I saw the orthopedist yesterday and he said that if I am to have relief from the stenosing tenosynovitis or trigger thumb tendonitis I must have the surgery to correct it. That is NOT what I wanted to hear but I did want to hear that it can be corrected and I can have back the complete use of my right hand. So I agreed and it will be done in two weeks on Friday the 13th no less! Its good that I’m not superstitious. I guess I can make it two more weeks but it seems like forever.
Then it will be two weeks before the sutures are removed so it can’t get wet or used a lot until after more, yes, MORE physical therapy. But on the bright side, if things go as hoped I will be able to draw and write again pain free in a month from now.
Here is a photo that I “borrowed” from Mayo Clinic’s website to show you what is actually going on. Mine is in my thumb rather than the finger that is pictured here.
The bad news is that I have the same condition starting in both my left middle finger and thumb. There is a substantial bump in the center of my left palm now that is painful but no snapping of the finger joint yet. The doctor says we have to watch it, rest it and do not overuse it compensating for the right hand. He said that ideally he would do surgery on both at the same time but I would be able to do absolutely nothing for myself if he did, so we decided against that very quickly!
You can read more about it here at Mayo Clinic
So if any of you who may read this are in an occupation which requires repetitive or stressful use of your hand, especially females as trigger finger occurs more often in women, definitely see your doctor if you notice any pain or stiffness of finger joints, especially sticking or snapping of a joint. Surgery can be avoided if it is treated early with rest and/or anti-inflammatory medication.
Even just typing for a little while here causes my thumb and palm to swell but they say it’s okay for a short time if I don’t overdo it. So I plan to continue writing here and posting photos until I can start drawing again and posting about my art. I hope you will stay tuned!
