Sit to Stand workstations are starting to become more mainstream. I use one from Workrite.

These allow you to vary your work position to give your back a rest. As they put it: “Ergonomists agree that microbreaks are an excellent way to reduce the affects of repetitive activities. Rather than squirming in your seat late in the day, give your back a rest by standing for a short time. Alternating between standing and seated positions reduces the need for extended workbreaks, increasing employee productivity.”

I try to switch positions every hour or two.

Icing is an important technique to help minimize pain from an RSI.

This site has some good times on how to make icing work well.

I liked to put ice cubes in a pitcher of cold water and dunk my hands - wrists - arm in.  This gets the entire area iced. You need to ice longer than I thought I needed to.

You can read more about icing and how long to ice from this guide to Repetitive Strain Injury.

Do you notice that you wake up in the middle of the night more? That is a symptom of an RSI or repetitive strain injury. I was literally sleeping on top of a pillow with my hand right underneath, causing my injury to flare at night.

The Futuro Reversible Splint Wrist Brace is a low cost ergonomic splint that can help you at night.

I used one for a while until I got a custom designed splint from my hand therapy center.

I have found that most of my healing and insight was gained while under care of hand therapists. Doctors just examined my hands and gave a diagnosis and a prescription for hand therapy.

California Pacific’s Hand Therapy in the San Francisco Area has helped me heal, and I can recommend them 100%. They will help you understand your condition and provide a path to healing. They helped with exercises, therapy, ergonomics, splints, and work tips.

Do not delay contacting a hand therapist, the sooner you do it, the faster you will heal.

The Wacom Bamboo Pen Tablet is a low cost ergnomic input device that I use. I hold the stylus like a hold a pen and lightly move it around. I wrap the stylus in a foam insulation so it is about 1.25″ in diameter. This makes gripping it a lot easier. The key to a more ergonomic input device is to try to keep your hand in as close to a natural position as possible.

Another input device I switch off to is:

The Adesso USB EasyCat Touchpad is another low cost ergnomic input device that I use. I use my finger to lightly move the cursor around and programmed its buttons to do tasks that require multiple clicks.

The 3M Ergonomic Mouse is another device I use. Your hand stays in a more natural position and you use the more powerful thumb to click.

Again, these will not solve all RSI problems.  You need to take breaks, do stretching, and minimize computer use whenever possible.