Carpal Tunnel Neurologist Referral: Elijah’s Patient Experience

A carpal tunnel neurologist visit is what finally gave Elijah answers. A logistics expert in New Jersey who does customs work for an international freight forwarder, he spends eight hours or more a day at the computer, then plays video games and soccer with his five kids. When pinching pain spread from his hands to his forearm and shoulder, and cramping woke him at night, he was afraid something serious was wrong. His neurologist ordered an MRI, confirmed carpal tunnel syndrome and recommended the Carpal Solution. Within the first week he was sleeping through the night. Watch his Patient Experience and read the full transcript below.

Elijah’s Experience at a Glance

• Profession: Logistics expert doing customs work for an international freight forwarding company in New Jersey, eight or more hours a day at the computer
• Family and hobbies: Father of five; video games with his kids, soccer and playing catch
• Symptoms: Pinching pain in his hands, forearm and shoulder, numbness and tingling while driving, and cramping that woke him at night
• Diagnosis: His doctor referred him to a neurologist, who ordered an MRI and confirmed carpal tunnel syndrome
• Tried first: An over-the-counter wrist brace that did not help
• Result with the Carpal Solution: Sleeping through the night after the first week, better each week after that, and symptom-free without needing the full six weeks

Seeing a Carpal Tunnel Neurologist

Elijah’s symptoms scared him. Pinching ran from his hands up his forearm to his shoulder, and he worried it might be something neurological. “You hear stories of people with brain issues,” he says. His family doctor referred him to a neurologist, Dr. James S. Zu of New Jersey, a specialist in nerves, who can tell whether symptoms come from the median nerve at the wrist or from the neck, the elbow or elsewhere.

After confirming carpal tunnel syndrome, his neurologist recommended the Carpal Solution over a brace, and even told him about another patient who had used it. Neurologists, including Dr. James S. Zu, MD, PhD, of Edison, New Jersey, call the Carpal Solution a better first line of defense. Seeing a carpal tunnel neurologist can take time, so read about waiting for carpal tunnel treatment and how to find relief while you wait.

MRI for Carpal Tunnel: What the Tests Show

Most carpal tunnel diagnoses rest on a physical exam and nerve conduction studies, which measure how well signals travel through the median nerve. An MRI for carpal tunnel is less common, but it can show swelling of the median nerve and the tissue around it, and it helps rule out other causes such as a cyst, arthritis or a problem in the neck. In Elijah’s case, the MRI helped his neurologist confirm the diagnosis and rule out the serious problems he feared.

Hand Cramps at Night and Pinching Up the Arm

Hand cramps at night were the worst part for Elijah. He woke again and again and raised his hands in the air, thinking his circulation was bad. That is a classic carpal tunnel pattern. During sleep the wrists often curl, which raises pressure in the carpal tunnel, while swelling in the soft tissue squeezes the median nerve and restricts blood flow.

The muscles that bend the fingers and thumb are in the forearm, and their nine tendons pass through the carpal tunnel beside the median nerve. That is why Elijah felt pinching in his forearm as well as his hands. Read more about forearm pain linked to carpal tunnel and carpal tunnel neck and shoulder pain. Numbness while driving made his commute stressful too, as it did for the patient in carpal tunnel was ruining my life.

Computer Work, Video Games and Five Kids

Customs work means hours of typing and clicking, and Elijah’s evenings and weekends add video games with his family. Playing video games with carpal tunnel brought on cramping and pinching, and he was worried he would not be able to work and provide for his five children. Today he works more than eight hours at the computer, plays video games with his kids, plays soccer and drives without symptoms. For more, see the best carpal tunnel treatment for gamers and an esports competitor’s experience.

Why Elijah Gave Up the Brace

Elijah found the brace embarrassing at work, impossible to type in and uncomfortable at night, with metal he could hit himself with in his sleep. A splint holds the wrist in a neutral position, which can reduce pain from movement, but it does not promote healing from carpal tunnel syndrome. Our doctors observe that splints compress the wrist and restrict circulation and lymphatic flow, which slows the clearing of swelling, and immobilization causes muscle atrophy over time. The Carpal Solution is worn only at night, in private, and leaves his hands free.

What Our Doctors Recommend

The Carpal Solution is worn at night during sleep. Its six-week protocol gives over 220 hours of targeted passive stretching that restores flexibility to the injured soft tissue, relieves pressure on the median nerve and lets blood and lymph fluid flow freely to clear out the swelling. It is your body that does the healing; the Carpal Solution jump-starts it.

Most people are better from their worst symptoms in two to three weeks, and over 90% reach remission in six weeks. Elijah felt a difference after the first week. Remission usually lasts five to seven years for most people, though it varies with how hard you use your hands. To stay in remission, many people use it anywhere from once a week to once every six months.

