Good rest and sound sleep is what every person needs every day. It is during these periods that the restoration of both intellectual and physical forces occurs. However, not every person has a peaceful night's sleep. Many people face various kinds of problems during their holidays. As a result, awakening is more difficult, and the degree of performance during the day remains minimal. One such problem is hand numbness at night. The reasons for this condition are varied. The most likely are described below.
Uncomfortable pillow
The quality of night rest directly depends on the characteristics of this product. The fundamental parameters are its density and size. Sleeping on a high and hard pillow is the most common cause of hand numbness at night. This is due to the fact that in the cervical regionof the spine, a deflection occurs, which is not physiological. Prolonged sleep on such a pillow leads to disruption of the blood circulation process in the roots of the spinal cord. They are responsible for the mobility and sensitivity of the limbs.
If the cause of numb hands at night is an uncomfortable pillow, there is no need to seek medical help. It is enough to replace the product with a lower and softer one. The ideal solution to the problem is to purchase an orthopedic pillow. It differs from the standard product in shape. It has an additional bolster to support the neck, followed by a recess for the head.
Orthopedic pillow allows a person to take physiological positions during sleep. Due to this, there is no circulatory disturbance, liquid connective tissue is supplied to all organs and tissues in sufficient quantities.
Incorrect body position
This is the main cause of numbness at night and hands and feet. Any unnatural posture leads to a violation of the circulatory process, which is due to the slow work of the cardiovascular system, which cannot provide the limbs with a sufficient amount of liquid connective tissue.
Another reason for numb hands at night is the joint sleep of a mother with a newborn baby. In most cases, the woman takes a position lying on her side with a limb extended forward. Numbness of the upper extremities also occurs when the head of one of the spouses rests on the shoulder of the other.
The difficulty is thatIt is extremely difficult to control your position in a dream. In such situations, doctors recommend immediately after waking up in the morning to pay attention to the position in which the person lies. In the evening, before a night's rest, it is advisable to place yourself in such a way that it would be difficult to occupy it. Over time, the body adapts.
It is important to pay attention to home clothes. If it is tight, with tight cuffs, has rigid seams, then the blood vessels will also be slightly pinched, causing slight numbness.
The body position during sleep is also affected by the fact of drinking alcohol and strong coffee. However, in this case, numbness of the limbs is not the biggest danger. Against the background of excessive consumption of coffee and alcohol, various pathologies often develop.
Tunnel Syndrome
At present, an increasing number of patients go to the doctor with complaints of numbness of the hands at night. The cause of this condition may be carpal tunnel syndrome. This is a disease that is the result of regular overexertion of the joints and hands of the upper limbs. In most cases, it is diagnosed in women over 40.
Associated symptoms:
- Pain in the hands.
- Itchy skin.
- Feeling of tingling in the fingers.
These signs appear by the end of the working day and do not recede throughout the night.
The risk group includes persons who, by the nature of their professional activities, are:
- musicians;
- painters;
- tailors;
- typists;
- drivers;
- hairdressers;
- office workers.
The mechanism of the development of the disease is pinching and subsequent swelling of the nerve, which is responsible for the motor activity of the fingers and the sensitivity of the palm. As a result, a person constantly suffers from numbness of the hands at night. How to get rid of the pathology should be told by the doctor, based on the history and diagnostic results.
The general treatment regimen for carpal tunnel syndrome involves taking vitamins, performing a special set of exercises and physiotherapy. In some cases, it is supplemented by medication and the need to change activities.
Regardless of the causes of finger numbness at night, treatment should not be delayed. This is due to the fact that ignoring the problem can lead to the death of the affected nerve. As a result, a person will not be able to grab even the simplest household items with his hand.
Spine pathology
Their presence can be suspected if, along with numbness of the hands, severe headaches and even fainting are noted.
As a rule, osteochondrosis is the cause of discomfort. This term combines several pathologies at once, associated with metabolic disorders in bone and cartilage tissues.
The main cause of diseases is a sedentary lifestyle. If a person spends a long time in a sitting position every day,the process of deformation of the spine is started, due to which a spasm of the muscle tissue surrounding it occurs. Separately, it is worth highlighting arthritis, which results in the destruction of the joints.
