Krakit
Rzzzzz!
Mr. Moon said:Carl,
Good suggestions! BTW: I love your sig file!
"Only people who realize that they do not know everything take the time and effort to find things out"
-mr moon
Thanks and kudos on that John K. avatar.
Carl
Thanks and kudos on that John K. avatar.
Carl
R
Ritual
New member
Injury issues
I seem to be susceptable to various injuries over the years. A couple years back I was on a camping trip when I hit my wrist with an axe and severed thumb tendons. (picture at http://audiodev.tripod.com/hand.htm .) I was WAY in the north woods of the Adirondack mountains and woke up in intensive care of Saranac Lake hospital with all kinds of tubes coming out of me (complications.) The doc they called in was a REAL prick. This guy had quite negative intrapersonal skills - I was warned about him by the nurses. The guy was a prick but as a hand specialist he was a superb surgeon. I guess they get a lot of lumberjack injuries up there. He did a bang up job on my tendons. When I thanked him explaining I'd be happy to play again he commented that he played himself. I've meant to send him a recording of me playing thanking him for fixing my thumb. Anyway... the thing never bothered me for a little more than two years. That is... until recently. Recently I've picked up bass (and drums) and man... it's fucked up. I don't know what to do about it. As I've taken to recording myself I've found myself locked into playing repetitive patterns away from what I usually comfortably jam along with. I don't know what to do about this. The boxers fracture on my right hand pinky and ring phlanges have never bothered me too much but damn.... I find myself REALLY pushing it to play certain things. I always had the "work through the pain and some day it will be better" mentality but reading this thread now I'm not so sure thats the best approach.
One more thing.... the drums. I find that unless I rest my right heel on the bass pedal my right hip gives out (?!?!?!.) It started shortly after I got the drum kit in December when I went on a long walk in the woods in the snow. My hips have NEVER bothered me (knees are another story) so I'm really surprised. Over a month after I started addressing the issue (resting heel when I play) it still is noticable 100% of the time. My hip gets a 'cold' feeling like the blood has stopped flowing through it at times.
I don't know what the point of this whole message is... other than my body is starting to hurt in ways I never imagined from playing instruments. For the first time in my life I find myself unable to play what I want due to physical limitations. Life's a bitch. I just hope I can manage to record some of the things I want before my various issues prove too much.
I seem to be susceptable to various injuries over the years. A couple years back I was on a camping trip when I hit my wrist with an axe and severed thumb tendons. (picture at http://audiodev.tripod.com/hand.htm .) I was WAY in the north woods of the Adirondack mountains and woke up in intensive care of Saranac Lake hospital with all kinds of tubes coming out of me (complications.) The doc they called in was a REAL prick. This guy had quite negative intrapersonal skills - I was warned about him by the nurses. The guy was a prick but as a hand specialist he was a superb surgeon. I guess they get a lot of lumberjack injuries up there. He did a bang up job on my tendons. When I thanked him explaining I'd be happy to play again he commented that he played himself. I've meant to send him a recording of me playing thanking him for fixing my thumb. Anyway... the thing never bothered me for a little more than two years. That is... until recently. Recently I've picked up bass (and drums) and man... it's fucked up. I don't know what to do about it. As I've taken to recording myself I've found myself locked into playing repetitive patterns away from what I usually comfortably jam along with. I don't know what to do about this. The boxers fracture on my right hand pinky and ring phlanges have never bothered me too much but damn.... I find myself REALLY pushing it to play certain things. I always had the "work through the pain and some day it will be better" mentality but reading this thread now I'm not so sure thats the best approach.
One more thing.... the drums. I find that unless I rest my right heel on the bass pedal my right hip gives out (?!?!?!.) It started shortly after I got the drum kit in December when I went on a long walk in the woods in the snow. My hips have NEVER bothered me (knees are another story) so I'm really surprised. Over a month after I started addressing the issue (resting heel when I play) it still is noticable 100% of the time. My hip gets a 'cold' feeling like the blood has stopped flowing through it at times.
I don't know what the point of this whole message is... other than my body is starting to hurt in ways I never imagined from playing instruments. For the first time in my life I find myself unable to play what I want due to physical limitations. Life's a bitch. I just hope I can manage to record some of the things I want before my various issues prove too much.
Scottgman
Legend in Own Mind
Several months ago I was recording a song I had written. It has a fairly painful chord change going from a 1st position Bmin bar chord to a Emin bar chord like this:
e|--2----3----
B|--3----5----
G|--4----4----
D|--4----2----
A|--2---------
E|------------
It's kind of a painful stretch. Anyway, after doing way too many takes of this song without a break my hand started cramping and I was feeling some pain. I took a long break and then finished tracking the guitar. I learned a big lesson that day.
The muscles/tendons between my left hand thumb and index finger were on fire! I definitely pulled/tore/aggravated something. It hurt (bad) for a month. It was kind of scary. I basically had to quit playing guitar for that month. The pain finally went away and I'm back to normal. But I won't make that mistake again. If you are feeling pain-- STOP PLAYING and let your hand(s) rest and heal.
Now, I will only play that song once per rehearsal (and I stretch/warm-up before playing anything). If the band wants to try it again... they have to wait until the next rehearsal!
e|--2----3----
B|--3----5----
G|--4----4----
D|--4----2----
A|--2---------
E|------------
It's kind of a painful stretch. Anyway, after doing way too many takes of this song without a break my hand started cramping and I was feeling some pain. I took a long break and then finished tracking the guitar. I learned a big lesson that day.
