Ganglion Cyst on Wrist

Saphyre started this discussion · 3/1/2013

According to my chiropractor, I have a small ganglion cyst on my wrist. It is on the top of my hand right at the wrist. It is tender to the touch, and hurts when I put pressure on my wrist, such as doing a yoga plank or a bridge. She said most of the time they go away on their own. I am leaving on a vacation next Thursday, so If I'm going to do something with it, it has to be now. Has anyone had one of these before and can give me some advise? I'm afraid it might just get bigger and then really give me grief. My doc suggested an orthopedist, but I don't want to do anything unnecessary, either. Has anyone had one drained? Did you require recovery time??

13 replies

megan12 · 3/2/2013
You're going to laugh but hold pressure on it, it'll make it recede. My friend hand beads jewelry and she got one on her wrist. It went away after awhile. They rarely need surgical intervention.
Seven · 3/2/2013
Hi I had one on the top of my left wrist and had it surgically removed when I was 11. I had to have 3 stitches and wasn't able to use my wrist for a month. I developed one on my right wrist a few years later it would bother me periodically then not at all of months at a time. I never had it removed and it is hardly noticeable now and hasn't bothered me in years. Good luck i hoped that helps a little.
JeHanne · 3/2/2013
I had one on the top of my right foot. Since it did not cause pain or prevent me from my normal activiites I took the wait and see what it does approach. Fortunately it went away with no intervention needed. My Doc told me that it could return since it was a cyst and also that they could develop in different areas. Consult with your Doc and dont hesitate to discuss with other specialty Docs if it continues to bother you. Wishing you the best of success!
Saphyre · 3/2/2013
Thanks, ladies! Megan, I actually tried that! I know they used to be called "Bible Cysts" because they literally whacked them with a bible to get rid of them! I took a nice, hot bath last night and then massaged it really hard. It does feel better today, so I will continue to do that and keep my fingers crossed. Pebbles, I hope mine doesn't come back after it goes away, but if it does, I hope it's not as bothersome. Thanks, JeHanne. Thank goodness you didn't have any pain! I will absolutely consult an orthopedist if necessary. I'm not one to procrastinate on this things. xoxoxo
PoleLiang · 3/2/2013
Years ago when I started poling, I had one of these on my left wrist. It would hurt when I pole, I got frustrated, almost would've tried everything to get rid of it. I stopped poling, iced, went to a chiro twice. Had a martial art master pressed a big coin on it really hard, it hurted so bad but I think it popped, so my wrist looked a little swollen but flat for a week, but the damn thing came back when my wrist got less swollen! So I don't know if that really helped at all and several months had past by. Eventually, this may sound hard to believe, it's actually going back to pole gradually finally got rid of the problem. I would do plenty of wrist warmups, Veena has great tutorials! And I would pose my wrist in a way to squeeze it from inside, ie, hand stand against the pole. So my suggestion would be keep on poling, but avoid super challenging moves to your injured wrist, gradually increase the difficulty level in a couple months you should be fine.
Saphyre · 3/2/2013
Thanks, Curious. I stretech my wrists and forearm severy day because I have on-going issues with them. I find myself stretching without realizing I'm even doing it! It's interesting that you mention getting back on pole got rid of it. I was off due to the flu, and that is when it popped up. I went to class Thurs night and kept it wrapped. It's certainly not any worse. We'll see how it goes!
PippiParnasse · 3/3/2013
I had one for awhile. I think I got it doing back bridges. I smashed mine and it hasn't come back, and that was years ago.
valerie98 · 3/3/2013
I have one on my left wrist. I had it drained years ago and it just came back within a few months. I have hit it with a hard book, it went away then it came back again. My husband keeps telling me to get it removed, but they say that it could still come back anyway. It doesn't bother me when I pole but it does bother me when I do things that put pressure on it suck as handstands, push ups, or bridges. I usually just hit it really hard with a hard book if it starts giving me trouble. However, a few months ago, I tried to hit it and it did not go away this time. I have yet to try again. I just try to live with it. It really makes me mad when I want to do handstands.
poledanceromance · 3/3/2013
I got curious so I googled. Here's the wiki for ganglion cysts. Apparently they are pockets of synovial fluid that push out from the joints and are caused by repetitive stresses or injuries on the joint. "smashing" the cyst can cause it to recede by actually rupturing the cyst, causing the fluid to leak into the surrounding tissues where it is absorbed. I would say given what I just read, resting the joint and making sure you're doing careful and thorough warmups is probably not a bad idea. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganglion_cyst
en.m.wikipedia.orgGanglion cyst - Wikipedia
LRu Studios · 3/3/2013
Good Morning https://www.studioveena.com/users/view/4f4e536d-f550-421b-9ac2-41f80ac37250, I have had two ganglion cysts removed. One was on the top of my wrist and another on the inside of my finger where it meets my hand. The one on my wrist was causing me pain while doing handstand types of tricks. The one on my finger was causing pain while doing any holding tricks on the pole, trapeze and lyra... Both surgeries were easy, the wrist recovery time was 4-5 weeks until I could do a handstand without pain and the finger surgery, I was poling again within two weeks. I had a hand and arm specialist do the surgery. The doctor did try to remove the fluid from my wrist before the surgery but there was not any fluid, just a mass. Maybe have a doctor try to remove the fluid first? I have a picture of what was removed from my finger if you want me to send it to you privately. It is just a little clump of white "stuff." I hope this helps, it is not as scary as it seems and the recovery is quick. Smiles, Leesi
Saphyre · 3/3/2013
Thanks, everyone!! I knew I would get some good info from my Veeners! It is getting better. I'm massaging it several times a day with a pain number at about 8. I just can't bring myself to whack it, although I tried bouncing it a few times, pretty hard onto a kitchen cloth on the granite countertop. Going to pole today, so we'll see how it does!
pegasusaerialfitness · 3/3/2013
I had one on my wrist for a bit...it's from trauma to the area...leave it alone and It will probably go down. You can ice it a little to reduce the swelling. It's your bodies ways of saying slow down.. I also ended up with a very large cyst behind my knee that I had drained a couple of times, but eventually needed to removed. It was a big surgery with pt afterword and a recovery time as if the had actually done knee surgery.. Avoid surgery if you can...it is never as simple as you think it will be.
Saphyre · 3/3/2013
Thanks, Pegasus. I would only get surgery as a very, very last, last resort! The funny thing is it popped up while I was taking time off of the pole...Weird.