Odd one going on with my middle finger for the past few months. Every single morning when I wake up, it's stuck curled into my palm and I have to force it straight with my other hand. There's this little pop when it finally lets go and it aches for a minute after. Once I'm up and moving it's fine for the rest of the day, which is the part that confuses me. I've been welding about 12 years and I'm wondering if all that gripping of the stinger and pliers day in day out has something to do with it. My left hand is the one that holds the work, and funny enugh it's the right hand that's messed up. So maybe it's not work related at all? I've read that the tendon gets kind of thickened and catches on a band in the palm, which sounds about right from where the pain sits. Doctor gave me the usual list, rest, a shot, a splint to wear at night, and surgery if nothing else works. Resting my hands is not realistic for me, and honestly the idea of surgery on my working hand makes me nervous. Has anyone here dealt with this and kept working through it? Did the shot actually fix it or did it just come back a year later? Also curious if the stretching thing helps long term or if I'm just delaying the inevitable.
Why does my trigger finger lock up every morning before I even touch the torch?
Oct 13, 2026
Last reply: 1 day ago
4 Replies
First reply
That's trigger finger, and the morning catch is the giveaway. Tendon swells up in its sheath, and overnight your hand curls naturally, so the thickened spot jams against the pulley at the base of the finger. First straightening of the day is the worst, then movement pumps the…
Read the full replyThat's trigger finger, and the morning catch is the giveaway. Tendon swells up in its sheath, and overnight your hand curls naturally, so the thickened spot jams against the pulley at the base of the finger. First straightening of the day is the worst, then movement pumps the fluid out and it behaves. Same reason it's fine the rest of the day. It's actually more common in the general population than in trades, so it may not be the welding itself, but 12 years of gripping doesn't help anything either.
Had the same thing in my ring finger a couple years back. I skipped the shot at first and just tried the night splint, hated it, kept taking it off in my sleep. Ended up getting the injection and it sorted me out for about two years, then it came back milder. Second shot took care of it and it's been quiet since. Kept welding thru the whole thing, just wore a glove with a bit more padding in the palm for a while. The stretches never did much for me honestly, but everybody's diferent. Ask the doc if you can get the shot done on a Friday so you're not burning work days.
Been welding 18 years now and my right hand went through this too. What acutally helped me was dropping down to a lighter stinger and loosening my grip. I didn't realize how hard I was clamping that thing out of habit untill the doc pointed it out. Grip strength was the thing I never thought about. As for the stretches, I did the tendon glides the hand therapist showed me, three sets a day, and honestly they seemed to keep it loosened up more than anything else I tried. Never went under the knife and it settled down after the second shot.
Update: took the advice about grip and tried holding the stinger lighter this week. My hand's way less achy by the end of a shift, so that part's real. Mornings haven't changed though, still waking up with it locked and doing the pop. Question for the guy who got the shot, did you keep welding full days after, or did you have to back off for a bit first?
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