Hands & Occupational Therapy

My hands have always been "better" (less CMT-affected) than my feet, and from what I've read this is common/normal. However, a few months ago I noticed that I couldn't straighten some fingers out completely, and that I'd lost back and forth mobility in them. Naturally, this concerned me, and I eventually went to an occupational therapist. She said that typing had been excellent in helping my fingers' strength and dexterity!

She also said piano is wonderful for the same reasons. Ironically, my CMT is one of the reasons I quit taking piano. The teacher couldn't understand why after one summer I could no longer push her keys down all the way, I think she thought I was just being lazy.

Back to the occupational therapy. She gave me many exercises to do, including some wrist strengthening ones using putty she gave me. She also gave me hand splints to wear at night. In CMT, the tendons in the fingers tend to want to pull in, but you can't let them! You don't want to lose the ability to open your hands/straighten your fingers like I was beginning to. I realized that I was clenching my hands into fists while sleeping, so I have the splints to prevent this from happening. Only problem is when I wake up they're never on! Hopefully they stay on for a little while. I've also made a conscious effort to straighten out my fingers when they aren't doing anything. I have even recruited my parents to stretch them for me while we're watching movies!

After all of this, I have noticed a positive change, especially in being able to straighten the fingers. I had a wonderful occupational therapy experience, and I would strongly recommend anyone who thinks they might be having trouble with their hands/wrists to look into seeing one.