How does it work? Does stress cause carpal tunnel syndrome? Or does carpal tunnel syndrome cause stress?

The answer is, it works both ways.

When we are in a stressful situation, we tend to assume a specific position. Our head moves forward and our jaw gets tight. We may even hunch up our shoulders.

When we move into that position, it sets us up for developing carpal tunnel symptoms. A "forward head" and forward hunched shoulders puts pressure on the muscles and nerves that cause carpal tunnel syndrome.

So now you know one way that stress can cause carpal tunnel syndrome.

When we have pain, including carpal tunnel pain, that can cause stress. Our body starts to deplete its' natural resources to deal with the pain. Carpal tunnel syndrome becomes another stressful situation that our body just tries to deal with.

So now you know that carpal tunnel syndrome can also cause stress.

Did you also know that we can only handle so much stress before our body starts to go into a state of disease?

So the best thing to do is start to eliminate the stress from your life.

Here are several suggestions to help you start to do that right now.

1. Educate yourself. The more you know about the causes of your carpal tunnel syndrome, the more in control you will feel. The more control you have of your situation, the less stress you will have.

2. Take a deep breath. Lie down and take deep breaths in and then exhale. Breathing is a wonderful relaxation tool. Another benefit to thoughtful breathing, especially deep breathing, is that it uses all of the muscles around your ribs, shoulders and neck. This relaxes all the upper body muscles that contribute to carpal tunnel syndrome.

3. Supplement with magnesium and calcium. A lot of us have magnesium deficiencies. Some of the symptoms of a magnesium deficiency include fatigue, weakness, poor memory, numbness and muscle contractions. Having sufficient amounts of calcium and magnesium in our body, then, should help relieve carpal tunnel symptoms. Magnesium is often an ingredient in products which are sold for relaxation.

4. Feed your body as well as you can. A lot of times the reason we are lacking in certain minerals, as well as vitamins, is that we are not eating green leafy vegetables, beans, fruits and nuts that are high in magnesium and other things that our bodies need to be well.

5. Drink sufficient water. It helps your body function at its' best and removes metabolic (body) wastes and toxins from your muscles and other soft tissues.

6. Do gentle, flowing movements with your hands, wrists and arms several times a day. Pretend you are an octopus or a ballerina. We get into trouble (carpal tunnel syndrome) when we use only some of our muscles instead of all of them. Doing graceful, flowing movements will increase the movement of fluids around your carpal tunnel and reduce edema (swelling) and will make you feel more relaxed.