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The Piedmont Highlander

The Piedmont Highlander

Kelley returns from carpal tunnel injury

Head chef M’Lisa Kelley tells people she lifts heavy pots for a living. While this may only be a joke, 24 years of heavy lifting in the kitchen has resulted in carpal tunnel in both her hands and muscle atrophy in her right hand.

Kelley took a three-week leave of absence to get surgery to address the injuries and has since returned to resume her role as head chef.

“I’ve never really thought about [my hands] too much,” Kelley said. “I might wake up in the morning and they are numb or I might have tingling in my fingers, but I shake it off and continue.”

Kelley said that for years, numbness in her hands and tingling in her fingers were common. It wasn’t until her left hand began to hurt for an extended period of time that she suspected something might be wrong.

“I iced it and took ibuprofen and did that kind of stuff,” Kelley said. “Eventually it subsided but then I went to my doctor and she said I might have carpal tunnel.”

mlisaAccording to the National Institute of Neurological disorders and Stroke, carpal tunnel is a syndrome that is caused when a nerve is pressed or squeezed at the wrist. It can cause burning, tingling or itching numbness in the hands and fingers.

With the sustained lifting and handling of heavy foods and kitchen tools, as well as the overall repetitive motions of cooking, Kelley’s doctor said that it is not uncommon for people in the culinary profession to develop carpal tunnel.

After discovering that she had carpal tunnel, Kelley began going to hand therapy, where she practiced stretches and tested the strength of her hands. She learned that her fingers experienced numbness most of the time and that her left hand was stronger than her right, despite her right hand being dominant. Kelley was also required to wear splints at night.

After a few months, Kelley was sent to see a specialist, who also turned out to also be a hand surgeon. That’s when she found out that she had muscle atrophy in her right hand. The nerve entrapment that caused carpal tunnel in Kelley’s hands was such that it essentially used up the muscle in her right hand, leading to a loss of muscle tissue also known as muscle atrophy.

“He took one look at my hands and he said ‘Ok, you have pretty severe muscle atrophy, and you need to have surgery next week,’” Kelley said.

Kelley asked what her options were if she did not want to pursue surgery. She said the doctor told her that she could do whatever she wanted, but that this was what he recommended.

“There are points in your life where you have to stop and think what the best scenario is,” Kelley said.

Kelley figured that she had three days left in the work week to organize everything before taking a leave of absence for her surgery. When she got home that same day, she received a call from the school telling her that her injuries were so severe, she would not be able to return until she was better.

“Then it was scramble, scramble, scramble,” Kelley said. “A lot of texts and emails, trying to figure everything out.”

Kelley met with the Piper Cafe staff and made a plan to scale back the menu to compensate for her absence.

A week later, Kelley had laparoscopic surgery on her right hand. She was given anesthetics that knocked her out and 30 minutes later she was in recovery. During the first week after her surgery, she had to adjust to relying more heavily on her left hand.

“I had no idea what to expect,” Kelley said. “I’ve never had surgery.”

After the surgery, Kelley now has to be mindful not use her hands in the same way. She has made accommodations, such as using a cart to move heavy pots and asking for help when lifting heavy items.

“You get used to not asking for help because it’s weakness,” Kelley said. “It’s still pretty much an all-boys club in professional kitchens and you don’t want to give those guys another reason to tease you.”

For two weeks after her surgery, Kelley stayed home to recover. Her duties at Piper’s Cafe were taken up by the rest of the kitchen staff.

“For me, not being able to do the things that I’m used to doing drove me nuts,” Kelley said. “I’m very grateful that I have the team that I have and that they worked so hard in my absence.”

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