It's Not Carpal Tunnel Syndrome! RSI Theory & Therapy for Computer Professionals

Suparna and Jack have given a huge gift to the software development industry. Reading this book back in 2002 helped me begin my journey to recovery after I had gotten to the point of not being able to throw a football to my son. I fully recovered in about a year. Unfortunately, this year (2008), I got so excited about a project at work that I got laser-focused for about 4 months and have re-injured myself. My problem is (and I suspect also for other RSI sufferers) is that I don't pay attention to my posture and ergonomics when I'm well. So I pulled this book off the bookshelf and have begun again. The medical profession still seems in the dark on this subject. For others out there who have the "all or nothing" personality, I also recommend, The DaVinci Method by Garrett Loporto. This will help you understand how some people get laser-focused which is often when these injuries occur.

I, like many of the reviewers on this site, thought this was the best book written on the subject of RSI. It was my bible for over a year. I bookmarked the pages about stretches and exercises and read them daily. I brought it to my physical therapist, and used the information as a justification and proof of my very real 'physical' injury. The book explained to me and others why my 'poor' posture and 'over' exertion were the cause of regenerative dispositions in my body.

I am a cello player, computer gamer, and person that tends to push themselves very hard.

As far as i am concerned, there is only one part of this book worth the two stars I give it. This is the chapter that briefly mentions in a very skeptical manner a man named John E. Sarno.

I laughed at the description of this Doctor who claimed that the pain was caused by emotions. It was a con and placebo if I ever heard one.

After 2 years of studious, dedicated, fully applied physical therapy, and using the concepts in this book, I was in more pain than I was when I first read it. How could this happen? My anger about my lack of recovery fueled my rage.

Then, my doctor, a specialist in RSI, recommended Sarno's book to me. I remembered reading about Sarno in Damany's book. Could that really have any basis in reality?

So I read Sarno's book and I got better in a week. Send me a message if you don't believe me and I'll tell you again. ONE WEEK.

So, this book, like all the other books on the subject, is completely wrong. It never helped me, it only prolonged my 'injury' for years. I really wish the writers of this book would begin to look at facts rather than assumptions about cures.

Don't read this, don't recommend it. I keep a copy in my library so I am familiar with the literature that misinforms and is contrary to the truth.

Read "The Mind-body Prescription" by John Sarno.

Good luck.

Buying this book has been a life changing event. I still remember being drained both physically and mentally from RSI, as any RSI sufferer will tell you. I almost lost hope and was painfully seeing my software career coming to an end and then I bought this book. It's an eye opener that brings you a ray of hope about a possible recovery. And, that's what happened to me after I read this book and eventually got treated by Suparna 4 months ago. All thanks to her, I am now typing this review without a pain and as an RSI survivor.

This is a very good book on RSI. It's not a great one because I don't think anyone is capable of writing a great one at this point in the study of RSI theory, treatment, and strategies. Here are the four issues I would say to keep in mind as you read this book--not before, since they won't make much sense.

1. One coauthor had unsuccessful carpal tunnel surgery; this doesn't mean that carpal tunnel surgery cannot be successful. I had three operations on one arm at one time--each site related to RSI. It worked. I was lucky to have one of the best neurosurgeons in the world, however.

2. If you read through the book carefully, there is no claim that RSI is 100% curable for any particular person. I believe that's true. Don't get your hopes up to the level where you assume it will be so, although don't be pessimistic either.

3. There is mention of the mind-body connection and even of the personality type more prone to RSI, but this is not dealt with in great length, and I believe, having had the ups and downs of this problem for five years, that there is a very strong emotional component to it--not that the physical aspect is illusory but each should operate hand in hand so to speak.

4. This book and Pascarelli's should be read together since they complement one another. However, one thing is clear. Employers and the medical profession are not keen on dealing with your complaints--the latter because medicine is so specialized that the many aspects of RSI really require a team of professionals for therapy. The former because with all the talk of accommodation in the workplace, unless you have a very understanding employer or are sleeping with him/her or blackmailing him/her, she/he can't deal with the 'fuzziness' of an RSI diagnosis. Their job is to make money for the company, and so is the human resource office.

More about the 'team effort' to heal your problem--to whit, can you afford a team? Do you have time for a team? Do you want your entire life to be drawn into the project of healing your RSI with no guarantee it will work? It sounds like a dreary, unsatisfying life to me. And it was for me when I tried to deal with the maze of complications of RSI: nerves, muscles, life style, mental attitude, symptoms, inexplicable improvement and exacerbations.

My advice: read this book; read Pascarelli's. Learn about trigger point therapy. Find one or two GOOD doctors/health practitioners. Most will not be good for the aforementioned reasons. Just as important find or become your own spiritual advisor. As I mentioned I had three operations for RSI on my dominant hand about a year ago. I'm typing at the moment. It was definitely one of the interventions that helped. But from there on in, your on your own. You may get treatment and suggestions but I think you must become your own advocate--don't expect others to have the answers. Your particular malady will probably be different from anyone else's.

This book makes a strong attempt to properly diagnose the many RSI-related injuries however if you want to get the real diagnosis and cure yourself of RSI in a very short period of time like thousands of others have, read "The Mindbody Prescription" by John Sarno. It is available on Amazon. Just read the reviews for it.