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The RSI thread, alternative medicine, and opinions
Subject:The RSI thread, alternative medicine, and opinions From:Karen Rodgers <prism -at- NEOSOFT -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 19 Aug 1997 13:33:11 -0500
Hello everyone,
I have been following this thread very closely, as I have had RSI (in
various forms) for the last 10 years. I have been lucky, as these things
go, because I haven't developed CTS, but I do have various forms of
tendinitis. The worse of them has been a trigger thumb - my right thumb was
basically unbendable for about 5 years because of a knot on the tendon that
restricted movement through the loop (this is what lets you bend any
joint). I recently had surgery done after years of other, less invasive
treatments, and it is finally working again.
Now, on to the other stuff. I have worn, and swear by, HandEze gloves. You
can buy them OTC at various drugstores and craft stores, and I love them. I
don't wear them all the time, but I do keep them with me just in case. They
are great for fatigue and swelling. I don't know why they work, but they
do, and that leads me to the next part.
I have used, very successfully, several alternative methods of treatment
for various ailments through the years. I wear a copper bracelet for my
arthritis (oh yeah, I forgot to tell you I have that fun stuff, too!) and
for whatever reason, I have found that it really does work. Empirical
evidence carries weight with me - just like those silly TV commercials for
(I think it is) Excedrin - "I tried it on my headache, and it worked -
that's all the evidence I need." If it works for you, by all means, do it.
But if you haven't tried it, how do you know it doesn't work? There are
many things we do not know about the human body. If it only works because I
think it works, but it still works, then what difference does it make to
you? It's my pain, not yours, and if I choose to treat it in a way that you
find distasteful, then *you* don't do it, OK? Live and let live. A copper
bracelet isn't going to hurt anyone.
I realize, as I'm sure everyone else does, too, that we shouldn't really be
posting this on the list. However, I find this "superior" attitude of some
to be quite amazing, really. I just don't get it - why are you so upset
about this? I really believe that everyone on this list is intelligent, I
doubt that many of us (if any) believe everything they are told, and I do
think that most of us understand that "advertising" is just that - and even
though we may try something that sounds good, if it doesn't work, we will
try something else.
Thanks for the bandwidth.
-----------------------------
Karen Rodgers
Prism Consulting mailto:prism -at- neosoft -dot- com
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