If you suspect the presence of the above pathologies, you should consult a doctor. He will find out the exact causes of hand numbness at night and prescribe treatment in accordance with the diagnostic results. Significant improvements can be achieved with massage and exercise therapy.
Cardiovascular disorders
This is the most serious cause of hand numbness at night. Treatment should be carried out immediately, as discomfort is often a harbinger of an ischemic stroke. You need to see a doctor as soon as possible if the following warning signs are additionally noted:
- dizziness;
- confusion;
- high blood pressure.
Problems with the functioning of the cardiovascular system are also indicated by severe numbness of only the left limb. If, against the background of this condition, a person feels pain and swelling of the fingers, it is necessary to urgently contact a medical institution and undergo treatment. Causes of numbness in the left hand at night can be quite dangerous.
If discomfort is caused by a microstroke, the patient is hospitalized. In the hospital, a person is carefully examined, a treatment regimen is drawn up and recommendations are made regarding the prevention of the disease.
If the cause of numbness of the left hand at night is a pre-infarction condition,the patient is also shown urgent hospitalization. In a medical institution, doctors will take all necessary measures to prevent the occurrence of a dangerous condition, prescribe a course of treatment and give recommendations on the prevention of the disease.
Polyneuropathy
This pathology can cause numbness of the fingers at night. The disease is characterized by damage to nerve fibers. With polyneuropathy, a person feels not only numbness. The hands and fingers seem to be pulled by something, and a tingling sensation is noted on the skin.
The frequency of episodes of discomfort directly depends on the degree of damage to the nerve fibers. They can appear both daily and several times a week.
After confirming this cause of finger numbness at night, treatment begins immediately. This is due to the fact that polyneuropathy always develops against the background of serious pathologies (for example, pancreatitis, diabetes mellitus, iron deficiency anemia). Less often, its cause is a deficiency in the body of vitamins and trace elements.
The treatment regimen is drawn up after the identification of the underlying disease. As soon as you manage to get rid of it, the unpleasant symptoms will disappear on their own.
Upper limb thrombosis
The formation of a blood clot in the vessels is one of the causes of numbness at night of the right hand or the left. Thrombus formation never occurs by itself, this process is always influenced by one or more of the following provoking factors:
- Geneticpredisposition.
- Diabetes mellitus.
- Increase in blood clotting.
- Injury to the walls of blood vessels resulting from medical manipulations.
- Overweight.
- Staying the body in the same position for a long time.
- Varicose.
In addition to numbness, specific symptoms of thrombosis are the following conditions: redness of the skin, pain, protruding veins.
A doctor should be consulted when warning signs appear, especially for people suffering from varicose veins. The specialist will prescribe an examination and find out the exact cause of numbness at night of the right hand or left upper limb. When thrombophlebitis is confirmed, the issue of the advisability of surgical intervention is resolved.
Medication regimen includes taking anti-inflammatory drugs and anticoagulants. Also, the patient must observe strict bed rest, while it is desirable that the arms are always slightly raised.
Guillain-Barré Syndrome
This term refers to a dangerous neurological disease of an autoimmune nature. As a rule, the symptoms of pathology are ascending. In other words, first the lower limbs become numb, and then the upper ones.
Currently, the causes of the development of the disease have not been precisely established. Doctors believe that the launch of the autoimmune process occurs under the influence of the following provoking factors:
- Neoplasmsbrain.
- Bacterial and viral infections.
- Tranio-cerebral injuries.
- Hereditary predisposition.
- Vaccination.
- Performed surgeries.
- Allergic reaction.
- Chemotherapy.
In addition to numbness of the limbs, patients report the following conditions:
- Joint ache.
- Nausea.
- Elevated body temperature.
- Muscle weakness.
- Pain.
- Excessive sweating.
At the same time, the feeling of tingling and numbness of the hands is so intense that the patient, waking up at night, is unable to take any object. Less commonly, muscle weakness is noted on the face. In such cases, it is difficult for a person to swallow saliva and say a few words.
Information on how to eliminate hand numbness at night with this disease should be provided by a doctor. This is due to the fact that improper treatment or its absence at all can lead to the development of life-threatening conditions: pneumonia, sepsis, thromboembolism and cardiac arrest.
