A common suggestion for people who have repetitive strain such as mine is to be aware of the tension in your body. People often hold themselves in tight or tense positions without being aware of it. I’ve kept this in mind for years, but for the most part feel like I stay pretty loose.

However, lately, I do find myself realizing that my left hand — my problem hand — is somewhat curled up. And when I unflex it, I can feel some tension dissipating in my forearm where I often feel pain. So some kind of subconscious flexation of the hand may in fact be part of my problem.

Of course, there may be another explanation. It may be that my hand has become possessed with the spiritual hand of some kind of otherworldly demon, and will slowly curl itself up into a paw, growing fur and claws. At which point, the only way to release the pain would be to find my demon counterpart, and fight him to the death.

This is part of the frustration of these kinds of chronic pain situations: the difficulty in getting an accurate diagnosis.