Apple watch gives pain on the wrist?

OK, well I'll make a scientific guess, which you might want to visit a doctor to get a qualified opinion. You wear both the watch and the fitbit on a part of your wrist where it puts pressure on nerves and tendons that terminate in your hand, and you wear it tighter than you would a watch, because if you wear it loosely the sensors in it won't work. Tendons and nerves are very close to the skin in your wrist, because there are a lot of nerves and tendons and not much wrist volume. Most people don't realize that there are no muscles in your fingers; the muscles that control your fingers are in your arm, and manipulate your fingers by "remote control" via the tendons. Extensor tendons that straighten your fingers are on the outside of your wrist, flexor tendons that allow you to make a fist are on the inside of your wrist. The tendons are each contained in narrow "tubes," or sheaths, and any pressure at all on a sheath will cause pain as the tendon cannot move freely. Pressure on a nerve will cause tingling in your fingers or arm.

As an experiment try wearing your Apple watch very loosely; too loose for the heart rate sensors to work. If it is worn loose it shouldn't put pressure on tendons and nerves and the problem will most likely have been identified.

I am also experiencing something that might only be coming from my new 38mm SSC Sport Band. Just bought it on Sat 17th Oct and since then I am having pain on my wrist and up my arm. Would hate that this might be a result from wearing this watch since I was so excited to purchase it. Really dont have any other explanation since I was fine before wearing it. Also wearing it loose. Guess I will have to take it off for a couple day and see if the pain go away.....

Hi everyone. About a month ago I purchased an Apple Watch (sport version, aluminum) and started having pain in my hand/wrist as well.

My reason: the aftermarket metal band. I purchased an aftermarket metal band and there is something about it (the weight, the way it hits my wrist, etc.) caused me pain.

My solution: the original sport band. I wear it snug enough that the watch stays in place while running, but still a little loose.

After several days of wearing the aftermarket band I was really having some pain myself. I did some reading on this forum and was concerned that I would have to take the watch back. I also considered the electronics were causing the issue. I adjusted the aftermarket band every which way possible. Thought maybe the raised underside of the watch (where the heart rate monitor sits) was causing a pressure point. Since going back to the rubber sport band I have been pain free and loving the Watch.

My conclusion: for some people, the problem is physical structure of the watch, band and/or weight. In my case, it had to do with the way the aftermarket band was hitting my wrist and/or the extra weight from the band was creating pressure points from the watch. I don't think it has anything to do with the electronics because I have gone back and forth several times between the original sport band and the aftermarket metal one, and the problem is obviously related to the band and/or its weight. Remember, the Apple Watch (face only) is almost double the weight as the Apple Watch Sport (face only). I think some people with problems should try out a sport version or at least a sport band. I can see something like the magnetic Milanese loop gradually getting tighter and tighter around someone's wrist as they move.

About me: Previously I have worn a Fossil metal watch band/watch for over a decade with zero problems. Very athletic, runner, low body fat, and would say that I have bony wrists.

CO_Spurs said, "I can see something like the magnetic Milanese loop gradually getting tighter and tighter around someone's wrist as they move."

The opposite is what actually happens, the loop will gradually get looser as you exercise and you have to adjust it.

I have had my watch for 4 months and every time I put it on with in 10 to 15 mins my arm start hurting, and when I take it off it stops I have test this on each arm 20 different times and there is a problem with the watch it is effect your Central Nerves System ,,,,, this is damaging to your health, apple need to do more research, so DO NOT let someone tell you it is to tight this is not ture. it is more than a coincidence that it is happening to a lot of people, apple should stop selling the watch's

Im glad to find this discussion. I have been wearing and loving my Apple Watch since last May but about 2 months ago I started getting severe pain in my left wrist. I could not open jars or pick up anything with my left hand. Nothing resolved the pain. I tried wearing my watch on my right wrist for past 10 days and the left wrist is now almost completely well. I have never had problems with watches before and have experimented with the tightness and placement of the band and nothing helped except stopping wearing the watch on my left wrist.

Margierunner wrote:

Im glad to find this discussion. I have been wearing and loving my Apple Watch since last May but about 2 months ago I started getting severe pain in my left wrist. I could not open jars or pick up anything with my left hand. Nothing resolved the pain. I tried wearing my watch on my right wrist for past 10 days and the left wrist is now almost completely well. I have never had problems with watches before and have experimented with the tightness and placement of the band and nothing helped except stopping wearing the watch on my left wrist.

