Ulnar nerve issues

So, I’ve got this massive issue with my ulnar nerve—you know, the one responsible for your pinky and ring finger. About two years back, I took a brutal hit from a soccer ball right in the hip area during a game. Instead of actually listening to my body and resting, I was being stubborn. I figured it was just one of those aches you deal with all the time. To make matters worse, I had just joined a gym about a month prior; I was totally hyped up and thought hitting the weights would "loosen things up." Huge mistake. It just made everything way worse. My grip strength has tanked by at least 50%. Every single morning, I wake up and can feel that my pinky and ring fingers are completely numb. It wears off after a few minutes, but let me tell you, it feels absolutely terrible. I tried taking a full year off from anything heavy, just avoiding physical labor, but nothing has helped. When I tried using those hand grippers😁, the pain even started spreading into my palm. I finally went to see a doctor, and they ordered some scans, but I have to wait until May 31st for the appointment. I’m looking to see if anyone else here has dealt with something similar. Does anyone have any actual suggestions—maybe a specific exercise or something? I’ve spent some time digging through YouTube, but honestly, most of those exercises haven't done a damn thing for me.

I dealt with this exact same headache for about six months before I finally started digging through forums and medical sites to figure out what was actually happening. At the end of the day, it all comes down to how much that nerve in your elbow is getting pinched—sometimes you might need surgery, sometimes you won't. For me, my grip strength tanked, and I completely lost feeling in my pinky and part of my ring finger. I eventually stumbled upon some advice suggesting you should sleep with your arm kept straight, avoid bending the elbow whenever possible, and especially watch it when you're using a mouse if that's your dominant hand. The idea is to stop bending the joint so the nerve can finally decompress. It sounds almost too simple to work, but honestly, it was the only thing that actually helped me.

Thanks. I actually read that too and started trying it out myself, but honestly, I’m not seeing much of a difference yet... how long did it take for you to actually see results after you started sticking to it?

I went under the knife for nerve decompression. About 90% of that tingling vanished on day one, and the rest cleared up over the next month. I'm doing fine now, but if you bump your elbow? You won't just see stars—you'll see the whole Milky Way.

I totally blanked on asking this... have you guys ever felt that specific nerve zing in your bicep? Like, that intense, sharp sensation where it feels like a literal wire is pulling tight inside the muscle? I’m someone who lives for being active—cycling, running, hitting the weights, basically anything that keeps me moving—so what kills me most about this is that I can't even do basic arm exercises without everything going sideways. It’s pure chaos. One time, the aftermath was so bad I couldn't move my entire arm. I had to just quit cold turkey after that... I mean, I don't need to end up completely brain-dead because of some stupid injury.🙂

Oh yeah, especially after I took a nasty hit to my elbow—the nerve from my hand all the way up to my shoulder was absolutely twitching. 😁 Honestly, I can’t quite recall how long it took me to bounce back, maybe two or three weeks? My advice is to try and tough it out for a week or so by sleeping with your arm kept completely straight, and do some digging online to see if anyone else has dealt with similar symptoms... if it hasn't cleared up within three weeks at most, then go see a doctor.

Alright... I'll hit you guys up after May 31st to let you know how things are looking... Fingers crossed everything is solid, though honestly, I’m banking on things turning around even sooner than that.👍