Finding the Positives when RSI Setbacks Strike

RSI setbacks happen. They aren’t necessarily always bad things. True, no one wants them. They’re frustrating. I loathe them. But I’m learning to find the positives when things don’t go according to my personal plans.

The setback that I experienced when preparing this website and blog was probably a good thing. And inevitable. And at the same time, ironic.

Ironic because I had been feeling amazingly well for several months prior to it. 2023 was a rough year in the RSI department, so much of early 2024 was dedicated to researching new ways to mend myself and acting upon it. The end result: less pain than I had had in years, especially in my shoulders. I felt ready to tackle anything.

Therefore, I decided I was well enough to embark on blogging, an idea I had been toying with off and on for many months. That leads to the inevitability of the setback.

After all those months of forcing myself to rest and refrain from creative activity as much as possible, I was creatively starved. Plus, my blog brainstorming triggered so many ideas with such overwhelming speed that I’d say my mind was going like a pinball machine, but it was more like the entire arcade. Add a generous helping of enthusiasm for the task, and WHAM! Over 50 pages of longhand plus a heavy dose of typing over a period of three weeks led to a massive RSI flare-up, just as the busy season at my day job hit (busy season is a good thing, but it does make pain recovery more challenging).

I couldn’t believe I managed to screw up two summers in a row. I could have despaired, but I’ve done that for enough years. Despairing isn’t practical. Despairing accomplishes nothing. Instead, I accepted my situation and resolved to BEHAVE.

First, that meant resting from writing and drawing and upping my therapy exercise tally, sometimes doing my therapy exercises ten or more times per day. (Under less dire circumstances, it’s more like 6 or 7 times per day.) Second, I forced myself to focus on things other than writing, such as:

Watering plants. This became something of an obsession this summer. At first it was just an activity to keep me occupied and not write. Then I realized, this keeps me off my butt for quite a while, and it’s a gentle activity that doesn’t wear me out—it’s probably very good for me! So I watered not just at home, but also volunteered to water the flowers at my day job. It’s a peaceful task that not only allows me to soak up the essence of summer a little more, but also relaxes me and permits me to weave sentences in my head and do a little mental drawing at the same time. I love it to bits. I don’t see how most people regard such a tranquil escape as work! (And I have not experienced any negative side effects such as bee stings, sunburn, or encounters with rabid beasts. It’s all been positive.)

Do photography. My camera used to delight me, but life happens and it came to gather dust over the last few years. I picked it up again this summer because I needed some pictures for the web site. Plus, it’s a form of creativity that doesn’t aggravate my RSIs too much—but I can only hold a camera for so long before my hands start to ache. Still, it helped satisfy my craving to create something.

(I don't think Peter Cottontail enjoys the camera as much as I do.)

Upgrade home computer equipment and setup. This is still an experiment in progress. I figured if I’m going to do this blog thing, I better make my workspace and tools as ergonomically friendly as possible. Easier said than done. My hands reject mice just as picky eaters snub their noses at veggies.

(Here's a standard mouse, a left-handed vertical mouse (the shiny black one in the back), a pen mouse (blue, far right), and a CompacMouse (small blue gimmick in the front). I'm currently using the CompacMouse because it is the least "graspy" of mice with its flat profile. There is a crazy amount of different mice available nowadays and no, I do NOT desire to try everything the world has to offer!)

My hands also vacillate regarding which (if any) keyboard is most comfortable. And then there is the matter of height and placement of everything (including placement of myself). It’s been quite a series of battles.

(I have nicknamed these The Behemoth and Jekyll & Hyde. I've been using The Behemoth for over a year now. I thought Jekyll & Hyde would be a great upgrade, but my hands aren't in agreement with me. I'm currently back to The Behemoth.)

My only major win has been my purchase of foot pedals that I have programmed to do different types of mouse clicks. My feet have now adjusted; my clicker finger approves. So, yes—this site has been built in part with my feet.

(I don't even remember what gave me the idea, "Why don't I just use my feet to click?" But it helps--and now I feel like an organist when I'm using the computer!)

Some other adjustments I have made—

I now only allow myself to have one fountain pen inked up for writing at a time when I’m in a strict healing phase (I typically have three pens going at once). This helps cuts down on the temptation to write.

I’ve been buying toys from what I call the torture device section of CVS pharmacy for pain management. They have helped for the most part with some trial and error. One tip I have learned the hard way: loose clothing and long hair do not combine well with foam body rollers.

I also have grown strict about timing my work sessions. I set a timer for 15 minutes for writing or 20 minutes for drawing (my computer sessions are brief, too)—and stop. This is not easy, but I’ve amazed myself with the amount of work I manage to accomplish through such brief and focused sessions. This method could help those who are pressed for time as well.

The big takeaway—

Sometimes it’s good to be forced to slow down. I tend to rush and go into a frenzy when I’m enthusiastic about a project, but does acting like an obsessive machine yield better results? I find the quality of my work always improves when I sleep on it and think things through at a more relaxed pace.

Even taking pictures, which seems like a speedy enough activity, can be time consuming. It took me several weeks to finally produce a header picture for my home page that satisfied me, and that’s okay! If I hadn’t been forced to have a delay due to my pain and also my bewilderment at deciding which web building platform to use, who knows what I would have slapped online.

(My original header image... Blurry, abysmal lighting, a tad too busy, and didn't mix well with white lettering. Ick.)

It’s good to pause and ponder. Perhaps we don’t pause nearly enough.

In case you’re wondering, I’m feeling much better now—but I’m still being extra cautious and making healing my top priority. I intend to continue to rest as much as possible through September.

All in all, I’m glad I resorted to doing it tortoise-style in the end. I even admit I’m a bit thankful for my most recent setback. It was a valuable lesson in discipline for me.