Last night I was belting away at a tune (as you do) when I felt a little bit of a click or something in the wrist of my bowing hand. Anyway, I ignored it for a while but when i finished up I began to feel a kind of a throb in my wrist. The throb eventually went away but every time I move my wrist in a bow-ey type way it begins to hurt again. I asked my mum (who is a nurse) and she said it should be alright after a while, just to give it a chance.
Has this ever happened to any of the other fiddlers on this site, and what did ye do? All suggestions welcome as i can hardly stay away from playing for a few hours, never mind a few days!
I had a similar experience. Playing and feeling a slight crunch.
Next day very painful wrist. Had X-rays nothing showed.
Had chiropractic adjustments, helped a little. Was in a wrist brace for almost a year, didn't help. Was totally fed up with it all and removed the brace. One day I accidently hit it with a five pound hammer (long story) acutally heard it crunch. The pain was excruciating. I said some words I didn't even know knew, three days later it was 100% fine. Guess it was just a minor dislocation that I "fixed" OUCH OUCH OUCH that brought back some memories.
I know that all sounds pretty humourous but please don't injure yourself further. Take it easy and if the pain persists have it looked at. I have a friend that is a professional violinist who keeps a large bowl of ice in her practice room so she can ice down periodically throughout her practice sessions. Of course she plays for four or five hours at a time.
Best of Luck
Mary
As someone else who's having wrist issues, I'm literally feeling your pain (though mine is guitar pain, not fiddle pain). Hang in there and follow the good session doctors' advice. Take it easy and take it seriously or else it may be a good while before you're fit as your fiddle again (boo, hiss... I'm sorry, I couldn't resist).
I suffer from carpal tunnel in both wrists, and have already had the right side worked on, so I literally feel your pain. I play guitar, work is computer-based, and when I'm not playing, I'm doing other hand-intensive activites. A train wreck looking for a place to happen.
First bit of advice -- don't push so hard... That said, don't stop -- but play within your level of comfort. If things start not feeling "right," stop. Give it a couple of days -- not just overnight -- before you start in again.
Before, during, and after playing, massage and stretch the wrists. Try these:
- Holding your affected wrist at the sides of the wrist (at the base of the hand, on the sides), roll the wrist/arm in your other hand. This action should serve to compress the wrist slightly at the sides, thus opening the bottom of the wrist where the ligament impinges the nerves (which usually is the cause of the discomfort).
- Massage the ball of your hand, gently (gently now) working from the hand into the wrist. Object here is to stimulate circluation and muscles, not to press into the wrist... Go easy.
- Put hands together, as if praying (palm to palm, fingers flat against the other) and moves arms down so they're parallel with the floor. This stretches out the wrist opening...again, go easily. Compliment by placing hands top-to-top (pointed down), and lift so the forearms are parallel with the floor -- or to a point of comfort. Take care with this latter one, as this position will also aggrivate carpal tunnel symptoms. But, when done for short period, it also helps to stretch out muscle groups further up the arm which are important for wrist control.
You can also individually stretch out your wrists and flex the hands, as needed. Bottom line, if things start to hurt or don't "feel right, stop. If things continue to not "feel right," see a doctor -- because as carpal tunnel issues progress, you will damage the nerve. Nerves don't regrow well (at all), so you'll reach a point where when you start doing damage, that's it. I saw a lady in Montgomery, Alabama, who had carpal tunnel in both wrists so bad that her hands were contorted...yet she would not seek medical help (and likely had so much nerve damage she couldn't effectively use her hands).
Yep, I've got that tee shirt, too. As has been mentioned by others, chiropractic has been a great help. Vitamin I, as in ibuprofen, helps as well if you need to play and can't lay off it. I broke my right wrist this past March, so I now have that along with the arthritis. Getting old ain't for sissies!
That's an ouch! Of course, dummy me, I smacked the tip of my left index finger with a hammer last weekend. Good news is that it was a rubber-headed hammer, and it was a glancing blow. Still smarts when I play guitar, though!
OUCH!!
OUCH!!
Last night I was belting away at a tune (as you do) when I felt a little bit of a click or something in the wrist of my bowing hand. Anyway, I ignored it for a while but when i finished up I began to feel a kind of a throb in my wrist. The throb eventually went away but every time I move my wrist in a bow-ey type way it begins to hurt again. I asked my mum (who is a nurse) and she said it should be alright after a while, just to give it a chance.
Has this ever happened to any of the other fiddlers on this site, and what did ye do? All suggestions welcome as i can hardly stay away from playing for a few hours, never mind a few days!
# Posted on August 17th 2006 by galway-fiddle
Could be worse, you could be suffering from Guitar Nipple!
