Don't bloody well shake my hand!

[lemonyone]

Please help me with a phrase I can use to stop people wanting to shake my hand so I don't resort to swearing at them mid-shake.

I have pretty bad arthritis in my fingers even though I'm only in my 30s. I'm also in a job where there is a lot of grindy handshaking from men. Sometimes I've almost been on my knees in pain from a handshake wanting to yell "get the fuck off me!"

I've tried to prevent handshakes by quickly saying 'I won't, arthritis you know', but I feel like bringing up a medical condition so soon upon meeting feels awkward.

I would love someone to give me an idea of how to prevent a handshake without seeming like a delicate little petal. Or should i just always come clean and have that awkward pause?

Thanks

You could just say "sorry, won't shake your hand, I've got a sore hand" rather than revealing your arthritis directly if that feels less personal?

Or always have something in both your hands (pen and notebook?) so you can't shake - but then clutching them probably won't help your arthritis!

Like pp, I would probably just say 'sorry, I would shake but I have a bad hand' and move on. No need to go into details.