Dawn
Nancy, the fact that the pain is radiating up into the shoulder tells me your positioning and possibly your mouse are exacerbating your problems. About 8-10 years ago, I was diagnosed with carpal tunnel, put on the meds, given the wrist splints and surgery was suggested (I did not comply). Instead, I investigated every single thing I did, what caused the most pain, and when. What I learned was that my "computer posture" and my mouse were the key culprits. You need to have your entire forearms (both!) resting comfortably on the desk so that your arms are at a perfect 90 degree angle and your back, legs, etc., are still in perfect alignment. Then, throw the mouse away, if you use one, and go to as many computer stores as necessary to find a trackball that fits comfortably to your hand. Next, stop work every 30 minutes to stretch/massage your hands, wrists and arms (up to the shoulder). If your employer doesn't like it, tell them to fire you, and get a lawyer! Finally, and this really is important, find a therapist that will retrain you so that you will increase both the strength and flexibility of your wrists. As long as I stick to this, I don't have ANY problems with carpal tunnel anymore, and was even given a nerve study recently that showed I no longer had it! I won't lie to you and say the therapy will not hurt. It will - a lot, but it got the job done for me, along with the other modifications.