Are you a hair stylist or hairdresser with hand pain, numbness, or weakness? If so, you have a high likelihood of having carpal tunnel syndrome. Therefore, choosing a carpal tunnel wrist brace is an important first step in your treatment. But the choice is not as simple as you might think.

Every day, doctors see patients (including hairdressers and stylists) with carpal tunnel symptoms. The problem is that most patients believe wearing any old wrist brace is going to help. But it doesn't - because it must be the right brace, worn at the right time.

This article will not recommend the best carpal tunnel wrist braces. You can see that list here: Best (and Worst) Carpal Tunnel Sleeping Braces

Instead, this article will describe WHY you must wear the PROPER wrist brace, and WHEN to wear it. In summary:

1. Wear ONLY a "certified" carpal tunnel night brace, and
2. Never wear a wrist brace while you work

• Think you have carpal tunnel? Complimentary self-test

• Already know you have carpal tunnel?  This Quiz tells you its severity
  

If you're a stylist or hairdresser with carpal tunnel syndrome, then join the club. Your profession is over 3 times more at risk of getting this condition compared to the general population.

Carpal tunnel symptoms include hand or finger pain, numbness, tingling, burning, and shooting electric shocks. Generally, your thumb and forefinger are especially involved. But your little (pinky) finger is normal. And your grip strength may be greatly reduced, with overall hand weakness and clumsiness.

We already know that you can acquire carpal tunnel by making rapid and forceful hand and finger movements for prolonged periods of time. These and other harmful hand activities are known to cause carpal tunnel syndrome. That means professions requiring typing, gripping, and manipulating small objects are especially vulnerable.

Hairdressers and stylists are famous for stressing their hands. Using shears, brushes, and combs require constant gripping, which stresses all of the hand tendons simultaneously.

But shears require gripping AND rapid and repetitive thumb movement. Using shears every day is like a guarantee for getting carpal tunnel syndrome.

If your doctor advised that you wear any old wrist brace to treat your carpal tunnel symptoms, then they were wrong.

In fact, wearing an ordinary wrist brace 24/7 is "go-to" recommendation by most doctors and therapists. But doing so is harmful if you have carpal tunnel syndrome. Here's why...

Sure, it might hurt to move you hand a lot with carpal tunnel. And a brace keeps you from making sharp movements. But you MUST move your hand. Movement is the only way excess fluid can be pumped out of your wrist joint. And movement will also increase blood flow, which is crucial to the haling process.

Keeping your hand immobile will cause more fluid buildup. And that’s not good for carpal tunnel syndrome. Therefore, when you have carpal tunnel it’s much better to NOT wear a wrist brace while you work. Instead, give your hand the freedom to move and go through its range of motions so fluid can drain out. Sure, it may hurt a bit more, but it must be done so your hand can heal.

Wearing a brace when you have carpal tunnel syndrome can be harmful if you make 3 big mistakes. You should:

• Never wear the wrist brace during the daytime.
  
  
• Always wear the wrist brace while you sleep.
  
  
• Always wear a certified night brace for carpal tunnel.
  

Again, you should NOT wear a wrist brace while working. But you MUST wear a wrist brace while you sleep. Doing so will prevent your wrist from over-bending. Over-bending your wrist will increase pressure on the median nerve. And that makes the problem much worse.

Chances are you purchased a wrist brace from CVS, Walgreens or Walmart. Most people do. And it might even say “for carpal tunnel syndrome” on the package. But it’s not a certified carpal tunnel wrist brace because these stores don't sell them.  

How to Choose a Carpal Tunnel Brace

How can you tell if yours is certified? A non-certified brace has a flat metal spine on the palm surface of the brace. (Check yours right now, and compare to the photo above!) When you wear it, that "palmar spine" presses against your wrist while you sleep. This is bad. 

Imagine if you unconsciously bend your hand backward while asleep. That spine will press into your wrist joint. Doing so increases the pressure inside the carpal tunnel space. And increased pressure damages the median nerve even more.

Unfortunately, most brace manufacturers don’t know any better. They already market an attractive all-purpose brace. Then they just change color and call it a “carpal tunnel wrist brace” to penetrate another market. It's a shameful but unavoidable practice.

The most important feature of a certified carpal tunnel night brace is that its spines are NOT on the palmar surface. Instead, they will be on the top or side of the hand, far away from the palm.

Disclosure: Dr. Z (author of this article) invented the CarpalRx Night Brace specifically for carpal tunnel syndrome. It's been recognized internationally and won distinction for its novel design.

There's nothing magical about a carpal tunnel wrist brace for hairdressers - or anybody else who stresses their hands daily. But the wrong kind of wrist brace can make your symptoms much worse. It must be a certified carpal tunnel wrist brace to be effective. Also, it must be worn only at night to help reduce carpal tunnel symptoms. Wearing the wrong wrist brace, or wearing it during the daytime will only make your carpal tunnel syndrome more severe.