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Is your hand feeling like it’s hosting its own personal dance party—pulsing with tingling, numbness, or those shooting pains up your arm? If so, you might be grappling with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). It’s more common than you think, and the great news is you’re not doomed to endless wrist braces or plotting an escape route from your own hand. At Ke‘Ale Chiropractic, we help people find natural, lasting relief from CTS every day—with a little science, a lot of hands-on skill, and a dose of good-natured encouragement. Let’s break down the facts, the fixes, and the real-life success stories.
Picture your wrist as a tight hallway—the carpal tunnel—and running through it is your median nerve, alongside tendons as thick as weekday traffic. If this hallway gets crowded (swollen), the nerve gets squeezed. Suddenly, your hand’s messaging system is overloaded:
CTS can sneak up if you’re always typing, on tools, or even just scrolling endlessly on a phone. But there are a few more culprits…
Repetitive use (think typing, sewing, gaming, or using hand tools) tops the list, but holding your wrist at weird angles (like when texting or sleeping), hormonal changes (like during pregnancy), or health issues such as diabetes and thyroid conditions can all make things worse. Sometimes, CTS just runs in the family—some wrists are built a little narrower than others.
Heard that chiropractors are all about spines? It’s true we love a good spinal adjustment, but chiropractic is really about maximizing function throughout the body—including the wrists and hands.
Just like your back, your wrist can get “out of tune.” With precise, gentle adjustments, we help restore normal movement to the small joints in your wrist and hand. This relieves pressure on the median nerve, often delivering rapid symptom relief and sparking newfound strength and dexterity.
The story doesn’t end with bones. Muscles, tendons, and connective tissue can all tighten up and restrict movement. Our go-to’s include Active Release Technique (ART), myofascial release, and trigger point therapy. These hands-on methods literally break up tension and adhesions, making for a more flexible and pain-free wrist. Remember, sometimes the ache isn’t just from the wrist—the muscles in your forearm or elbow can be the real troublemakers.
No dental floss required! Nerve flossing involves gentle movements to coax the median nerve to glide smoothly in its tunnel, reducing irritation and restoring full function. We show you how to do them at home—it’s like personal training for your nerves.
By sending sound waves deep into your tissues, ultrasound therapy reduces swelling and boosts blood flow. This speeds up healing, making it a trusty complement to manual care.
Surprise: issues in your neck and shoulder can “refer” symptoms down the arm. We never ignore the bigger picture; sometimes a fix in your neck is just as important as freeing up your wrist!
At Ke‘Ale Chiropractic, your journey to CTS relief starts with a thorough assessment—not just of your wrist, but your whole kinetic chain. We’ll chat through symptoms and history, test movement, and examine contributing factors. Then we craft a treatment plan that might span a few weeks, gradually increasing hand function while teaching stretches, ergonomic tweaks, and self-care routines for long-term relief.
As you progress, we’ll adjust the plan, always keeping you in the loop and focused on what works for your body and goals.
How long does chiropractic care for CTS take?
Many see improvements within weeks, though severe or chronic cases might need longer.
Is it painful?
Chiropractic treatment for CTS is rarely painful—manual therapies may cause some post-session tenderness, but should feel relieving overall.
Can chiropractic care “cure” CTS?
For some, especially if caught early, symptoms resolve completely. For others, ongoing management is key, and surgery is rarely needed except when conservative approaches fail.
Can I combine chiropractic with other treatments?
Absolutely—many patients also benefit from physical therapy or acupuncture. Always keep your care team informed for best results.
Will I still need surgery?
Not usually—most CTS cases improve greatly with conservative tools like those we use at Ke‘Ale Chiropractic.
Nicole, a 40-year-old military spouse, arrived at our practice with classic carpal tunnel signs—wrist and elbow pain that had her ready to throw in the towel. Add in severe headaches and nagging low back pain that had plagued her for years, and Nicole was ready for change. Our detailed chiropractic exam pinpointed the real cause: not just her wrist, but a tight, overworked forearm and elbow, likely from years of computer work and baby holding.
Through Active Release Technique and targeted trigger point therapy, we loosened her forearm muscles, adjusted the elbow, and carefully opened up her wrist joints. Over several visits, Nicole’s hand became less numb, her grip returned, and daily activities—from playing with her kids to time with the family dog—were pain-free again. Bonus: her headaches faded away and her low back became far more manageable. Nicole rediscovered a life without chronic discomfort.
Jeff, a 50-year-old high school teacher, hoped to get back lost hand strength and escape the numbness limiting his passion for teaching and hands-on crafts. His exam revealed those subtle but crucial fixations in the small wrist bones, especially the scaphoid and lunate, plus tight extensor muscles all along his forearm.
Jeff’s plan centered on specific chiropractic adjustments to those wrist bones and targeted “pin-and-stretch” muscle work. Although this type of muscle therapy can be a bit intense—Jeff was a champ pushing through—his results were undeniable. Each session brought more dexterity, less pain, and, soon enough, a return to his favorite activities at home and in the classroom.
Carpal tunnel syndrome can make the simplest tasks feel next to impossible, but you don’t have to just “live with it.” With specialized chiropractic care at Ke‘Ale Chiropractic, real relief is within your grasp. If you’re tired of numb fingers, aching wrists, or waking up with a hand that’s more disco than dexterity—reach out. We’re ready to help you reclaim comfort, control, and creativity in your day-to-day life.
