My hand hurts!

Forums: Parenting And Childcare
Email this Topic • Print this Page

My three year old on two separate occasions has complained about her hand hurting her. This "hurt" goes on for several days. She will keep her arm and her hand straight down next to her side and not use it much. During these incidents, a couple of times we caught her using it without any apparent pain. After a few days it miraculously gets better. She will announce in the morning a few days later that her hand does not hurt any longer.

At first I was alarmed thinking this is a little girl who rarely complains about anything - is there something really wrong with her hand? Upon examining it, it doesn't look like anything is wrong, but she insists it hurts her. Looking closer though - it did look like there was some very slight redness in one hand (the hurt one) - at least more so than her o-k hand.

Do you think she really hurt her hand or is she seeking attention? At night she does sometimes put one hand inside the opposite hand's sleeve - could this cut off the circulation enough to cause pain in her hand for a few days? The reason I am concerned is she so rarely complains about hurting and even if she bangs her head or something she gets over in just a few minutes.

Topic Stats
Top Replies
Link to this Topic

Type: Discussion • Score: 1 • Views: 1,088 • Replies: 9

No top replies

Has she bumped her elbow on anything lately? I know that if you bruise a nerve in your elbow it can cause a lot of pain in your hand. If you stop using your elbow for awhile when you have this pain it does stop hurting and will start again if you start using it again.

If there a chance she got a tiny piece of something embedded in her hand?

0 Replies

It is unlikely (not impossible of course). It happened twice. Both times this hurt hand lasted for 3 days and then on the fourth day when she woke up in the morning she announced - "My hand doesn't hurt any more!" The two incidents were at least a month a part so it doesn't seem that it could be banging her elbow or something like that.

I thought perhaps when she goes to sleep and tucks her one hand in the sleeve of another - since she does this nightly could be the cause.

It just is unlike her to make up an injury to get attention - so I thought maybe she really did hurt herself and what could it be. She is fine now so I don't suspect it is anything serious.

0 Replies

Linkat,

I was asking about the elbow because I had right cubital sydrome. It's an inflammation of the nerve that stretches over the elbow. It would get inflammed and then hurt until I rested it enough. I have no idea if something like that could happen to one so young. Maybe she is irritating the nerve or something while she is asleep? So, when she tucks the one hand in the sleeve of another, does that bend her elbow (the elbow of the hand that hurts?) It very well may be that she is stretching that nerve over the elbow and it's getting inflammed.

It's just a thought. I do hope you find out what it is though.

0 Replies

Well, I'll see if it happens again. If so, it may at least warrant a call to the doctor. The funny thing is the last time it happened, I decided with my husband if it still hurt on Friday, I would bring her into the doctor. Of course Friday morning was when she announced it did not hurt any more. She hasn't complained about it again since.

0 Replies

You don't suppose she is just not complaining so she doesn't have to go to the doctor? I know nothing about kids, not having any.

0 Replies

I don't think so because I didn't mention the doctor to her and she uses her hand fine and everything. Besides she is just not that type. If she didn't want to see the doctor rather than "hide" the hurt she would simply tell me she didn't want to go to see the doctor.

0 Replies

Linkat,

Well, that's good. Perhaps it was she was sleeping on it wrong or something. Guess all you can do is keep a look out for it. I hope that whatever it is or was is nothing to be worried about.

0 Replies

I think a doctor visit sounds like a good idea, if it happens again. Probably nothing, but maybe something, and the doc would know what to look for. (Could be a sprain, or bone spur, or any number of things...)

0 Replies

Quote:

At night she does sometimes put one hand inside the opposite hand's sleeve - could this cut off the circulation enough to cause pain in her hand for a few days?

Yes.. that happens to me.
I sleep ON my hands.. I lay face down and my palms up against my thigh.
This position is maintained most of the night and I usually wake up 2 or more times because my forearms are asleep.

Even during the day when circulation has been restored , i can still feel a strange twinge sometimes in my muscles.
My doctor said that it is strain from lack of blood at night when your hands are positioned where one muscle is stretched out and the other is contracted. In my case, there was nothing to worry about . If I change my sleeping habits, it will go away.

It is possible that your daughter could have some what of the same basic reaction. Espically if it bothers her more in the morning then any other time of the day. She may not consider it ' painful' because having your arms or fingers fall asleep can feel wierd.. and it always fixes itself.. so it might not register as pain to her at all..

but
thats just my 2 Cents

0 Replies

My hand hurts!

Related Topics

Quick Links

My Account

able2know