So I have never met a cake decorator that didn't have wrist problems. I have spent the last two days decorating for about nine hours at a time. My wrist is getting sore. Does any one have any tips to alleviate this and prevent it from become a real problem?
Here're a couple of tips I have for you. One is to not overfill your icing bag. The more icing in the bag, the harder it is on your hands/wrists to squeeze. Another is to take frequent breaks, even if it's just for 5 minutes. Just kind of flex your fingers & sling you hands to loosen them up a little.
I have used the gloves before. They help some but I still had some hand cramps. I don't want to work at a bakery decorating cakes is for this reason. I can stop for awhile and go back when I am at my home. I worked at a sewing factory for 10 years and have bad hand and wrist problems. I also learned by not filling the bags as full helped as well. I was worried about doing the cakes but have done pretty good. As long as I give myself lots of breaks.
Get the brace for carpal tunnel and wear it at night while you sleep if they start bothering you. Usually you notice numbness and tingling in your hands so as long as that does not start you should be ok. Take breaks and follow everyone's advice here.
I had pretty bad problems with that, so much so that I had to stop working all together for two weeks because of pain and numbness. My advice is stop when it hurts, if you push yoursefl, you will just have to take longer breaks later. I had to eventually see a chiropractor, who did some wierd techniques that actually helped, mostly massaging the area. Also, when your wrist is not stressed, do activities other than cake decorating that build up strength in other wrist muscles (which will help take pressure and support the muscles that you do use during cake decorating. Take ibuprofen on a regular basis when you are working to reduce swelling. Watch how you sleep. I sleep with my hands curled around my face, which further stresses muscles, I had to retrain myself not to do this, and sleep with my hands extended and relaxed. You can also ice your hands to reduce swelling, take warm baths to relax muscles, and alternate between the two. Good luck and I hope that you feel better soon!
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