The presence of Guillain-Barré syndrome, both acute and chronic, is an indication for hospitalization. All therapeutic measures should be performed exclusively in a hospital setting. With the ineffectiveness of conservative methods of therapy, the issue of the advisability of surgical intervention is resolved.
How to deal with numb hands at night
All factors leading to discomfortsensations during sleep can be divided into serious and non-dangerous. In any case, if numbness occurs regularly at night, in addition, it is accompanied by other disturbing symptoms, you should consult a doctor. First of all, it is important to make an appointment with a therapist. The doctor will prescribe a comprehensive examination, based on the results of which he can refer you for a consultation with narrow specialists (rheumatologist, neuropathologist, surgeon, etc.).
There are several methods to deal with numb hands at night. It is important to understand that their use does not eliminate the need to seek qualified medical help. This is due to the fact that at home it is possible to reduce the severity of symptoms, but not eliminate their root cause (unless, for example, we are talking about an uncomfortable pillow).
If a person woke up from numbness in his hands, it is enough to perform a few simple gymnastic exercises:
- Without getting out of bed, lie on your back. Then you need to raise both limbs up. Then the fingers need to be squeezed and unclenched. The number of repetitions is 80-100.
- Without changing the position of the body, put your hands on the bed and stretch them along the body. Then again you need to unclench and squeeze your fingers. The number of repetitions is 80-100.
- Stand upright, then face the wall. In this position, rise on your toes and raise your arms up. Stay in this position for 1 minute. After that, you need to stand on the whole foot. Then you need to connect your hands behind your back in the lock. After that, you need to try to raiselimb as high as possible.
Then it is recommended to go back to bed and massage the affected areas. During the day, it is advisable to roll balls of various sizes between the palms.
There are several effective traditional medicine recipes, the use of which will relieve numbness at night or ease the severity of discomfort:
- Take a small or medium sized potato and wash it thoroughly. Then the root crop must be put into the palm of your hand and fixed. To do this, you can put on a free glove or sock on your hand. Leave overnight. In the center of the palm there is a biological point responsible for the work of the cervical and shoulder canals. Potato presses on the desired area, thereby improving blood circulation. The natural result is the absence of numbness and tingling at night.
- Take 150 g of garlic and chop it. The resulting product pour 0.5 liters of vodka. Then the container must be removed in a dark place for 2 weeks. After the specified time, you need to take the tincture three times a day, 5 drops, previously diluted with clean non-carbonated water. The course of treatment is 1 month.
- Before going to bed, you can mix camphor and ammonia in a ratio of 1:5. Then they need to be diluted with 1 liter of water. Put the container next to the bed. When waking up due to numbness, it is recommended to massage the affected limbs with this remedy.
- If discomfort occurs exclusively in the hands, you can use the following recipe: mix 100 g of vegetable oil with 100 g of sugar,to stir thoroughly. Massage the affected areas with spiral movements. Then in 1 liter of warm water you need to dilute 2 tbsp. l. s alt. Soak your hands in the resulting liquid for 45 minutes.
For the purpose of prevention, it is recommended to take multivitamin complexes twice a year. In addition, to normalize blood circulation, it is necessary to constantly expose the body to moderate physical activity. It is important to understand that people whose professional activities are inextricably linked with low mobility are most likely to develop various pathologies. Each person is recommended to do morning exercises daily and train all the muscles of the body at least 2 times a week.
To prevent numbness at night, it is not recommended to have a heavy dinner right before bedtime. Otherwise, the body will need more effort to digest food. At the same time, the resources of the limbs are rapidly decreasing.
In conclusion
Numbness of the hands at night is a condition that does not always indicate the development of a pathological process in the body. First of all, you need to pay attention to the position of the body during sleep and the quality of the pillow. The latter is recommended to be replaced with an orthopedic one. If numbness of the upper limbs occurs regularly at night, you should consult a doctor. The specialist will refer the patient for a comprehensive examination, based on the results of which he will establish the cause. Treatment of numbness at night of the hands, fingers, or the entire limb should not be postponed. This is due to the high risk of developing all kinds of complications.
