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Tennis elbow and wrist is a problem faced often by those who play tennis regularly and thus strain the muscles in their elbow and wrist area due to the weight of the racket, or any kind of forceful movement in those areas. There is usually an inflammation of forearm tendons which are strained or injured by wrong practices. However this pain does afflict only people who play tennis; it can afflict anyone who regularly carries weight in one hand.
This could be anything from a heavy briefcase, a tote bag or even the garbage which you carry out every night with one hand and might have strained the muscles in the Carpal Tunnel in your wrist!
For immediate relief from the pain, temporarily stop all activities you think might have caused the pain or those that aggravate it. Apply an ice pack, prepared by wrapping some ice in a towel or filling a paper cup with ice cubes.
The ice applied for 10 to 15 minutes on the inflamed area, will help to reduce the inflammation and reduce the pain but remember not to repeat this more then 4 times in a day and ensure you have a gap of at least 1 hour between each session. Simple precautionary measures taken while working can help to reduce and avoid pain in the wrists and elbows. Ensure that your posture is correct; sit up straight and work and don't slouch since this inevitably strains and pulls muscles. Also try and keep the keyboard at such a level that your wrists are at the same height as your elbow and they aren't bent or stretched while working. Insist on ergonomically designed workstations and look for ergonomically intelligent equipment which require lighter touch and less wrist bending. These go a long way in reducing the pressure on the carpal tunnel, and thus keep the pain at bay. If you use tools such as sanders, jackhammers or drills that vibrate and thus put extra pressure on the muscles of your wrist, take frequent breaks during your work, to give the muscles a chance to rest and operate the tools at a lower speed.
Some basic exercises can also help to avoid and / or alleviate the pain. Keeping your arm extended straight in front of you, slowly bend your wrist till your fingers are all pointing down. Then with your other hand gently press on your wrist till you feel a tension on the top of your forearm. Count up to 15 and hold and then repeat it the other arm. Above all, alternate hands when carrying weight and occasionally give your dominant hand a rest while accomplishing simple tasks.
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