Can you carry on as normal with activities such as work etc. when you wear a compression sleeve?

[butiinside]

Do you still have to be careful not to over-exercise your arm? I am hoping to get a contact centre job for 30 hours a week. I am worried that I will not up to it. Maybe there will be too much data entry.

[clown]

You really have to let your body decide! Having said that, consider what can make you and your arm as comfortable as possible e.g a cushion under your arm? different mouse?

[nicolams]

HI there,

I am with clown, its really annoying but all olur bodies are different so in a way its wait and see. I don't have too much trouble with computer but a friend finds using it all day makes her arm worse....

all those good posture things probably apply like anyone using a computer, as clown says so maybe you could get a good work station assessment.

Also when i did my patient information course at local lymph service they said whatever you do, having a break and exercising a little every houror so is good.

[norberte]

yup, impossible to say how it would be for you, butiinside

i suppose you could sit at a desk / table at home with a keyboard for 6 hours' a day with breaks & see how your lymph behaves!

one problem's going to be your elbow - if you have a dvu user assessment when you start work, as nicolams says, your elbows will end up at a bit more that 90 degrees which usually means your sleeve's going to crease unless you straighten your arm often enough

but, as i was just saying on another thread, you can get sleeves with little silk patches at the elbow to help with that - altho you'd still need to stop frequently to move your arms around a bit, squeeze a stress ball etc cos with keyboard work you're not usually using your arm muscles enough to keep the lymph flowing

i'm off to straighten mine for a while - i hope your lymph doesn't make it too difficult for you to give it a go

(& if you're currently on benefits, see the disability employment advisor at the jobcentre plus - they should be able to help you set up trying a bit of work for 'therapeutic earnings' without mucking your benefits about if you start a job but can't keep going with it)

[Fridlie]

Hi butlinside, I wear a compression sleeve all day, every day and I also work on a computer for 30 hours a week. My lymph is kept stable and is not a problem at work. I generally try to be careful with my arm eg. not carry heavy things, don't put hand in hot water etc. but working on the computer does not effect me, although it's mostly mouse work. My lymph is maybe not too bad, so depending on how severe yours is, you will probably be fine. Just try a few hand and arm stretches and you should be fine-good luck!