for two seconds, release and repeat 10 times. Now in the same position, reach your thumb backwards away from your palm and assist that stretch with your other hand.
Self-treating extrinsic thumb muscles (in the forearm): Treating the muscles in the forearm can be a bit awkward. Here are a few suggestions.
Using your hands: Place the thumb of one hand on the back side of the other forearm facing in opposite directions to one another. Wrap your fingers around your wrist to stabilize your thumb and press your thumb into the soft space between the two bones of your forearm. Search up your arm in that space for places that hurt and hold the pressure for 12-20 seconds or until you feel less pain. Repeat on the inside of your arm, keeping toward the radius bone on the thumb side. If you don’t have enough strength or have RSI, try a supported thumb position, making a fist with your thumb extended and supported against your fist.
Using a pressure tool: (Knobble, Omni Roller Ball or small ball like golf or high-bounce rubber) This is good for people with a Repetitive Stress Injury (RSI). Place the tool on a flat surface or against the wall and lean on the tool wherever it hurts. Hold the pressure for 12-20 seconds. Alternatively, hold the tool in the palm of one hand and find a place that hurts on your other forearm. For the outer side of your forearm, support your arm on a table or your leg. For the inner side, put your arm and hand between your knees and squeeze your knees together to get pressure on those tender places. Hold for 12-20 seconds.
Strengthening and balancing the joint at the base of your thumb: Wrap an elastic band around your fingers and thumb. Open your hand and spread your fingers to stretch your thumb away from your fingers. Hold for two seconds, release and repeat 10 times. Start with an easy thin elastic and work your way up to the wider stronger ones.