Carpal Tunnel

[Jason001]

Hey guys, some serious shit.
I had a job for a little while where I was running a speed lathe. I used my left hand to hit a lever that popped the chuck open about 2000 times a day. After 3 days of this my ring and pinky finger started going very numb.
I quit the job right away because music is my life and without it I have little to live for other than my wife and three kids.
I couldn't play guitar for awhile ( I was a crabby mofo) and it slowly started to go away. I started to see a chiropractor and things got better. He told me quitting the job is all I needed to do for it to get better. Recently I started to get my routine happening again. Rythmn playing doesn't bother me a bit, but when I start playing lead ( especially fast) my fingers start going numb. This has got me REALLY fucked up.
I have heard of players that can't play anymore because of things like this. If thats the case they might as well dig me a hole.
Have any of you guys ever overcome anything like this?
Thanks

[Brad]

Hey Jason001,

Check it out:
http://homerecording.com/ubb/Forum29/HTML/000560.html

[monty]

Ya...do it.

[Jason001]

Thanks guys.

[Treeline]

Check this thing out.

Depending on how long ago you were there, you may be entitled to get some help with medical expenses. Doesn't hurt to fill out a form, particularly if you need medical care. Part of the intent of the workers' compensation law in every state that I know of, is that the carrier will pay for any (reasonable) medical care arising out of a work related injury. You don't have to define the "injury," just tell them the truth about what happened and let them figure it out.

You may not have carpal tunnel syndrome, by the way, so a diagnosis is important for a lot of reasons. This kind of thing is a repetetive movement injury; there isn't really any single triggering "event", like dropping a casting on your foot.

If you get the stiff arm treatment (so to speak), pick up a phone book and start looking. You may be able to get some help from the state insurance regulators or an attorney without paying in advance. The law usually provides for attorney fee shifting, assuming you do have a covered loss. You don't pay, they do. And if you are barking up the wrong tree, they'll tell you pretty quickly. Just a thought.

[Jason001]

Good idea!
Thanks Treeline.