RSI, repetitive stress injury.
Three words no writer, in our computer age, wants to seriously consider. But the pains in my fingers/hands, wrists, and elbows that I experienced yesterday don’t seem like the sort of thing one should ignore. As of last night, as a result, I’ve acquired some supportive wrist braces, have started taking B vitamins, and make sure to stretch and relax my hands every half hour or so.
It’s easy to take typing for granted. I learned touch typing in the 6th grade - I thought it was later than that but reexamined memory proves otherwise. I was already pretty keyboard savvy, but proper technique increased both my speed and accuracy; I have barely stopped typing since.
It would be easy to ignore this sort of temporary pain. After all, it goes away if I stop typing for a while. But every time I have been tempted to pretend I don’t need the oh, so stylish wrist braces (these things are SO getting Bedazzled), I imagine not being able to type at all. And that has me taking a typing break with a quickness!
I’ve started another project, the novel rewrite I think I mentioned in my previous post. I’m considering some voice recognition software to use as I progress with that. I’d much rather talk to y’all about stories.
In the meantime, learn from my pain! Take frequent breaks when typing - this seems to be the best preventative. Also, make sure you are sitting with good posture and, if at all possible, use an ergonomic keyboard.
