Do You Need a Wrist Brace for Gaming?

Are you wondering if you need a wrist brace for gaming?

If you have been gaming for extensive periods.

Chances are high – that your wrist is going to start to hurt, especially if you don’t offer it the support it needs.

Typically the pain comes from what’s known as RSI (repetitive strain injury).

Although you can get wrist braces for gaming, I’d firstly check that your wrists are getting the support (with wrist rests) they need already and make sure that you’re taking regular breaks.

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Where is the Pain Coming From?

Generally it is the tendons in your hands that are getting inflamed due to excessive use.

There are a few medical terms that you can look into such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and Gamer’s Thumb or Gamer’s Wrist which is basically Tenosynovitis.

However, the cause is essentially the same – you’re putting a sustained strain on your tendons and that’s what causing the pain.

There are a few things you can do stop it though that we are going to discuss below:

Reduce the level of strain that your hands are being subjected to with wrist supports and wrist braces.
Ensure that the period of ‘strain’ is reduced with regular breaks in your gaming routine.
Warm up your hands before you enter a ‘gaming’ state.

What Do Wrist Wrests Do?

They don’t mask the pain but they add extra support to your wrists – so that the ‘strain’ parts becomes less so – and improves your overall endurance.

Although you might have the picture of something quite big and clunky – they actually are pretty sleek these days.

Plus, they can be portable as well so you get the flexibility you need when gaming.

There are a lot of wrist wrests for gaming out there, so it’s definitely worth taking the time to look up and weigh your options – and at the very least try them out.

Are You Taking Enough Breaks?

Another issue when it comes to gaming and particularly getting ‘aching’ wrists and pains is that even though you are using the wrist wrests as support.

You’re probably not taking enough breaks.

Going for long sustained periods without a decent break is obviously not going to be good in the long run. Especially, if you’re doing this day and day out.

Schedule in some breaks, set an alarm – it won’t be only your wrists thanking you for it. How often and how long you take breaks for is going to be ultimately up to you – there’s a lot of different advice over the exact amount of time.

But ultimately, you’re the best person to work out what your own tolerance is. Test it out.

For me I do about 2 hours of gaming on average per day in my little gaming room – and I try my best to break it up into roughly 30-35 minutes of gaming (this usually gets disrupted when I’m in an epic game of Dota 2) around 5-10 minute breaks (these tend to be loo and water breaks anyway).

Then see how you feel after that? Is it getting better? Or still bad? From here you can adjust to a level that you think is working for you.

Should You Get a Wrist Brace for Gaming?

For sure.

If you think that it will help relieve some of the stress and strain – or the wrist pads aren’t quite working out for you.

I’ve not come across many ‘dedicated’ gaming wrist braces (let me know if you have come across some), but there are plenty in general that help to relieve the pain of just general typing keyboards and clicking mice.

There is plenty of evidence out there to support that these braces help to support and reduce pain. Although, I haven’t come across any specifically for gaming other than Carpal Tunnel Syndrome studies but I found this interesting for the reduced pain in gymnasts.

If you’re only finding that you get it in one hand then, you only really need to get the wrist brace for that specific hand – if both hands – then get them for both.

Look Up to Professional Gamers

Although you don’t tend to see wrist support come during gaming time – there are plenty of instances where you can catch them in training making uses of a wrist brace and wrist supports.

It’s simply to keep them training for longer.

So it’s a good sign if the pros are using it to help preserve their ability over the long run – that you should be looking to do that too.

Another aspect that we have mentioned that you will notice some gamers do is actually do warm ups – they stretch out their hands – and do a little prep work before going straight into the game.

That’s something you can employ before each gaming session. Carry out a 5 to 10 minutes stretching workout for your hands – give them some preparation and then give yourself a scheduled time limit.

This combine with getting some solid support for your wrists should be an effective way to start reducing the pains of ‘gamer’s wrists’ and potentially ‘carpal tunnel’.

What Does a Good Wrist Brace Look Like?

Ideally it comes from a quality sports or gaming brand where you know that they generally produce quality products with your health in mind.

Generally though, I’d tend to look at wrist braces for gaming that has a good amount of reviews and high quality ones at that – so you know there is a good chunk of evidence out there – that this gaming wrist band works!

However, look for the subtle signs as well, do you get a range of motion when gaming, is it comfortable to play with and ultimately does it actually do the job of reducing the pain and swelling whilst providing you the support it needs.

Essentially, you want to be able to carry on gaming at your highest level – so to get the support you need – without sacrificing on your performance.

What if the Pain Continues?

Hopefully, you don’t need me to say it.

But it is time to take a break and likely see a health care professional just to make sure everything is ok.

Then realise that you need to look after your wrists – I am just as guilty as everyone else in taking them for granted – and to get the necessary equipment but also lifestyle routine where you can get use of them but just not over use.

Are You Going to Use a Wrist Brace for Gaming?

If so, please let us know how you got on – hopefully it has relieved some of the pain and made the gaming experience more enjoyable. If not, why not? And is there anything else that you would recommend?