What did your doctor tell you?

Margierunner wrote:

Im glad to find this discussion. I have been wearing and loving my Apple Watch since last May but about 2 months ago I started getting severe pain in my left wrist. I could not open jars or pick up anything with my left hand. Nothing resolved the pain. I tried wearing my watch on my right wrist for past 10 days and the left wrist is now almost completely well. I have never had problems with watches before and have experimented with the tightness and placement of the band and nothing helped except stopping wearing the watch on my left wrist.

That sounds like a tendinitis problem, something I experienced in the past, which had nothing at all to do with a watch, or an Apple Watch. If removing it from your left wrist and moving it to the right has caused you no issues with your right wrist, which you do not indicate, then the watch was probably irritating the tendinitis. The watch rests in the same area as wrist splints and supports, and the design of the back of the watch (convex) is similar to that of the splints to apply pressure in certain areas. While I'm not an orthopedic specialist, I have worn splints for wrist issues, as well as one for tennis elbow. The splint for the latter places pressure on the ligament/tendon area by the elbow to support it.

As Meg indicated, I also suggest you visit a doctor if your issue persists, but you may want to check with an orthopedic rather than a general practitioner, since it could very well be something with tendons/ligaments. Good luck.

I started feeling the same for the past 4 days. It has been about a week and a half since I received the watch as a gift and I have been wearing it daily. Last night I woke up with a weird, sleepy, sensation in my left arm (the arm I wear it on) and started moving my arm around to shake off the feeling. The "weird" feeling has been happening for a few days now. It wasn't asleep, because there was no pins and needle feeling, but it was weird. Then this morning at work, I was wearing the watch again and had a jolting pain shooting down from my left forearm until my hand (first time ever). I kept trying to move it around and make the pain stop, but it didn't work, so I finally decided to remove the watch. As soon as I removed it, the pain went away within a minute or two. Now I know it has nothing to do with it being too tight, because I wasn't wearing it tightly, so I'm starting to think it might be the radiation exposure. To be honest, I just finished treatment for Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and was very skeptical about wearing the watch when I received it as a gift for my birthday. I did some research and saw that there wasn't anything "proven" but still had my suspicions. Because I had a blood cancer, which one of the causes could be exposure to radiation, I have decided to just go ahead and return the watch today and not even put myself at that risk. At first I didn't want to be overly paranoid about everything, like this watch, but I think I made the best decision. I never had this feeling or pain in my left arm and I'm pretty sure it is from the watch. I guess time will tell now that I will stop wearing the watch. If the pain and tingly feeling stops, then I highly believe it was from the watch.

Go back to your doctor and tell him/her what happened.

You also need to remove the router, modem, microwave oven, smartphone and any Smart TV's from your household.

I took off my watch for a few weeks and the pain did not go away so I have concluded that the watch had nothing to do with my pain.

so I have no problems when others are near.

Yet those others probably all have phones with Blue Tooth activated.

Try a blind test. Have someone take a phone at random and not inform you if Blue Tooth is active or not. Stay close to the phone. Try it several times with Blue Tooth activation completely random. My wager is that you would say Blue Tooth is causing you problems every time, even when the phone does not have Blue Tooth activated.

I also have this problem. There is no pain when the watch is in airplane mode so I know it is nothing to do with the strap or fitting or anything. The pain starts subtly and then builds over a few hours until it is really uncomfortable. If I'm distracted and not thinking about it, watching tv or something, i usually become aware of the burning/ stinging sensation only to find that at that moment a message or string of messages was coming through. I do have quite large veins in my arms, just below the watch, so I'm wondering if the people with the same issue as me also have veiny arms? I tend to just leave it in airplane mode the whole time so then I'm pain free. i love it as a watch and fitness device so I'm ok with this to a point. The main thing that bugs me about that solution is that i have to have to stupid orange plane on screen all the time which i think detracts from the look of some of the faces and colour combinations.

I would love it if we the user had the capability to switch off messages, phone and other things so that the bluetooth wasn't searching for them constantly. Or failing that if we could have it so the airplane mode symbol was white so it wouldn't jar against some of the colour combinations.

I dont wish to get into a discussion about radiation etc, but the fact remains that some of us struggle with either that or the wifi or the combination of both.

Watchman1001 wrote:

I dont wish to get into a discussion about radiation etc, but the fact remains that some of us struggle with either that or the wifi or the combination of both.

Consult your doctor. Scientific tests have consistently shown that there is no such thing.