Why does my hand go numb at night, and when should I worry about it?

Let's take a look at what your wrist is doing while you sleep. Many people sleep with their wrists bent, and a bent wrist puts more pressure on the nerve inside the carpal tunnel, which is why the numbness so often wakes people up.¹ That is also why a night brace helps: it keeps you from bending the wrist while you sleep.¹ Dr. Knight walks through it in What is carpal tunnel syndrome?.

Being woken by numbness is the point at which Dr. Knight wants to see you. Carpal tunnel syndrome is the likely answer, and a brace that holds the wrist straight at night can help you sleep. The same numbness can also come from the nerve being pinched higher up, at the elbow or in the neck. A nerve conduction study, a test of how well the nerve carries its signal, shows where it is being squeezed and how badly.¹ That is what decides the treatment.

Numbness that wakes you is a reason to book rather than wait. Dr. Knight examines the hand at our Southlake office, open weekdays, or our Plano office, open Tuesdays, and same day appointments are often available at both. Nerve testing is not done in the office; when the exam does not settle where the nerve is pinched, Dr. Knight arranges it and tells you where it is done. When the cause is carpal tunnel, our carpal tunnel page covers what comes next.

• Numbness is waking you up at night.
• The numbness stays during the day, not only at night.
• Your grip is weaker or you are dropping things.
• The little and ring fingers are the numb ones, which points toward the elbow.
• Neck pain comes with the hand numbness.