Hey! I love ergo gear, and the ergonomic mouse I am using atm is the anker vertical mouse. I am sure the Logitech is great, but if you haven't tried a vertical mouse before the cheaper anker might be better move.
Also the anker is just a great mouse. Have been using it for about 3 years and for web browsing and work its great. Did you transition to an ergo keyboard as well yet?
I chased carpal tunnel for years--switched mouse hand from right to left (wrecked the left wrist), used braces (still got worse), bought various dumb-looking mice, including ones that looked like joysticks stuck to a mouse, (none fixed the problem), tried a trackball (worse)...
The only thing that worked was getting a Wacom Cintiq. I can work on the screen with a pen forever with no carpal tunnel. I have used one since 2001, and I currently have one at home and one in the office. Which probably means any pen-on-screen interface of any kind will have similar benefits.
Runner up: large trackpads are not terrible for moderate lengths of time. Caveat: this is me, you may be different. Typing never bothered me, just using the mouse, so maybe I'm super weird.
I never had issues, but my boss did and really liked the vertical mice. I know Anker and Logitech and some others out there. Seems a more natural arm and wrist position.
I developed wrist problems 20 years ago from too much computer work. Switched to using split keyboards and thumb operated trackballs. Wrists got better. Currently using Kinesis Freestyle 2 keyboard and Logitech trackball. Have also tried trackpads and tablets.
Ugly as sin, but I use the Handshoe mouse. Get one for both hands, if you can afford it, and trade between them as often as you see fit. Get a good, split, ergo keyboard, like the wireless one Microsoft sells.
Unfortunately for me, writing (pen and/or tablet) makes my problems worse, but I think mine stem more from my forearm and elbow. My elbow certainly has surgical scars to prove that out...
Oddly enough, for PC gaming, I use a fairly flat, ambidextrous mouse. Razer Viper Ultimate. It somehow relieves discomfort more than any ergo gaming mouse. I think that it's so light and wireless reduces some strain from use.
Lastly, don't forget that your whole setup is important! Good posture, proper support for your back, ass, legs, and arms, desk height, monitor placement, blah blah blah. As is regularly switching things up and moving about. I know I spent a lot of time focused on one main issue, my screwed up right arm, and noticed the most improvements over time when I looked at the whole bodily picture.
One Youtuber theory I've read about thin, light, often ambidextrous mice (Viper, XM1, etc.) is that their thin nature up front brings your thumb and pointer finger closer together and more in line with the shape your hands take when holding a pen. Helps with precision and strain. Not at all scientific...But my recommendation would nonetheless be to NOT lock yourself into common ergonomic frameworks.
Years ago I developed RSI. Went to a Kensington trackball which offered some relief. Moved to a Logitech Trackman which has thumb on left click, ring finger on right click with index and middle finger on the trackball. This proved the winning combination for my anatomy. Haven't had RSI issues in over a decade.
A bit out of the box, but I suggest trying a keyboard-based window manager to lessen mouse usage in the first place. Can’t think of one that’s compatible with both Windows and MacOS, but they tend to be customisable enough for workarounds.
@Hands that fugly handshoemouse looks interesting, but not very easy to pick up if you need to reset its position on the desk without moving the cursor. How do you deal with that?
Thank you everyone, this was extremely helpful. I will look into all the gear mentioned here. In my work, it is the mouse that gets used the most (80%), which I why I am saving the keyboard upgrade for later. I'm also working on building an ergonomic chair and desk to get the posture right.
I will say desk and chair is extremely important. After I moved I just use my laptop at table with a regular unadjustable chair. Tabletop was high but I just dealt with it with my arms resting on the edge of the table often. Eventually I felt numbness in both of my arms.
I got an office chair right away and things improved immediately.
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