Carpal tunnel surgery has a patient satisfaction rate lower than 69%: about 31% of patients report lingering or recurring symptoms, and no patient is satisfied with lingering symptoms. See recurrence after carpal tunnel surgery. The Carpal Solution has 97% patient satisfaction over 21 years and 4.9 out of 5 stars on independent review sites like Google Reviews.

Read more Patient Experiences on our Patient Experience with Carpal Tunnel page. For background on the condition, see the NINDS carpal tunnel syndrome fact sheet.

When Healing Needs a Doctor’s Help and Professional Medical Evaluation

• Constant numbness that does not improve or loss of feeling in the fingertips that does not improve in 4 to 8 weeks.
• Extreme loss of the muscle at the base of the thumb, with loss of grip strength that does not improve over 6 to 8 weeks.
• Worsening symptoms over 6 to 8 weeks while using the best conservative treatments
• Symptoms that begin suddenly after hand or wrist trauma, a fracture or severe sprain from a fall or auto accident.
• Odd Symptoms that are not consistent with the Carpal Tunnel Symptoms listed on this website, that might be indicative of other nerve issues. A nerve conductivity study can clear up the confusion with minimal costs and not too much pain and no risk.

These signs may mean more advanced nerve involvement or a different condition and deserve professional medical evaluation and in person consultation. Home treatment can be used alongside professional in-person medical care while you wait for the healthcare delivery system to fit you into their schedule. There is no reason to wait doing nothing. You can start proven natural conservative treatment with good patient reviews while you wait for your appointments.

If your symptoms start improving over 6 to 8 weeks, then you know you are on the right track and surgery is not necessary.

Carpal Tunnel Neurologist FAQ

Should I see a neurologist for carpal tunnel?

A neurologist for carpal tunnel can confirm the diagnosis with nerve conduction studies and rule out problems in the neck or elsewhere. Your family doctor can refer you. While you wait for the appointment, a conservative home treatment like the Carpal Solution can relieve symptoms.

Does an MRI for carpal tunnel show the problem?

An MRI can show swelling of the median nerve and surrounding tissue and rule out other causes, but most diagnoses rely on an exam and nerve conduction studies.

Why do I get hand cramps at night?

Hand cramps at night, numbness and tingling that wake you are common carpal tunnel symptoms. Curled wrists during sleep raise pressure on the median nerve. The Carpal Solution works during sleep, which is when these symptoms are worst.

Can I keep playing video games with carpal tunnel?

Yes, with care. Take breaks, keep your wrists neutral, and treat the inflammation at night. Elijah plays video games with his kids again without symptoms.

Is carpal tunnel common in logistics and customs work?

Logistics carpal tunnel comes from long days of data entry, typing and clicking on shipping and customs systems. Elijah spends eight hours or more a day at the computer.

Full Video Transcript: Elijah, Logistics Expert and Gamer

In his video, Elijah talks about seeing a carpal tunnel neurologist, getting an MRI, hand cramps at night, gaming with his kids and how he applies the Carpal Solution. This transcript comes from the video’s captions with caption errors corrected and on-screen chapter titles left out. Elijah’s words are his own.

Hi, my name is Elijah R. I live in New Jersey. I found out this year, back in February, that I had carpal tunnel syndrome. I was getting symptoms in my hands and my forearm that were like pinching, and I was really nervous because I deal with computers every day. I work in an international freight forwarding business.

There were many times where I had to get up and just lift up my hands, because I felt a cramping sensation at nighttime when I was sleeping. I actually had to get up, because I thought it was the blood running through my circulation, that I had bad circulation or something, so I would get up and lift my hands up in the air.

And I was really nervous because I like playing with my kids, playing video games, I play soccer and things of that nature. So I went to the doctor, and my doctor actually referred me to a neurologist, which is a great doctor, Dr. Zu, and he referred me to get an MRI done. Once I got the MRI done, he told me that I had carpal tunnel syndrome, and that’s when he referred me to the Carpal Solution, which is one of the greatest things I have invested my money into.

So what I did immediately, right after the doctor’s, I went to the pharmacist, and they didn’t have it. Then I called the Carpal Solution, and they told me that they’d have the product to me, and the next day it came. The greatest thing is when I purchased the product, I received it the next day, I used it, and when I did use it I felt the difference in my hand. I wasn’t getting a cramping sensation. I wasn’t getting the pinching in my forearm any longer.

So I kept on using it as the Carpal Solution told me, how to use the product, and ever since I started using the product I did not get the carpal tunnel syndrome again. And right now, as of this day, I’m not using it, which is the greatest thing ever.

