Tendonitis, Anyone?

[2DogsFarm]

About a month ago I developed a sudden burning pain in my right arm - located between elbow & wrist & exacerbated by lifting with most of the weight on that arm (think: loaded manure fork) or sometimes just by a mild twisting motion of the arm. < rotating the arm outward or inward.
Two weeks ago when I dismounted - after riding for 45min - some movement brought on extreme pain - so bad my trainer noticed - but riding itself did not cause any pain.
FWIW: horse is not at all a Lugger, pretty light in my hands, although I did make a couple corrections involving lifting the bit. Just a quick One Two “Listen to me!”.

I self-treated with icepacks at first & Tylenol (can’t take Ibuprofen or Naproxen) & pain diminished.
I babied the arm for a while & things seemed to be improving.
But now & then pain returns with a vengeance.

Yes, I know “see a doctor” would give me a definitive answer, but I wanted to know if anyone has had symptoms like this, if it proved to be tendonitis & how you got it under control.

[cayuse]

Yes, I have had tendonitis in that area two or three times. The first time NSAIDs and resting it helped. The second time, I was already on NSAIDs so I tried PT which made it worse so I ended up getting a cortisone injection. I was told that although the pain was in my elbow, it most probably originated from my bad neck.
I think at one point I also had ultrasound treatments on it with no improvement, that may have been at the same time as the PT.
My pain was a little higher than yours, about one inch down from the point of my elbow, towards the inside aspect of the arm. Hurt like hell.
Hope you feel better. You probably should “see a doctor” before it gets worse because then it will hurt worse than hell. BTDT

[2DogsFarm]

Thanks @cayuse “Hurts like Hell” pretty much describes the pain at its worst.
Guess I’ll make that Dr appt - maybe at the same time my annual Medicare (Freebie) Wellness visit is due :winkgrin:

[fjordmom]

Ya, BTDT earlier this spring. Ice, rest, NSAIDS (or alternative if no NSAIDS for you), and arm “brace”.

I used one of those velcro adjustable wrap supports that is often sold for tennis elbow to support the most painful area of my arm. You can find them in most pharmacies or big box stores. I had to put it on pretty tight but it did help some in not over flexing the muscles. Really rest was the true solution. I was away from barn chores for a few weeks due to out of town meeting coupled with vacation. My arm felt much better after that and gradually resolved itself. I was careful not to overdo for a while too.

Good luck, tendonitis is a PITA, well maybe more literally in the arm.

[2DogsFarm]

Thanks @fjordmom I will add to my collection of braces (knee, ankle).

Avoiding chores is not in the cards for me - I am The Help here. :rolleyes:
I am trying the Careful route, but you know how that plays out for a horseperson…

[Magicboy]

Ice is really your friend You should be icing even if it doesn’t hurt to keep the inflammation down if you freeze water

[allons-y]

I call it hammer elbow. My arm shrieks until I take a few days off. Im also learning to do every.little.thing. with my left arm. Hammer, saw, paint, dig, etc. Farm work is rough on the 'ol body. Now the D*** lawn tractor’s power steering is acting up, takes two STRONG arms to turn the son of a gun when it seizes. And its an ab workout. Oh well, Im still happy. I’m a Dork that loves working on my place.

[allons-y]

And today I smashed the middle knuckle on my right index finger. Smashed it to the point of blood spurting out. I was moving some round pen panels, loading on the Green Machine. I have so idea what really happened, just suddenly POW. Made me say some words.

On a good note, the farm dog treed a rat in the fig tree. I shot him dead with my 22, very satisfying. Shot thru abd out thru spine so he didn’t suffer long, dead when he hit the ground. Sorta made up for the smashed knuckle. I have a barn cat now, but some rats out-weigh her.

[sdlbredfan]

FYI there is a class of drugs called Fluoroquinolones. Cipro aka Ciprofloxacin is the most commonly prescribed of that class. FDA has actually issued a warning that it can cause tendon inflammation (tendonitis) or even tendon rupture, so avoid that drug! (If you have taken it recently, make sure your Doctor reports that to FDA, so that their database can be further updated as to how many such cases have been reported.)

[CHT]

I get a lot of mild joint damage due to an underlying condition. When I over flex/strain my wrists, it sounds like what you describe. I just use wrist braces to stabilize my wrists. The ones I have are made by Tensor. They are have a splint that is meant to go under the wrist and into the palm, but I flip if around so it is on the back of my hand which still protects from over flexing, but makes barn work and riding easier.

I agree that a doctor is a good idea, but in the meantime I would try to limit how much it can move when you are doing things where you may not be in full control of the pull on your wrist (such as when riding or leading a horse).

[GoodTimes]

There isn’t much a doctor will be able to do other then perhaps find a different NSAID that you might be able to take. Similar to a tendon injury in horses he’s going to prescribe rest.

I got tendonitis in my foot in high school. Two of us kicked a ball and the same time and I over flexed my big toe. I had to miss the rest of track season, luckily is was spring so I could wear a makeshift splint instead of a shoe for a few months. It didn’t bother me riding, but walking was a whole other thing.
It doesn’t bother me at all anymore (I’m almost 30), unless I wear flip flops. So the moral of my story is if you can stop aggravating it and let it heal it may never bother you again. If you keep getting flare ups it’s not going to fully heal.

[happilyretired]

Tendinitis can be due to repetitive motion. As others have said rest is important. But a good physical therapist can help a lot with specific exercises to help strengthen muscles to support the tendon and also to give you insight into better ergonomics for any repetitive motion you have.

[2DogsFarm]

Happy Update:
Babying the arm along with keeping it wrapped with an Ace-type bandage & copious NSAID seems to have done the trick.
I have been unwrapped & painfree for the last 2 days.
So I’ve taken myself off “stall rest”

Still being hyper-aware of using that arm, but riding was fine last Thursday in a lesson that focused on lengthening & shortening stride, so lots of isometric tightenings & releasings.

Thanks to all for the info & advice
U D BEST!