In the beginning carpal tunnel is numbness and tingling.
Often the affected hand goes numb when sleeping. I first noticed it before my pregnancy when gripping the steering wheel of the car.
(this was 2-3 yrs before the pregnancy at age 34).

Pain did not come to me until I was pregnant and it escalated to
alarming levels!

Most carpal tunnel is thought today to be metabolic in origin.
It used to be always thought to be a repetitive strain, but now the thinking is that the strain "reveals" it but doesn't in fact cause it.

When I had my EMGs on my arms in my 5th month, the doctor was concerned that they showed 80% loss of function. This mostly resolved after my son was born. But I still have it to some extent mostly in my right hand today. If I don't strain it somehow, I don't notice it. But if I try to sew with a needle, I have 10 minutes at best before my hand goes numb. I can type and use a computer mouse quite well today, luckily. But lifting something really heavy, or twisting the wrong way, will set off a major pain stab, which then leads to more numbness and tingling unless I wear the brace for a while. Everyone is going to be different.

The same tendon compression in the feet is called tarsal tunnel syndrome. If I tie my athletic shoe laces too tightly, my toes will go numb as well. My carpal tunnel was thought to be due to hypothyroid functions at the time.