So let me tell you a little bit about my symptoms. Normally at work I’m on the computer for eight hours or more, because I do customs work for a freight forwarding company. I was getting a pinching sensation in my forearm, which led to my hands, and at times I felt like it was a pinching sensation that began in my shoulder, which was very irritating.

At work I would have to get off the computer for a while and stretch my hands and put them up in the air, because I didn’t know what was going on. I was actually kind of scared, because I thought something was really seriously happening to me. You hear stories of people with brain issues and everything else, and I didn’t know what was going on, and that really terrified me, because from one day to the other it kept on happening more and more.

And it actually looks funny, because as I got up at work, people were looking at me: what are you doing? And it’s because of the pinching sensation. It was painful. And not being able to sleep at night, that was the worst part, getting up and having to put your hand up again because of the cramping sensation. You thought it was going to go away, but it never went away. So that’s what led me to go to the doctor’s and seek help.

And once I looked for help from the doctor with the carpal tunnel syndrome, he told me about the Carpal Solution. And the greatest thing again is using this product really helped me. Now I’m able to play video games with my kids. My hands felt like they were cramping, I was getting the pinching when I was playing video games. Nowadays you’ve got to play video games with your kids; it entertains them.

So now I can do that. Now I can throw the ball around with my kids, I can play soccer, I can use my hands on a computer more than eight hours, and I don’t have a problem: no pinching, none of the symptoms any longer, because of the Carpal Solution.

One of my main concerns about having carpal tunnel syndrome was not being able to use your hands at work and everything else. That really got me nervous, because I have five children, and I need to take care of my children, and not being able to use your hands at work is a problem when you’re on the computer all day.

One of my main concerns was all these pains, and not being able to sleep was the worst thing. And then you have to get up early in the morning to go to work, and you still have the pain while you’re driving, and of course we all know you need your hands to drive a car. So you have pain while you’re driving the car and going to work, and being on a computer all day, the pain was really aggravating.

And at times you don’t know what’s happening to you, and if you don’t go to the doctor, of course, you would never find out. But my concern was using my hands, and not being able to do so really bothered me. My concern was, am I going to be able to use my hands again? Because you don’t know what’s going on.

You have the pinching in your hands, the pinching in your forearm, and it’s going on in your shoulder, so what’s going to happen next? You have five kids to take care of, and you want to make sure they’re taken care of, but if you don’t have a job because of your hands, what are you going to do?

And when I went to the doctor, the amazing thing is, when he referred me to the Carpal Solution, he told me about another patient of his that actually used the Carpal Solution. They recommended an over-the-counter brace, which really didn’t work for me, and they recommended the Carpal Solution. They said you have a choice; the Carpal Solution is a great item. And that’s when I actually thought, let me try it, because the brace is not going to work, and because of the recommendation of other people saying use the Carpal Solution, I was going to try it.

So that’s what I did. I tried the Carpal Solution, which is one of the greatest things you can ever use, and it really did help me. And I tell you what, after using it the first week I was able to sleep, not having to worry about getting up and throwing my hands up and worrying about the cramping in my hand, the pinching sensation I was going through. I was able to have a good night’s sleep.

And I was able to drive and not have to worry, am I going to be able to turn the steering wheel around and not feel the sensation in my hand? Because it’s a tingly sensation when you have carpal tunnel syndrome, and it’s a pinching sensation also, and at times your forearm, even your hands, get numb. The worst thing is when you’re driving and your hands get numb, and being at work and you can’t use your hands because they numbed up.

So the first week I got it, I used it just as it said in the directions; I followed the directions properly. I used it the first week: great. The second week, even better. Then the third week, when I used this product, it progressed, better and better every time I used it, and I’m a witness that this product really works.

I used it until this day, and I don’t have to use it again. Sometimes you look at a product and you say, I don’t think it’s going to work, but this is actually one thing I can back up and say the Carpal Solution is one of the greatest things. I don’t use it any longer, and I’m happy.

And now I’m able to play video games with my kids, I’m able to drive properly, I’m able to sleep, I’m able to put my hands up and not worry about pinching nerves or anything going on. My shoulder feels great. Being able to sleep feels great. And they even told me that after using the product, I probably won’t have to use it for a certain amount of time, 3 to 5 years down the road.

I’m happy, and I hope I won’t have to use it ever again, but if I do, now I know the Carpal Solution is the product that I’m going to use, and I’m going to refer it to everybody else. Even the pharmacist asked me if the Carpal Solution worked for me, because they want to refer their patients to it.

