Joint Pain and Shifting in fingers and shoulders

[patrickallen28]

When I make a fist with my left hand I can feel the joints shift in the knuckles that are at the very bottom of my fingers on my hand. The sensation is similar to a pop can when you release the pressure but don't open it fully and you can make the tab shift up and down. When I put a finger on the inside of my hand where the knuckle is and curl my index finger I can feel something move or shift. When I do anything that requires opening and closing my hand repeatedly (i.e. I work in the post office sorting mail) the areas where the joints or tendons or whatever shift become sore overtime. The closest comparision I can think of is sore muscles after working out. The same sort of shifting also occurs in my shoulders with a similar shifting in my joints and occurs everytime my arm moves past shoulder level and then down again. Except in my shoulder it's a bigger feeling shift and there is soreness and pain immediately.

Are these symptoms common of a disorder and is there a way to treat them? I would love to be able to use my arms and hands in the same range of motion as other people with out discomfort and pain.

[patrickallen28]

The thing is, I had all of these symptoms and pains before working at the post office. They developed (as far as I can tell) naturally over time. I first noticed my joint pain when I tried taking up playing the electric bass but couldn't fret right because of the shifting in my knuckles.. As far as I can tell its some kind of genetic disorder so I was hoping to more closely pinpoint the cause or maybe exact name of it since I have no insurance and not much money to spend on a doctor.


Thank you for your response

[cali54]

Working in a post office doing excessive hand and arm motion can cause anyone of shoulder arm or hand pain and you just have to see a doctor that your work should refer you to.  My brother worked there for years and ended up with ulnar surgery at elbow, so did I.  Don't let it go, it can make things worse