Hello WastingAway,

Hang in there buddy. I've had Hirayama's for about 17 years now. It started when I was 15 and I went to all the top neurologists in New York. They gave me every test imaginable and then gave me & my Mom blank stares and the obscene bill. No one knew it was Hirayama's. I only know that's what it is now because there is a fair bit of data on the web recently.

I have it in my right hand. I'm glad to hear your condition has improved. Even if it's only a little bit, that is incredible. I've been stable for at least 12 years now. It may have gotten worse recently after moving and a lot of heavy lifting, but I'm not sure yet because it periodically gets weaker than normal and then VERY SLOWLY returns to... Normal weakness. LOL. I can't write for very long and I have to hold a pen in a very strange way. My hand is pretty weak. I can hold a light bag of groceries for about 3 blocks before I have to switch hands and give my right a rest. Eating is kind of difficult. When cutting food (like steak), I have to hold a knife like I'm gonna stab somebody "Phycho" style and it makes me look like I have no manners. Or like I'm a 5 year old.
I can however mouse and work on the computer for as long as anyone else. =) Thank God for the modern age! PSP or any other kind of 6+ button controller gaming is out for me which reaaaallly sucks. But thankfully Nintendo Wii is out there. =p

I can bend my fingers and make a fist, but my index & pinky dont bend all the way in. Some things I've tried which have a positive result include accupuncture and shiatsu deep tissue massage. Sadly, the results only last a day perhaps and then it's back to "normal". I always wonder if constant massage will help, but I can never afford it.

My hand gets a hell of a lot weaker in the cold to the point of almost being unusable. But then again, my left hand gets weaker in the cold too, so I guess it's just an exagerrated malaise in my right.

I lift weights and work out so that at least the rest of me is strong. I've found that my atrophy actually extends to my right tricep as well, but not enough to be noticable. The tricep is still strong enough for me to work it out more than the other to acheive some kind of symetry.
I've found that though the disease only affects my right hand and forearm, there are many smaller things wrong with me that are all on the right side. For example, my right shoulder used to dislocate A LOT and I had to have surgery to keep it in the socket (it popped out painfully during sneezes and once while I was getting a blowjob - Not Cool!). I also injured my right ankle and it's been funky ever since. So while these things aren't technically connected to the Hirayama disease, I wonder sometimes if my left brain just hates itself! Or at least the side of the body it's responsible for.

All in all it hasn't really gotten in the way of my daily life, but you can get used to a lot of things I suppose. The ONE thing I would give up 10 years of my life for is to be able to shake someone's hand with a good firm grip. As it stands, I have to shake with both hands (so at least I can apply pressure with my left) and many people notice right away that something is wrong wit my right and I lose a lot of first impression points. Especially since nothing seems wrong until that moment. The look in people's eyes when they realize always cuts me to the core. That is the one thing I've never gotten used to...

So I periodically check on Google to see if some brilliant surgeon has figured out some breakthrough procedure so that I can give a good firm handshake again.

I often wonder why God gave me this affliction. I was once friends with a really great girl who suffered in her youth from polio which made her left leg weak. I forced her to walk with me everyday for years until her leg became strong and her limp turned into the sexiest hip-swaying strut. When we started, she could only muster 4 blocks. Now she does 3-4 miles no problem. When I was friends with her, it seemed to give my disability a purpose. She couldn't pull the "you don't understand" card on me and thus I was able to help her strengthen. Now we are no longer friends and I'm back to having no reason for this thing...

Anyway, that's been my experience for what it's worth.
If you have any questions (as weird or mundane as you want), feel free to email me. I think it is ultra-cool that you got surgery and have physical therapists helping you regain your strength - and that your doctors gave you some sort of solution. Rock on Brother. Rock on.