One of the most embarrassing things is wearing one of these braces at work, especially when you’re on a computer, and you can’t even type on your computer because you’re wearing a brace, so you would have to actually take it off. And when you wear one of these, a lot of people at your workplace or at home are going to ask you, why are you wearing that? I don’t like telling people the same story over and over and over again, and that’s basically what you have to do when you wear a brace, and it’s not that effective.

The nice thing about the Carpal Solution is you wear it at night only, and when you get up you take it off, and during the course of the day you’re not wearing anything else, and you don’t have to worry about the pain during the course of the day. When you get home, right before you go to sleep, you put the product back on again, and no one ever sees you, only your wife if you’re married. If you’re not married, it’s only you that’s looking at this product on your hand.

And again, it doesn’t interfere like a brace does. With a brace, you can’t move; if you’re trying to grab something with your hand, you can’t do that. But with the Carpal Solution you’re able to grab whatever you have in your hand, and you’re able to rest comfortably. Wearing a brace at night can be annoying, and if you’re a bad sleeper you can actually hit yourself in the head with the brace, because it has metal in it. This is just rubber with a nice adhesive on it, and it’s great at night, and that’s the only time you need to wear it. And it really works.

This product is really easy. I just want to demonstrate how to put it on. Before I got the product I was kind of nervous whether it was going to work, and not only that, how to put it on, whether I was going to need my wife or someone else to help me put it on. But that’s not the case; you don’t need anyone to help you put it on.

One of the problems also is that people believe that carpal tunnel starts right here in the wrist area, but it starts right at the bottom of the palm, in this area right here. So you put this product on the back of your hand. It’s very simple. You unpeel these things here, then do it like so. You take the other strap, you peel it, and if you have excess, which is here, you take that off, and then you peel this part. Very simple; you don’t need anyone’s help.

And you make sure you’re stretching the palm area right here, like so. The nice thing about the Carpal Solution is that you take the adhesive tape, you put it in this spot right here, and then this overlaps right here on this side, and then you bring it across right here, so it brings the tension of the Carpal Solution, and the tension goes right down the middle, right here.

And the nice thing about the Carpal Solution in comparison to a brace: with a brace, you’ve got to get maybe a small, medium or large size; you have to pick a size for your hand. But the Carpal Solution has been made for anyone, and it’s one size fits all. How do I prove that? When you put the Carpal Solution on the back side of your hand and you stretch it, as you see here, this begins as a circle, but as you stretch it to customize the fit, it becomes an oval, and that’s how you know the Carpal Solution is positioned to your hand.

So you never have to worry about a small, large or medium sized brace; the Carpal Solution is one size fits all. And you can see right here it’s very simple to put on. There’s no big deal; you can do it yourself. And again, whatever pieces you have overlapping, you just rip off, and just make sure you have the oval shape right here.

Hey, listen. If you’re suffering through the pain, the numbness, the pinching sensation, like the pains I was going through, those shoulder pains and everything else, and you feel the numbness and pinching even in your hands, I would recommend that first you see a neurologist, but try the Carpal Solution. I tell you what, it’s one of the cheapest items. You get a six-week package, and you may not even have to use all six weeks. Like me, I didn’t even use the six weeks, because it really did help me within the first week that I used it.

It’s a great product. You don’t have to worry about being uncomfortable. You don’t have to worry about wearing one of these braces and being very uncomfortable. Wearing the Carpal Solution is private, because you’re home at night, you’re sleeping, no one’s watching you, no one’s looking at you or asking questions, and it’s very comfortable.

And one of the greatest things is, it’s not an infomercial; this is money-back guaranteed if it doesn’t work. And listen, I’m a witness it really does work, so I didn’t even have to get a refund or anything else. I would buy more if I had the problem, but I don’t have this problem anymore, because of the Carpal Solution, which is a great product. And listen, doctors recommend it.

And I believe there are a lot of patients out there that have used the Carpal Solution, from young to old, because you can get carpal tunnel syndrome at a young age or an older age, and it works from young to old, and it’s very easy to put on. Again, it’s not like a brace.

And it’s one of the quickest things when you place the order. One of the nicest things is when you call their customer service, they’re very polite, and they’ll make sure they do their best. I’ll never forget, it was like 7:30 at night when I called, and they made sure they rushed me the product, because they believed in their product. And now I too believe in the Carpal Solution.

I don’t know what anyone’s waiting for, but if you have all the problems that I did, listen, all I can tell you is I love the Carpal Solution. I will refer anyone to this product. It’s so easy, and I love it. People want you to say many things about many products, but I really can say I love the Carpal Solution, because it really helped me through my agony, and there’s no longer agony; it’s happiness with me. I love the Carpal Solution.