There are sever causes of pain in the thumb.  The particular pain in this video is caused by repetitive bending of the elbow.

Some activities that create the problem are window washing, house painting, drumming, violin playing, hammering, some cleaning activities, some assembly line work.

This is referred pain.  If you have pain when you push on the thumb, particularly the thick muscle at the base of the thumb, that is a different kind of problem and is caused by gripping.

Another cause of numb or tingling hands can be tight scalene muscles.  (If you are new to this site, start with the Home page because there can be other causes and you will be able to investigate them.   By following the techniques in this site, you can take care of your problem, if it is caused by your work or hobby).

Tight scalene muscles can cause several problems.

(They do not necessarily cause all or any of these problems in one person).

• They can pinch on any or all of the major nerves that go into the hand.
• This can cause tingling or numbness in part or all or the hand – which can sometimes travel along the forward.
• It can create false carpal tunnel syndrome.
• Initially the numbness may only occur when sleeping.
• They are a common source of headaches.
• They can refer pain that causes false angina (you feel like you are having a heart attack.
• They can refer pain to your shoulder blades.
• Thay can pinch an artery that supplies the hands – giving you cold fingers or hands.
• They can pinch on a vein that returns blood from the hand.  Which causes some swelling – which is another cause of false carpal tunnel syndrome.
• People with their neck jutting forward have tight scalene muscles.

This Video is Part 1

It shows where to find the scalenes and an excellent stretch for them.

Part 2 will have more stretches for the Scalene muscles.  You can find it in my course Carpal Tunnel Master and Beyond

How to tell if you have tight scalene muscles:

Hook you fingers around your collar bone in the location shown in the video.  If you feel tenderness, they are tight.

Remember: Nerve pinching can happen anywhere between the base of the neck and the wrist.  Often more than one locations are involved.  So please follow the other videos referred to on the Home page.

And what you can do about it.

If you use weights or exercise machines where you are gripping weights or handles, you may needlessly be overusing the flexor muscles of the forearm (those muscles which close your fingers).

These tight muscles can pinch on one or more major nerves that enter the hand.

Watch the video:

To loosen up tight forearm muscles: Go to Self treatment techniques for the hand, wrist and forearm.

Another common problem you may have when using weighs, machines, or certain exercises (example: sit-ups, chin-ups, rowing) is tightening your neck muscles.

Keeping your neck relaxed may take concentration. But besides leading to neck pain, this can cause headaches, and (in some cases) pinching of major nerves that go into the hand, causing numbness or tingling in the hands and fingers.

If you are confused about where to go on this site, Start with the Home page.

As I mentioned in False Carpal Tunnel from Tight Pectoralis Minor – if that muscle is tight it can cause the shoulders to round forward and create pain between the shoulder blades. 

If very tight, it can cause numbness or tingling in your fingers, hands, and even up you arm.  If very tight it can also pinch an artery leading to the hands, causing poor circulation in them.

One way to tell if the Pectoralis Minor is causing the numbness in your fingers is to raise your arm.  If after a few minutes the numbness your numbness is worse and if lowering the arms makes it better, the problem is most likely a tight pectoralis minor muscle. 

If you get numb hands riding a bicycle, motorcycle, driving, or doing anything else where your arms are somewhat up — BUT lowering them relieves them — look to the pec minor.  Forearm muscles are also frequent culprits as well, but with them it doesn’t make any difference in the feeling whether your arms are up or down.

However unless you loosen the pec minor, your hands could become numb most of the time.

Because most of us work with our arms in front of us.  This muscle is usually tight on almost everyone.  But seldom do we feel any pain there.  Because they pull the shoulders forward, the muscles between the shoulder blades (the rhomboids) are continually fighting to keep your shoulders back. 

The solution is to loosen the pectoralis minor (First go to:  False Carpal Tunnel from Tight Pectoralis Minor) then watch the video below. 

The other thing to do is strengthen the muscles of your upper back.  (I’ll get to that another time).

This video shows stretches for the Pectoralis Minor.

This is a self-help technique video.

If you saw the other videos, you know that numbness in the hands and fingers can come from any of several along the nerve pathways. 

It is not unusual for more than one location to cause the problem.  Doctors frequently only look at the wrist as being a problem. 

Unfortunately people have had carpal tunnel surgery, when the carpal tunnel wasn’t even the problem at all. 

In previous videos we looked at the forearm muscles and how they can cause problems when tight. — And showed a very effective self-treatment.

In spite of it’s name the pectoralis minor muscle is very significant.

However, the pectoralis minor muscle is often overlooked.

But it is often very tight. When tight, it causes the shoulders to round forward. This causes the muscles between the shoulder blades to continually try to counteract that. And that causes pain between the shoulder blades.

As the video tells, when the Pectoralis muscle is tight, it can pinch on the nerves going into the fingers. It can pinch any or all of the major nerves that go into the hand, and can even cause numbness up the arm.

If you experience numbness in any part of the hand when your hands are up, but not down, it is very likely the Pec. minor. Although if very, tight it can create numbness all or most of the time.

If you get numbness, even when you arms are partially raised – as in driving a car, riding a bicycle, motorcycle, operating lawn equipment, etc., the Pectoralis Minor muscle could be the blame. Although you want to look at the forearm muscles first.

This video shows you how to work on this muscle yourself.

Part 2 will show you some stretches for the Pectoralis Minor. But this is sufficent to get you started.

This short video is part 2.  Please see the previous post for part 1. 

This video shows a self-massage (with the elbow of the opposite arm) of the carpal tunnel ligament.  Plus a stretch for the carpal tunnel ligament and some of the forearm muscles.

Note:  When I mention using cold water from a bottle in the refrigerator, I meant pouring the water SLOWLY over the wrist and forearm.  (over a sink, of course, or outside).

Use a bottle size that is easy to handle – like a half liter or liter bottle. 

Whether using ice or cold water, you want to your skin to feel cold to touch.  If that takes 30 seconds or if that takes longer than that, that’s all you need.

 Cold is an natuaral anti-inflamitory without any side affects.  It also helps bring the white blood cells to the area – which is beneficial in healing.

WARNING:  If you have a medical condition where you are told not to get your extremities cold, then don’t.

I will have a post on how and why to ice at another time.

If you use your hands for just about anything – whether a musical instrument, washing windows, computer use, cutting hair, carpentry, bagging groceries, or whatever – chances are you have tight forearms.

The forearm muscles control most of the movement in the wrist and fingers.

This video shows excellent self-help techniques that will help prevent, relieve and  carpal tunnel syndrome, false carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis, tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow (you don’t have to play tennis or golf to get them), and numbness in fingers in hands.

You should FIRST watch the video What you should know about the hands wrist and forearm.

If you want your forearms, hands and fingers to feel normal again, watch this video.

Correction: in the above video when I said that the tight thumb muscles didn’t cause pain, I meant in the rest of the hand.  Tight thumb muscles definitely can cause thumb pain.

Part 2 – comming to the next blog.