01-19-2013, 02:03 AM
For future reference and in case someone has a similar pain and needs help.
I talked to a chiropractor briefly and managed to figure out a few issues with the way I work.
#1. I have a medium intuos and had it mapped (recently) to 2 screens, but I only use 1 screen for painting meaning that whenever I was working I would be almost forced to use small, repetitive movements.
#2. My desk is too high for my current chair, which forces me to use my fingers and wrist instead of my elbow. I will eventually have to get a different table or a taller chair, for now I have a "but pillow" that makes me sit higher.
#3. I would routinely paint for 3-4 hours without a break. Now I use workrave and take a break every 25 minutes. Also (at least until the pain goes away completely) every hour or so I try to ice my hand for a few seconds.
#4. I moved my tablet and set up to match what Daarken recommends here: http://enliighten.com/blog/ergonomics-cr...rkstation/
Good video in case you haven't watched it.
#5. I changed the sensitivity curves for the tablet so it's a lot more sensitive (Basically followed this tutorial: http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=77043, except that now you can do those changes in the wacom drivers instead of manually setting things.)
After following these points for a few days, already my hand feels better. Moral of the lesson? Don't do small repetitive movements for hours or you'll regret it.
Thank you for your replies and good luck!
I talked to a chiropractor briefly and managed to figure out a few issues with the way I work.
#1. I have a medium intuos and had it mapped (recently) to 2 screens, but I only use 1 screen for painting meaning that whenever I was working I would be almost forced to use small, repetitive movements.
#2. My desk is too high for my current chair, which forces me to use my fingers and wrist instead of my elbow. I will eventually have to get a different table or a taller chair, for now I have a "but pillow" that makes me sit higher.
#3. I would routinely paint for 3-4 hours without a break. Now I use workrave and take a break every 25 minutes. Also (at least until the pain goes away completely) every hour or so I try to ice my hand for a few seconds.
#4. I moved my tablet and set up to match what Daarken recommends here: http://enliighten.com/blog/ergonomics-cr...rkstation/
Good video in case you haven't watched it.
#5. I changed the sensitivity curves for the tablet so it's a lot more sensitive (Basically followed this tutorial: http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=77043, except that now you can do those changes in the wacom drivers instead of manually setting things.)
After following these points for a few days, already my hand feels better. Moral of the lesson? Don't do small repetitive movements for hours or you'll regret it.
Thank you for your replies and good luck!