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I sit at a desk and type all day. They get stiff and my rings are are tight. My calves feel hard and stiff. About a half hour after I get home and sit on the couch they seem to go back to normal.
I exercise most days. Walk, dance, elliptical without issues. I am perimenopausal also.
I’ve always had issues on and off with swollen feet and ankles from sitting to long but never noticed my calves swollen. But maybe that’s because I’ve been wearing compression socks so my feet and ankles aren’t as swollen so I notice it in my legs more.
It sounds like an overall circulation issue, have you consulted with a Pulmonologist? In terms of the difference in your legs I would guess it has to do with your office chair needing adjustment. Your fingers are a repetitive motion issue that eases once off work undoubtedly.
I sit at a desk and type all day. They get stiff and my rings are are tight. My calves feel hard and stiff. About a half hour after I get home and sit on the couch they seem to go back to normal.
I exercise most days. Walk, dance, elliptical without issues. I am perimenopausal also.
I’ve always had issues on and off with swollen feet and ankles from sitting to long but never noticed my calves swollen. But maybe that’s because I’ve been wearing compression socks so my feet and ankles aren’t as swollen so I notice it in my legs more.
Circulation issues most likely a result of being seated in the same position for lengthy periods.
If your work doesn't offer standing desks, perhaps try propping your feet up under your desk with a foot rest or something similar.
For your hands and fingers, perhaps try an ergonomic keyboard and/or mousepad.
Anybody can get a little puffy when sitting for long periods. "Dependent Edema" is swelling in the feet /legs from them hanging down. Age, kidney, liver or heart problems can make it worse, as does Dunlap's Disease (your belly done laps over your belt, ie-obesity)...and of course there's varicose veins.
Sammy also mentions swelling in the hands and being perimenopausal, so hormonal (estrogen) factors are also probably at play in her case- watch your salt & fluid intake.
Nobody's heart has the oomph to push blood all the way down to the feet and back up again. We need the repetitive flexing of the calves as we walk to help push the venous blood back up. Just wiggling your feet & legs doesn't do it. Elevation of the feet after a long day can help-- feet higher than the heart.
It's good advice for everyone to sit no more than 20 minutes or so at a time. Get up and walk a little, even 20 paces may be enough, to avoid that swelling. I always told older pts sedentary & watching TV all day to get up and walk across the room & back every time a commercial came on.
Prolonged sitting leads to venous stasis, edema and even thrombophlebitis (blood clots).
I sit at a desk and type all day. They get stiff and my rings are are tight. My calves feel hard and stiff. About a half hour after I get home and sit on the couch they seem to go back to normal.
I exercise most days. Walk, dance, elliptical without issues. I am perimenopausal also.
I’ve always had issues on and off with swollen feet and ankles from sitting to long but never noticed my calves swollen. But maybe that’s because I’ve been wearing compression socks so my feet and ankles aren’t as swollen so I notice it in my legs more.
So if feet, ankles and calves are swollen, a diuretic can help with that by reducing excess fluid and so reducing blood volume.
Another thing that can help is walking. Your veins have one-way valves in them with leaflets that open and pass blood easily in one direction, but close and block flow in the other direction. When your calf muscles cycle through contraction and relaxation while walking, there is a squeezing action on the principle vein that, combined with the one-way valves, pushes the blood upward in the leg towards the heart. It's called a veno-muscular pump and is similar to the way a peristaltic pump acts on tubing to move fluid in it. So walking helps to eliminate excess fluid from the lower limbs through this mechanism.
P.S. We are going on the assumption that this is a circulatory issue, but I don't know if that's consistent with your hands swelling. Have you ever shown any tendency towards allergy and is there any chance that you are allergic to something at the office???
Last edited by OutdoorLover; 02-08-2024 at 10:08 AM..
I sit at a desk and type all day. They get stiff and my rings are are tight. My calves feel hard and stiff. About a half hour after I get home and sit on the couch they seem to go back to normal.
I exercise most days. Walk, dance, elliptical without issues. I am perimenopausal also.
I’ve always had issues on and off with swollen feet and ankles from sitting to long but never noticed my calves swollen. But maybe that’s because I’ve been wearing compression socks so my feet and ankles aren’t as swollen so I notice it in my legs more.
How often do you get up and move during the workday? You might need to build in some stretching breaks or take short walks.
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