Good morning. I can finally share some exciting news with you. For nearly a year, I've been working with the newsletter 1440 (and their 4.1 million readers) to write several of their health/medicine articles. To say it has been a blast would be an understatement.
They are currently in the process of launching their new 1440 Topicswebsite. Think of it like Wikipedia, but if Wikipedia worked tirelessly to source only the best resources on the internet on any given topic. I have had the distinct pleasure of authoring several of these pages for them (Addiction is currently live, but many more to come soon!).
And if you're a new subscriber to Rules of Thumb by way of 1440...welcome!! If you couldn't tell, I hugely admire this publication and what they are doing. We are thrilled to have you here.
**This newsletter has occasional affiliate links (at no cost to you). These small commissions will always be re-invested into Rules of Thumb to improve the experience for all.**
☝️ First Hand - Carpal Tunnel Syndrome☝️
The middle of the night brings a familiar scene for many: suddenly awake, shaking a numb hand...and in many cases, a burning pain through the fingertips.
While millions suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome, most people don't understand the anatomy behind their symptoms or why nighttime can be particularly problematic. What's more surprising is that many common beliefs about this condition (like blaming your keyboard) may actually be myths.
In my article this week, I'll explore why your nerve gets angry, reveal the treatment options that actually work, and help you understand when it's time to seek help. Whether you're losing sleep over numb hands or worried about permanent nerve damage, understanding these principles is your first step toward relief.
Mowing your lawn, taking care of your property, being a good neighbor.
You know what's not kind of cool?
Mowing your lawn in flip-flops.
Fin.
📺 Grey's Anatomy Made-for-TV Case of the Month 📺
Here's a bizarre one for you.
A patient came to see me a few months ago for what she described as a stabbing pain on the inside of her elbow. Along with a new symptom of electric tingling in her pinky finger.
Upon asking her a few more questions, she told me that she was in a car accident 7 years previously where the windshield shattered and resulted in all kinds of glass injuries...glass that went deep into her arm.
She remembers the ER digging out six or seven different pieces of glass from her elbow that day. And then she sort of moved on from the injury without another thought.
But as I examined her elbow, sure enough, I felt a sharp hard something in her inner elbow right over the location of her ulnar nerve. The ulnar nerve is the same nerve that gives us sensation to our (you guessed it) pinky finger.
And sure enough, the x-ray confirmed the piece of glass, which was now sitting right on top of the nerve.
So I ended up taking her to the operating room, meticulously working my way through her elbow to reach the piece of glass, one millimeter at a time. I identified the nerve on either side of the traumatic area and carefully got the piece of windshield out of her elbow.
She woke up from surgery and found that her pinky finger tingling symptoms were gone — immediately. She of course left with a bit of a bigger scar than she had from the car accident but was happy as a clam to have the unwelcome glass accessory out of her body.
A highly satisfying surgery for both patient and surgeon.
** Here's a reminder that for the month of January, this resource will be 75% off at this link only. That's $10 down from $40. Thank you for being here and supporting the newsletter! **
For the last 3 months, I’ve been working late nights and early mornings on a resource that I believe will provide significant educational value to those suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome — numb, painful, burning hands that wake you up in the middle of the night.
The only thing more common than carpal tunnel syndrome is a lack of easy access to valuable information on what it is, what's causing it, and how it might be treated. Rather than some ad-optimized online health article, this is real education from someone who treats the condition multiple times daily (me!).
If you're curious to learn more or are tired of dealing with numb hands in the middle of the night, this is your invitation to take a virtual 'masterclass' from me on all things carpal tunnel syndrome.
It also greatly helps to keep this newsletter afloat and accessible to all.
PS. If you find yourself in serious need of this information but can't afford it, please just shoot me an email :)
📚 What I'm Currently Reading 📚
This week I've moved on to "A Thousand Ships" by Natalie Haynes. I'm about 2/3 of the way through, and all I can say is...whoa, cool.
This story offers a retelling of the Trojan War (you know, Helen of Troy, Achilles, Hector, the Trojan Horse, etc etc from high school) from the perspective of its women. Needless to say, this change transforms this well-worn tale into something startlingly fresh and relevant.
The book's intrigue lies in how it gives voice to characters who are often footnotes in the traditional narrative. For example, we get to read letters from Odysseus' wife Penelope as she becomes increasingly annoyed by the absence of her wandering husband. The story then bounces over to the quiet rage of Oenone, the wife of Paris, who was abandoned as he eloped with the beautiful Helen of Troy. Through these interconnected stories, you get to see the true cost of war — not just in deaths and glory, but in shattered families and stolen futures that make it feel all too real.
Reading this book also helps me better understand the hype behind another popular book of the moment, "James" by Percival Everett. While it's on my list to read, from what I can gather, it's the story of Huck Finn as told by the character Jim. Another example of taking a story we all know, skewing the perspective, and then re-telling the tale through fresh eyes.
If this is a new trend in literature...I'm on board.
👩💻 Quantum Shift: I'll admit. I'm not much of a quantum computing guy. BUT. A recent breakthrough took just five minutes to solve a problem our current best supercomputer would have taken a quadrillion times the age of the universe to crack.
That seems like a big deal.
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If you are having a medical emergency, call 911. Do not attempt to contact or obtain medical services through this site. This content is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing, or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice, and no doctor/patient relationship is formed. The use of information on this site or materials linked from this site is at the user's own risk. The content of this site is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard, or delay in obtaining, medical advice for any medical condition they may have, and should seek the assistance of their healthcare professionals for any such conditions. The content is my own and does not necessarily reflect the views of OCC.
