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Nerve mobility Gentle ~3 min

Median nerve glide

Encourage healthy median nerve mobility with a slow sequence of wrist and finger positions. Never push into symptoms.

Equipment: No special equipment

Soft fist, thumb tucked.

Ready when you are

We'll guide you through 7 short steps — about 39 seconds of guided motion. Pause or stop anytime — nothing is uploaded.

Have ready: No special equipment

Contraindications & stop if…

When not to do this

  • Active nerve injury without clinician clearance
  • Post-surgical nerve repair before clearance

Stop if

  • Increased tingling, numbness, or burning
  • Symptoms travel further up the arm
  • Sharp wrist pain
How does the hand feel right now?
No painWorst pain

Prefer a quick pacing gate before the timer? Use full guided session — it asks for pain, stiffness, and fatigue in a few taps first (education only, not clearance).

Guided session

Full-screen steps and timer below — same exercise. For vertical reel mode, use the clapper icon next to Save at the top of the page.

Why it helps

Nerves need to glide through tissue. Gentle, non-painful glides may help with sensitivity and stiffness around the median nerve pathway.

What it should feel like

A light stretch along the forearm and palm. Stop the moment tingling or numbness increases.

Target area

Wrist, forearm, fingers

Stop if you notice

  • Increased tingling, numbness, or burning
  • Symptoms travel further up the arm
  • Sharp wrist pain

Get clearance first if

  • Active nerve injury without clinician clearance
  • Post-surgical nerve repair before clearance

Watch a curated demo

Patient education · Median nerve glide
Watch on YouTube

Your practice loop

Pause where you want, then tap A for where the loop starts and B for where it ends. Turn Autoloop off anytime — your A/B times stay saved for this video.

Now 0:00 · Loop 0:00 → end of video

Full video. Native YouTube controls stay in the player frame.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Stretches & Exercises - Ask Doctor Jo · AskDoctorJo · verified 2026-04-22Patient education only — not a replacement for advice from your clinician.

More demos & readings (editorial catalog)

Extra YouTube, PDF, and hospital links gathered for this exercise cluster. The top embed above remains the oEmbed-verified pick when present; treat these as adjacent education — confirm fit with your clinician.

Typical catalog dose: 5 to 10 repetitions, 1 to 3 times daily, unless otherwise prescribed.

Precautions (catalog)

  • Do not force through pain.
  • Follow post-op restrictions if applicable.

  • Best 5 Hand, Wrist & Forearm exercises for 70+ (No Pain)

    Bob & Brad · 2026-02-28

    Includes supination and pronation in a gentle mobility sequence.

    Useful for older adults or low-pain mobility work.

    Catalog ids: pronation_supination, wrist_stretching

  • Hand exercises for strength and mobility

    Unknown / YouTube · 2020-02-04

    Covers hand and wrist range of motion exercises for stiffness and mobility.

    Useful for gentle home mobility.

    Catalog ids: wrist_range_of_motion, wrist_stretching

  • Occupational Therapy Hand Exercises

    Unknown / YouTube · 2015-09-29

    Includes tendon gliding and forearm rotation work that may accompany nerve-mobility programs.

    Useful as related upper-limb rehab content.

    Catalog ids: nerve_glides, pronation_supination, wrist_range_of_motion

  • Wrist and Finger Mobility Exercises for Stiffness: Both Hands

    Virtual Hand Care · 2024-05-02

    Virtual Hand Care guided mobility session — adjunct education alongside clinician-directed median nerve glides.

    Gentle wrist and finger warm-up.

    Catalog ids: median_nerve_glide, tendon_glide_sequence

  • 16 Types of Nerve Gliding and Flossing Exercises

    Verywell Health · 2020-03-03

    Explains median nerve gliding with step-by-step upper-extremity positioning.

    Useful for nerve mobility education.

    Catalog ids: median_nerve_glide

    Open resource

  • Hand therapy exercise videos

    South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust · 2022-01-13

    Includes ulnar nerve gliding, median nerve gliding, and radial nerve gliding exercises.

    Best when nerve-specific glides are prescribed.

    Catalog ids: nerve_glides

    Open resource

  • Occupational Therapy Hand Exercises: Home Program

    Medbridge · 2026-03-01

    Contains tendon glide positions as part of a hand mobility home program.

    Useful for structured therapy programs and progression planning.

    Catalog ids: tendon_glide_sequence

    Open resource

  • Simple Nerve Gliding Exercises for Pain Relief and Better Mobility

    The Aeon Clinic · 2025-01-29

    Includes median nerve glide movement patterns and progression.

    Helpful for guided nerve flossing.

    Catalog ids: median_nerve_glide

    Open resource

Catalog fact-check source list

Education sources

HandTherapy.app summarizes common home-program elements used in hand therapy and surgery recovery education. These links are for learning — they do not replace your clinician's instructions.

Explainer

How to do it well

Goal, setup, dose, and the things therapists most often have to repeat. This is education — not a replacement for your clinician's plan.

Before you start

  • Sit upright with your shoulder relaxed.
  • Stop immediately if tingling or numbness increases.
  • Move slowly — this is not a stretch contest.

Today's dose

Reps
5
Sets
1
Hold
2s
Sessions / day
2
Rest
45s
Pain ceiling
2/10

Common mistakes

  • Pushing into tingling instead of backing off
  • Adding the thumb stretch when wrist already feels pinchy
  • Doing it too many times per day — nerves don't like overuse

Easier version

  • Skip the final thumb stretch
  • Reduce to 3 reps and 1 session per day
  • Stop at the wrist-extension step if symptoms appear

How did this feel?

One tap. Saved as a question for your next visit when relevant — never auto-shared.

Jump toSession playerWhy & safetyForm cues & doseKeep going
Continue your rehab

What to do next — not a dead end

Suggestions use shared goals, tags, and difficulty — not your medical record. Always defer to your clinician’s plan after surgery or a flare.

Estimated time

~3 min this exercise

Add a second exercise below for a fuller block.

Equipment

None required — bodyweight / table surface only

Pain-level guard

Explainer ceiling: 2/10 — back off before you reach it.

When to stop

Increased tingling, numbness, or burning

Symptoms travel further up the arm

Full stop rules ↑

Common mistake to watch

• Pushing into tingling instead of backing off

More form cues ↓

Education if this matches your situation

Get clearance first if

  • • Active nerve injury without clinician clearance
  • • Post-surgical nerve repair before clearance

Where this fits in a program

How recovery phases work

Commonly paired with

Different goal, shared tags — typical clinical pairings.

Related in the same lane

Same goal or strong tag overlap.

Movement library — same skills, smaller steps

Movements are the building blocks therapists combine into exercises.

Keep momentum without overdoing it

Log on TodayShort on time?Bad hand day?Tune recommendationsGuided sessionSafety hubLearn library
In-session scaling: Easier — Skip the final thumb stretch Full explainer ↓