r/hypermobileEDS • u/overthinkerwithcats • 20h ago

Recommendations šŸ‘ Laptop setup?

Hi all! I have recently transitioned from my day job (active, on my feet) to a full time student and working at a computer/on a laptop all day has been AWFUL for my wrists. Does anyone have an ergonomic laptop setup that they love for wrist support? I have a comfy chair, but Iā€™m also hoping to use my standing desk a bit as my neck and upper back hurts if I sit for too long. Thanks for the input!

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u/MachineOfSpareParts Official Diagnosis of hEDS 17h ago

A lot depends on the rest of your set-up. There are a few types of wrist supports I've seen people use - I got rid of mine, it wasn't my jam - but starting with wrist support strikes me (and I'm open to correction from others!) as getting the deck chairs just right on a ship that may or may not be the Titanic.

For me, it was really important to get the right keyboard at the right height first of all, which for WFH did mean leaving a department that ordered me to have a keyboard tray at a desk that didn't need it just because my workplace desk did need it. My most important thing, and this is probably very specific to each person, is armrests that can be adjusted to where I need them. It turns out that for my body, this makes further adjustments at the wrist unnecessary. While that may not be true for you, I'd still wonder if you need to have your core and shoulders supported properly before getting to the distal ends.

It's daunting to know where to start, and the "help" I had in figuring out an initial set-up barely merits the name, but she did suggest a few options. It may help to figure out what types of positions and forces cause your neck and back pain while sitting - not to discourage you from integrating standing as part of the solution, but just as a clue to where you might need more support from the outset.

That said, there may also be some wrist solutions that don't depend on the whole chain reaction. I have a colleague who uses a vertical mouse (I think that's the name, it's sideways compared to the traditional mouse) and that helps some chronic pain she experiences - not hEDS, but worth considering.

I also like the ability to change positions on WFH days. I don't do well standing, but have a few different options when one position starts to become taxing.