I Have Elbow Pain When I Golf and My Fingers Feel Numb

Elbow pain while golfing that is followed by numb fingers can happen when repeated use irritates the tissues around your elbow and puts pressure on a nearby nerve.

When you have elbow pain and your fingers start feeling numb while golfing, the problem may involve more than the sore spot around the joint. Repeated gripping, wrist movement, and swinging can place ongoing stress on the muscles and tendons around your elbow and forearm. If those tissues become irritated or tight, they can also affect the nearby nerves that travel through the elbow and into the hand.

The numb feeling is an important part of the pattern because nerves carry sensation from your hand and fingers. When a nerve near the elbow becomes irritated or compressed, normal sensation can change, making your fingers feel numb, tingly, or unusually sensitive. The repeated demands of a golf swing can make this more noticeable because your elbow, forearm, and hand are working together throughout the activity.

Gripping And Swinging Can Irritate The Elbow

Repeated gripping can increase stress on the tissues around the elbow and irritate a nearby nerve.

Holding the club firmly activates the forearm muscles, while the swing repeatedly moves your wrist and elbow. If the area is already irritated, this combination can increase stress around the elbow and make the nearby nerve more sensitive. That can explain why elbow pain and finger numbness appear together rather than feeling like two completely separate problems.

Repeated Swings Make The Numbness More Noticeable

As you keep swinging, fatigue can make the irritated area more sensitive.

With repeated swings, the muscles around your elbow and forearm have less opportunity to relax between movements. As they become fatigued, the area can become tighter and more irritated, which can make pressure around a nearby nerve more noticeable. This is why the elbow may start out manageable but the numbness becomes harder to ignore later in a round or after repeated practice swings.

Why Your Elbow Pain And Numbness Continue

Your elbow has a hard time healing when blood flow and circulation are limited.

Tendons, ligaments, and other soft tissues naturally receive less blood supply than many other parts of the body. Because of this, they often take longer to heal after repeated stress or injury, leaving you more vulnerable to lingering pain and a cycle of reinjury.

When circulation through the area remains limited, injured tissues have a harder time receiving the vital oxygen and nutrients they need to repair and heal. This can leave your elbow feeling stiff, tight, weak, or painful during everyday movement and activity.

What Can Help Your Elbow Feel Better

Your elbow starts feeling better when blood flow and circulation improve.

Chinese herbs have been used for centuries to promote healthy blood flow and circulation. Their medicinal properties help break up stagnant blood and fluids that remain trapped around injured tissues, interfering with circulation. As circulation improves, blood flows more freely through the area, allowing those tissues to receive the oxygen and nutrients they need to heal properly.

Topical herbal remedies made with these Chinese herbs can help relieve pain while improving blood flow and circulation to injured tissues. The right product depends on your symptoms and whether you're in the acute or chronic stage of recovery.

If you have pain, swelling, inflammation, or bruising, Acute Sinew Liniment helps relieve these symptoms by increasing circulation and dispersing stagnant blood and fluids around the injured area to speed recovery. During the acute stage of healing, getting circulation moving early allows injured tissues to receive the fresh blood, oxygen, and nutrients they need to repair and heal.

If your injured area is especially swollen, red, or warm to the touch after a recent injury or flare-up, Sinew Herbal Ice is also used to reduce swelling and inflammation while restoring normal circulation so you can quickly regain range of motion. While traditional ice is commonly used to reduce swelling, Sinew Herbal Ice acts as an ice alternative to reduce swelling and inflammation while also dispersing accumulated blood and fluids to speed the healing process.

If you no longer have swelling or inflammation, but still have pain, stiffness, weakness, or sensitivity in cold and damp weather, Chronic Sinew Liniment helps relieve these symptoms by strongly stimulating circulation and increasing blood supply to injured tendons and ligaments to promote their healing. This is especially important because tendons and ligaments naturally receive less blood supply, which is why chronic injuries can take longer to heal.

If you have residual pain and stiffness, or the area becomes more painful in cold weather, Sinew Injury Poultice is also used to significantly stimulate circulation to injured tendons and ligaments to further promote their healing. By strongly increasing circulation, it counteracts the reduced blood flow caused by cold weather that commonly aggravates chronic tendon and ligament injuries.

If you exercise, play sports, or do other strenuous activities, Sinew Sports Massage Oil warms and stimulates muscles for exertion and relieves muscle tightness and soreness after activity. Warming and preparing your muscles before activity can improve flexibility, enhance performance, and reduce the risk of injury.

Frequently Asked Questions

You may also find these commonly asked questions helpful.

Why do my fingers feel numb when I golf?

Repeated gripping and swinging can irritate the area around your elbow and affect a nearby nerve, causing numbness or tingling in your fingers.

Can elbow pain and numb fingers happen together when golfing?

Yes. Irritation around your elbow can affect a nearby nerve while repeated golfing also strains the muscles and tendons around the elbow and forearm.

Why does my finger numbness get worse as I keep golfing?

Repeated swings can fatigue the forearm and increase irritation around the elbow, making nerve-related numbness more noticeable as you continue playing.

Can gripping a golf club cause elbow pain and numb fingers?

Repeated gripping keeps your forearm muscles active and can add stress around the elbow, which can contribute to pain and irritation of a nearby nerve.

Should I get elbow pain with numb fingers checked?

Persistent, severe, or worsening elbow pain with finger numbness should be evaluated by a qualified healthcare professional, especially if weakness also develops.

The information provided here is intended to help you better understand your symptoms and recovery, but it is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Persistent, severe, or worsening symptoms should be evaluated by a qualified healthcare professional.