The muscles/tendons between my left hand thumb and index finger were on fire! I definitely pulled/tore/aggravated something. It hurt (bad) for a month. It was kind of scary. I basically had to quit playing guitar for that month. The pain finally went away and I'm back to normal. But I won't make that mistake again. If you are feeling pain-- STOP PLAYING and let your hand(s) rest and heal.
Now, I will only play that song once per rehearsal (and I stretch/warm-up before playing anything). If the band wants to try it again... they have to wait until the next rehearsal!
jfrog
uber-nerd
Our society with it's "work out, get fit" mentality has preached the mantra "no pain, no gain" for so long it's easy to think that tendonitis is something you can just play through.
That is definitely not the case!
I developed carpal tunnel/tendonitis from computer usage 11 1/2 years ago...it didn't occur until we moved to windows-based software - the mouse-clicking did me in. It finally got so bad that I had to stop playing guitar, golf, and a bunch of other stuff.
It's been a long process getting better...I still feel it if I overwork on the computer. Fortunately, once again I can play guitar as much as I want.
Things that help:
1. Ice. Tendonitis is an inflammation of the tendons, and ice works fast and effectively. I used to ice my wrists after playing guitar (I've now gotten to the point I don't have to)
2. Stretching. A physical therapist showd me how to stretch my rib cage area (the thorasic region, to you medical types) to overcome the affects of bad posture. This allowed for better circulation down my arms.
3. Muscle tone. The year and a half that I stopped playing guitar, my left wrist, (which wasn't as bad as my right wrist) continued to plague me. When my right wrist got good enough to play again, the problems in my left wrist went away...apparently from redeveloping the muscle tone.
And, the hard one:
4. Time.
Being debilitated by a computer injury definitely makes you feel like a wuss, but suck up you pride and treat it like an injury, and you'll put it behind you.
JR
That is definitely not the case!
I developed carpal tunnel/tendonitis from computer usage 11 1/2 years ago...it didn't occur until we moved to windows-based software - the mouse-clicking did me in. It finally got so bad that I had to stop playing guitar, golf, and a bunch of other stuff.
It's been a long process getting better...I still feel it if I overwork on the computer. Fortunately, once again I can play guitar as much as I want.
Things that help:
1. Ice. Tendonitis is an inflammation of the tendons, and ice works fast and effectively. I used to ice my wrists after playing guitar (I've now gotten to the point I don't have to)
2. Stretching. A physical therapist showd me how to stretch my rib cage area (the thorasic region, to you medical types) to overcome the affects of bad posture. This allowed for better circulation down my arms.
3. Muscle tone. The year and a half that I stopped playing guitar, my left wrist, (which wasn't as bad as my right wrist) continued to plague me. When my right wrist got good enough to play again, the problems in my left wrist went away...apparently from redeveloping the muscle tone.
And, the hard one:
4. Time.
Being debilitated by a computer injury definitely makes you feel like a wuss, but suck up you pride and treat it like an injury, and you'll put it behind you.
JR
R
rapedbyape
New member
R
Ritual
New member
rapedbyape said:
There's definitely a bass player joke there somewhere.
But seriously... that's amazing. I piss and moan about this and that.... I always think I'm such a tool when I see people much "worse off" than myself coping with life much better than I am. Not to be grotesque... but I wish they had a pic of the guy's 'hands.' It said he has a thumb and pinky on one hand but still I wonder how he manages. I tried the link to the Angry Amputees home page but its not up. I'm interested in hearing their music. Maybe I can find something somewhere out there.
R
rapedbyape
New member
They're just really boring poppy punk, from what I remember.
M
Mike Walsh
New member
Here is an easy way to take some load off your wrists that worked for me as prescribed by my doctor.
Buy some wrist supports from you local sports store and wear them at night time. I had developed a BAD case of tendonitous and this was the only thing I did and still do today that worked flawlessly.
Sleeping is the most practical time to take all the load off your wrist. Put on the supports, go to bed and 8 hours later your wrists are 100% again.
Within a week I noticed a huge difference and it was all I was doing.
I agree with the stretching and light warm ups.
Buy some wrist supports from you local sports store and wear them at night time. I had developed a BAD case of tendonitous and this was the only thing I did and still do today that worked flawlessly.
Sleeping is the most practical time to take all the load off your wrist. Put on the supports, go to bed and 8 hours later your wrists are 100% again.
Within a week I noticed a huge difference and it was all I was doing.
I agree with the stretching and light warm ups.
blackscot
New member
Wow, I'm amazed by this thread. Here I thought I was the only one. I've got 46 years of various use and abuse, both music related and otherwise. Several injuries along the way, nothing very serious but they all add up. Also been pickin' since I was 14. For past several years have creeping arthritis in my hands, mostly around the wrists and across the back (fingers not as bad yet). Also played drums for a few years as a teenager, quit for many years, then picked up an electronic set a couple years back. Playing that at this stage quickly got me hurting so I sold it after about a year. I will however be hanging on for dear life to my Martin DM and Guild 12-string, and will be buried holding my Strat. 'Til then, I plan on cramming in as much playing as I can before I turn into a quivering mush of jelly.
jfrog
uber-nerd
Ritual said:
this is off topic, but it reminds me of an old saying:
"Once I wept for I had no shoes.
Then I met a man with no feet...
so I took his shoes. I mean, it wasn't as if he was going to need them."
Then I met a man with no feet...
so I took his shoes. I mean, it wasn't as if he was going to need them."