If you wake up and your arm from about the elbow to your fingers is numb, it means that you have slept in such a way that you have pinched an artery as well as a nerve. If you relax, get moving, and start trying to use your fingers and hand to help reestablish sensation and blood flow, the numbness should go away. If after about an hour of moving it around, your hand and arm below the elbow are equally numb and there is still no sensation or movement, you should seek medical attention at your earliest convenience.
(This answer provided for NATA by the Southern Utah University Athletic Training Education Program.)
If you wake up and your arm from about the elbow to your fingers is
numb, it means that you have slept in such a way that you have
pinched an artery as well as a nerve. If you relax, get moving, and
start trying to use your fingers and hand...
More
National Athletic Trainers’ Association answered:If you wake up and your arm from about the elbow to your fingers is numb, it means that you have slept in such a way that you have pinched an artery as well as a nerve. If you relax, get moving, and start trying to use your fingers and hand to help reestablish sensation and blood flow, the numbness should go away. If after about an hour of moving it around, your hand and arm below the elbow are equally numb and there is still no sensation or movement, you should seek medical attention at your earliest convenience.
