I posted this at RC.com as well, but I'm looking for all the help I can get, so I figured a posting here would also be good...

Hello! I was climbing last night at the gym, nothing too hard or too crimpy in the 5.9-10d range, and halfway through the night noticed some pain in the index finger of my right hand. I didn't notice one move or fall that started the pain, nor did I ever hear a pop that seems common will a pulley injury. I climbed a bit longer after noticing the pain, went home, and iced.

The pain is primarily from the knuckle closest to the fingertip, or DIP, to the base of the finger. This includes both the DIP and PIP, and the tissue between them. The pain is not felt in the base knuckle, or MCP. The pain is felt entirely on the posterior side of the finger. Applying pressure to the top of the knuckle closest to the hand, or PIP, and the tissue lower on the finger causes mild discomfort. The pain is greatest when trying to bend the finger, increasing as I close the finger towards my palm, and exists mostly in the PIP and tissue between the PIP and the DIP. Open handing a grip, and even crimping doesn't cause any significant pain. Only bending the finger at a less than 90 degree angle, and towards the palm causes great discomfort.

Can anyone help me diagnose this injury? Also, any advice on what to do about it would be appreciated.

Thanks.

I can't help you diagnose, but on occasion I get pain in the DIP on my middle and ring fingers. Usually I wiggle them sideways to pop them (back in place?), which is probably a bad thing to do, but it feels better afterward.

When I feel pain, I just go easy or stop if it is serious enough.

Sounds to me like you just over used it a bit and it is sore. My middle fingers tend to get like that after climbing too hard or too much. Give it a chance to rest for a week or so and it should be fine.

Sounds to me like you are masturbating too much. Jerk off less and you'll be fine. You could also try switching hands.

There are two things that keep me from climbing as hard as I want to. One is my lack of boldness. Number two is finger injuries.

My first major finger injury was from climbing too often and too hard. As I kept climbing on it the pain went all the way down into my wrist. That one took about a year to heal with some time off. I was not very good about taking time off though.

My second injury was on of those instant popping things. It was similar in severity to the overuse injury. Since I was smarter about taking time off, it healed quicker, but still took many months. Recently it has flared up again due to some intense bouldering sessions, so I guess more time off may be needed.

My advise is to take time off before you really ruin your injury. If it starts to feel good, then wait some more and then start back in with climbing w/o crimpers. My solution was offwidth, but I have learned that climbing at all you will find a way to load that finger up and hinder the healing process.

One week is not nearly enough time off. Be smart now or pay later.