Adequate sleep is vital for every person. But sometimes night rest is disturbed by various unpleasant sensations, the most common of which is hand numbness. Its main signs are tingling or even soreness, which can increase with movement of the limb. If these sensations occur infrequently, there is no need to worry. But when your hands constantly feel numb in a dream, this is already a reason to see a doctor. Let’s find out why this is happening.

Reasons for hand numbness

In medicine, numbness of the hands during sleep is called paresthesia. In most cases, such a condition rarely bothers a person and is not associated with pathology, therefore, it does not need to be treated. It is enough to get rid of the provoking factor, and the state will quickly return to normal.

The arm can become numb at night due to physiological processes associated with a temporary violation of blood circulation in the limb or compression of tendons and nerve endings. The reasons for the discomfort can be as follows:

• Incorrect posture. Many people like to put their hand under their head or lift it up while sleeping. This position contributes to a violation of the flow of blood to the hands or fingers. To get rid of the numbness, you just need to change your position.
• An uncomfortable pillow. If the sleeping product is too tall or too hard, the spine will bend in the neck area. The result of this can be a violation of blood flow to the limbs, which causes a tingling sensation in them. To get rid of this, simply change the pillow. The best option would be an orthopedic model.

• Inappropriate clothing or crushing objects. Narrow sleeves of pajamas, watches, rings and other products that can constrict blood vessels contribute to the obstruction of blood flow in the limb. To keep your hands from getting numb, you need to take off all extraneous things before going to bed and choose loose night clothes.
• Habits. Impaired blood circulation can be facilitated by a cup of coffee, drunk before bedtime, too salty or spicy food eaten at dinner, and alcohol. All this contributes to the retention of fluid in the body, which becomes the reason that the hands become numb and swollen at night.
• Pregnancy. Gynecologists often hear complaints from expectant mothers about hand swelling. During this period, this condition is considered normal, and many factors can provoke it, from an uncomfortable posture and increased weight to hormonal changes in the body. As a rule, after the birth of the child, everything goes away.

Diseases

The causes of hand numbness during sleep can be more serious. The phenomenon is sometimes associated with pathological circulatory disorders or problems with the spine, which cause innervation in the limb. The exact cause is established after a medical examination.

Swelling and swelling of the hands in a dream can be symptoms of diseases, including:

• osteochondrosis in the later stages;
• multiple sclerosis;
• pre-stroke condition;
• vegetative disorders;
• migraine;
• vascular disease (atherosclerosis, etc.); 
• systemic collagenoses;
• neuralgia;
• oncological diseases;
• scalene muscle syndrome;
• injury.

This is just a small list of the most common pathologies that can provoke limb numbness, and each of them requires mandatory treatment.

One hand is numb

If only one hand becomes numb at night, the development of arthrosis, thrombosis or osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is possible. Therefore, a person should definitely consult a doctor. Injuries lead to the same sensations.

If the patient’s work activity is associated with performing the same type of actions with one limb, then this hand may suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome.

We can talk about diseases of the cardiovascular system when the left hand is completely numb (from the fingertips to the shoulder). People suffering from such disorders are more at risk of developing a heart attack than others.

Both hands go numb

The flow of two hands at once at night can occur due to the following diseases:

• anemia;
• arthritis;
• multiple sclerosis;
• hypertension;
• diabetes mellitus;
• osteochondrosis;
• cirrhosis of the liver;
• vitamin deficiency.

If the condition is accompanied by hearing or vision problems, then the reason is probably a violation of the central nervous system.

How to help yourself

To get rid of an unpleasant phenomenon, first you need to determine its cause. Examine your bed and bedding, notice the posture in which you sleep, and the food you usually eat for dinner. In this way, external provoking factors can be detected and eliminated.

If this does not help, you need to see a doctor so as not to miss the development of the disease. After examination and diagnosis, a specialist can prescribe a course of treatment:

1. Taking medications that help strengthen the walls of blood vessels.
2. Massage that helps to improve blood circulation.
3. Physiotherapy (electrophoresis, laser or ultrasound therapy).
4. Taking multivitamins.
5. Exercise therapy course, the exercises of which are aimed at developing muscle and articular tissue, as well as normalizing blood circulation.

The doctor may note a lack of vitamins of group B in the patient’s body. Their deficiency can also provoke nighttime swelling of the hands. So that such sensations do not interfere with sleep at night, it is enough to enrich your diet with foods that contain them (nuts, cereals, beans, beets and rose hips).

Effective folk remedies for hand flow

In addition, the doctor may recommend products that you can prepare and use yourself at home.

• Contrasting hand baths will be effective. It is necessary to fill 2 basins with water (1st – cold, 2nd – hot). Hands should be alternately lowered into each container, after which they are well rubbed with turpentine ointment. Put on gloves made of natural fabric on top.
• To prevent the left or right hand from numbing at night, you can make a compress with pumpkin porridge. To do this, you need to coat your hands with warm porridge, wrap them on top with cling film and wrap them in a scarf. As a rule, 2-3 such procedures are enough to get rid of discomfort at night.
• To strengthen the vascular walls, a mixture is used, which is prepared from lemon, honey, parsley and celery. Grind 1 kg of parsley and celery, 2 lemons with a blender or meat grinder and mix everything with 250 ml of honey. You need to take the medicine on an empty stomach. Enough 2 tablespoons for 1 reception.
• You can try rubbing your hands with rosemary tincture or a mixture of pickles and red pepper. To prepare such a mixture, grate 3 large pickled cucumbers and mix with 3 chopped chili peppers. Pour the mass with 500 ml of high-quality vodka. The medicine is infused for 7 days in a glass container at room temperature. Then it is used for rubbing sore spots.
• A product made from black pepper and vegetable oil has a good effect. To do this, 100 g of ground pepper are poured with 1 glass of oil. The mixture should be simmered for 30 minutes, stirring constantly. After cooling, apply the product to the hands, rubbing lightly into the skin.

Prophylaxis

In order to prevent limbs from flowing during sleep, it is important to take some preventive measures:

• get rid of bad habits;
• revise the diet and enrich it with foods rich in vitamins and minerals, while minimizing the consumption of fatty, salty and spicy foods;
• adhere to an active lifestyle;
• buy a quality mattress and pillow.

In most cases, hand numbness at night is not a pathology and can be easily eliminated by understanding the causes. But sometimes it can indicate serious health problems. If these sensations occur not only at night or bother you often enough, see your doctor.