How to Relieve Wrist Pain from Lifting

Author: Michele Dolan / Source: wikiHow

A tender, painful wrist can make it difficult to use your hands. Fortunately, most pain will go away once you’ve rested your wrists and reduced the swelling. Pain relievers and ice packs will make you more comfortable as your wrists heal. Once they’ve recovered from the lifting injury, strengthen the muscles in your forearms to prevent another injury.

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Doing simple stretching exercises, using athletic straps, and lifting smaller amounts can protect your wrists.

1 Avoid lifting or other heavy activity for several days. If you feel pain after lifting, exercising, or stretching, avoid putting pressure or stretching your wrists until the pain goes away. This can take several days depending on how injured your wrists are.^[1]
- Resting the wrists can reduce inflammation and prevent more damage to the muscles around your wrists.
- Some movement may help your wrists, however, by maintaining your range of motion. You can do normal daily activities, such as typing or cleaning.
2 Do wrist circles to keep your wrists flexible. As long as you do not have any fractures or tears in your wrist, wrist circles can improve your range of motion, reduce stiffness, and promote healing. To do wrist circles, slowly roll your wrist clockwise up to 10 times. Next, go counterclockwise for 10 times.^[2]
- If you need support, wear wrist splints while you do normal daily activities to prevent re-injury. Buy wrist splints from a pharmacy or supermarket. Avoid wearing them for too long, as they could reduce your wrist’s mobility.^[3]
3 Apply ice packs to your wrists. Place ice packs on your wrists and hold them there for 10 minutes. You can do this once every hour for the first 1 to 2 days that your wrists hurt.^[4]
- If you don’t have ice packs, wrap ice cubes in a wet dish towel and hold these over your wrists. Avoid placing ice directly on your skin.
4 Apply heat to your wrists if the pain continues. While ice is best right after an injury, heat can promote healing and reduce pain a day or 2 after the injury. Put heat on your wrists for 15-20 minutes. Turn on a heating pad or soak a towel in hot water.^[5]
- For the…