Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain I was in the recording studio earlier this week, and when we were done recording (after about 3 hours) i felt some pain in my left wrist. a sore kind of pain. should i be worried? (im 20 years old) whats the correct way of holding and playing the guitar while sitting down? or standing up, for that matter? thanks for all your help. Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain It is possible that you are holding the guitar wrongly, but after 3 hours I think anyone would be aching a little! P Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain Keep your wrist as strait as possible. That will help. For a while it will help if you can play a classical guitar instead of steel string. Especially while practicing. I have a friend who has been playing and teaching for about 40 years and he can't play electric all the time like he used to. All of his practicing is done on classical. He says that classical builds up what steel strings tear up. Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain Being at a recording Studio is a tense experience,all the preparing for the session and doing many takes you were probably holding the Guitar wrong and not realizing it.I would try to practice more in the sitting position. Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain I was at a workshop by Chris Proctor where he addressed a similar question. His answer to this dilemma was the most unique I have heard yet. When starting intermediate students on lessens, he tells them to just sit with their guitar for a while. Don't play it, just sit in playing position. Sit for an hour and a half. Take note of any soreness, or muscles that don't seem right. Then adjust. Do it again until nothing hurts. I realize this sounds like a crazy idea. Most people don't find time to practice that much in a month. (I mean really practice, not just sitting around goofing off on the instrument, or jamming, or gigging). But the concept is sound. I think it is a great way to develop and find the style that best suits you. The key is to find that position and stick with it. repeat it. never waver from it. Look at any classically trained professional violinist, trombonist, pianist, or singer. These are people who have spent years of their lives developing their technique. A big part of that is the way they hold their instrument. You may scoff at the idea of "classically trained", but they are professionals for a reason. One of those reasons is that they didn't destroy their tendons early on in their careers. You are young, keep working on it. Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain The past few days I have been playing some songs on my guitar with some pretty wide stretches on the fretboard (Dave Matthews Songs - Satellite, Tripping Billies, etc) and starting yesterday, when i was brushing my teeth my thumb started throbbing in pain. The pain was right at the joint where the thumb bone connects to the wrist. It hurt me so much I had to stop and switch the toothbrush to my other hand (my right hand - it is my left hand that hurts). I couldnt even pump gas with my left hand. Does anyone know what this could be and how can i prevent this from happening? I really appreciate it Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain Hi, Ian. I've been struggling with some very wide stretches on fingerstyle pieces in the last few weeks. I haven't had any pains such as you describe, but I am very careful to go through a 10-15 minute warm-up and stretching routine before I try the hard parts. If you're not warming and stretching the entire hand you're a high risk for CTS or other nerve/tendon problems. You may also be over-exercising those positions. With something like a new chord shape it's best to get used to it in small doses and build up the strength in the relevant muscles and tendons. If you're hammering those tunes for 15-20 minutes at a time it's like trying to run 10 miles when you're out of shape -- guaranteed those muscles and joints will hurt for days afterward. Another thing is that we naturally tense up and try too hard when we're doing something difficult. You may be squeezing the strings harder than necessary. It helps to experiment to see how little pressure you can exert and still get a clean-sounding chord. This will also make chord changes faster since your hand will be more relaxed. Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain I'm sure you'll get good advice from lots of folks about this. I'll contribute my two cents worth though I'm not an expert in the subject. My own experience suggests at least the following sorts of gentle stretches which are held for 5-30 seconds depending on your goals. Holding the stretch is important, as it allows the tissue to react and adjust (in a word, stretch *heh-heh*). 1. slow gentle stretching of wrists (flexion and extension; e.g. with left arm out straight, use right hand to gently press left hand back to stretch inner forearm -- and then to gently press left hand down, to stretch outer forarm) 2. alternate slow gentle stretching of fingers by spreading wide, and then gently making a closed fist 3. gentle repeated rotation of thumb (out, then inward to reach across palm and touch just below pinkie) 4. save the pieces with the challenging fingering for when you are quite warmed up by playing the easier pieces you are familiar with. i.e. don't start out with the hard stuff, thinking you are "fresh" and it's a good time to tackle it. The following is a quote from http://www.johnson-inst.com/injuries.htm where the instrument seems to be violins and violas, but the principles seem to be relevant to guitar too, IMHO. "I feel that musicians should learn to regard playing their instrument as a physical activity. When asked about warmup habits, people often report that they don't warm up at all, or consider simply playing scales or a few slow pieces as enough of a warmup. One plays a musical instrument with the entire body. A good warmup that includes the neck, arms, shoulders, upper and lower back, at very least, is important to prevent overuse injuries. Exercises might include slow rolling of the head, both clock and counter-clockwise, slow shoulder shrugs and rolls, side bends, and torso twists. In general, practice sessions should be limited to about 45 minutes, with no less than a five-minute break to relax and shake out muscles. (One may continue to practice for several hours in this fashion.) Difficult passages or those that require awkward fingering should be practiced in small, short segments of not more than five minutes each. Go back and practice something else and then return to the difficult segment. This will help avoid overuse injuries." Lastly, I think I had a similar pain one time, not as bad though, and I believe it came from pressing too hard with my thumb, as I tried to reach those new fingerings. Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain My left thumb frequently aches , and it seems like muscle pain . I put it down to : 1) folding my thumb 'over' the fretboard for D 's and partial barre chords. 2) pressing too hard , or rather , gripping too hard. I find myself doing this without realising it - especially if the piece is one I don't do frequently, and I'm trying to concentrate. 3) bad hand positioning . specifically , not placing my thumb at the right position on the back of the fretboard , and my hand angle. 4) bad posture , I tend to slump my head both to hear what I'm playing better, and to concentrate on my fingering ( yes I'm bad enough that I *do* need to watch what I'm doing ! ) I guess that I don't do any warm ups either , which I really should make a point of doing.... I shall try to correct this , and the other faults ! Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain I don't know how old you are Ian and I'm not a Doctor and I don't play one on television but my guess is you are suffering from arthritis of the thumb basil joint. I have this affliction too and in my case I believe it was brought on by excessive gripping in the work I have done and also my gutiar playing. I have found that guitars that have a slightly thicker neck profile are much more comfortable to my left hand than the newer thin profile necks. I guess there is a surgery to correct this degenerative ailment but it requires replacing the joint which I was afraid would stiffen my hand so I would not be able to play anymore. There is quite an extensive website that tells all about hand ailments and specifically Thumb Basil Joint Arthritis. I don't have the URL but someone in the newsgroup probably does. Hope this helps you some. Newsgroups: rec.music.makers.guitar.acoustic Subject: Wrist pain Well ... it could be basal joint arthritis. Or it could be digital tendinitis. Or tenosynovitis. Or gout. Or De Quervain's Syndrome. Or partial metacarpophalangeal dislocation. Or a bacterial infection of the tendon sheath. It might even be the dreaded "gamekeeper's thumb". Or it could just be temporary inflammation and irritation due to all the wide stretches you said you've been doing. I remember years ago when I first got a Nintendo to hook up to the TV, one of my kids and I played Asteroids for about 6 hours straight. The next day I could barely move my thumb (which I had used on the "Fire" button), and I had sharp pains when trying to write or turn doorknobs. Take care to do some stretching and warmup before playing big stretches, and don't engage in "marathon" sessions trying to play difficult passages. Rest your thumb over the next few days and see if it returns to normal. If not, then consider seeking professional advice.