Or Fiddler's neck, Cellist's chest, Flautist's chin, Clarinetist's cheilitis, Garrod's pads, Drummer's digit, Pianist Paronychia, Harpist Subungual Haemorrhage, etc
http://www.ahsl.arizona.edu/about/ahslexhibits/musicianmedicalmaladies/maladies.cfm
Perhaps you should read this:
“The Secret to the Fiddler's Loose Wrist”
http://fiddleguru.com/Subscribers/bowgrip.html
# Posted on August 17th 2006 by Ptarmigan
Re: OUCH!!
Happens all the time to me... a bit of carpel tunnel. My chiropractor usually takes care of it with regular adjustments, and ultrasound if necessary.
# Posted on August 17th 2006 by irishfiddler32
Re: OUCH!!
Hi Galway-fiddle
I had a similar experience. Playing and feeling a slight crunch.
Next day very painful wrist. Had X-rays nothing showed.
Had chiropractic adjustments, helped a little. Was in a wrist brace for almost a year, didn't help. Was totally fed up with it all and removed the brace. One day I accidently hit it with a five pound hammer (long story) acutally heard it crunch. The pain was excruciating. I said some words I didn't even know knew, three days later it was 100% fine. Guess it was just a minor dislocation that I "fixed" OUCH OUCH OUCH that brought back some memories.
I know that all sounds pretty humourous but please don't injure yourself further. Take it easy and if the pain persists have it looked at. I have a friend that is a professional violinist who keeps a large bowl of ice in her practice room so she can ice down periodically throughout her practice sessions. Of course she plays for four or five hours at a time.
Best of Luck
Mary
# Posted on August 18th 2006 by Antikhntr
Re: OUCH!!
As someone else who's having wrist issues, I'm literally feeling your pain (though mine is guitar pain, not fiddle pain). Hang in there and follow the good session doctors' advice. Take it easy and take it seriously or else it may be a good while before you're fit as your fiddle again (boo, hiss... I'm sorry, I couldn't resist).
# Posted on August 18th 2006 by Cailin Rua
Re: OUCH!!
I suffer from carpal tunnel in both wrists, and have already had the right side worked on, so I literally feel your pain. I play guitar, work is computer-based, and when I'm not playing, I'm doing other hand-intensive activites. A train wreck looking for a place to happen.
First bit of advice -- don't push so hard... That said, don't stop -- but play within your level of comfort. If things start not feeling "right," stop. Give it a couple of days -- not just overnight -- before you start in again.
Before, during, and after playing, massage and stretch the wrists. Try these:
- Holding your affected wrist at the sides of the wrist (at the base of the hand, on the sides), roll the wrist/arm in your other hand. This action should serve to compress the wrist slightly at the sides, thus opening the bottom of the wrist where the ligament impinges the nerves (which usually is the cause of the discomfort).
- Massage the ball of your hand, gently (gently now) working from the hand into the wrist. Object here is to stimulate circluation and muscles, not to press into the wrist... Go easy.
- Put hands together, as if praying (palm to palm, fingers flat against the other) and moves arms down so they're parallel with the floor. This stretches out the wrist opening...again, go easily. Compliment by placing hands top-to-top (pointed down), and lift so the forearms are parallel with the floor -- or to a point of comfort. Take care with this latter one, as this position will also aggrivate carpal tunnel symptoms. But, when done for short period, it also helps to stretch out muscle groups further up the arm which are important for wrist control.
You can also individually stretch out your wrists and flex the hands, as needed. Bottom line, if things start to hurt or don't "feel right, stop. If things continue to not "feel right," see a doctor -- because as carpal tunnel issues progress, you will damage the nerve. Nerves don't regrow well (at all), so you'll reach a point where when you start doing damage, that's it. I saw a lady in Montgomery, Alabama, who had carpal tunnel in both wrists so bad that her hands were contorted...yet she would not seek medical help (and likely had so much nerve damage she couldn't effectively use her hands).
Good luck!
Paul
# Posted on August 18th 2006 by pn5jn
Re: OUCH!!
Yep, I've got that tee shirt, too. As has been mentioned by others, chiropractic has been a great help. Vitamin I, as in ibuprofen, helps as well if you need to play and can't lay off it. I broke my right wrist this past March, so I now have that along with the arthritis. Getting old ain't for sissies!
# Posted on August 22nd 2006 by ismisepol
Re: OUCH!!
I haven't played a note since August 2nd when I fell on my little finger and snapped it in two just below the knuckle of my left hand.
# Posted on August 22nd 2006 by Phantom Button
Re: OUCH!!
That's an ouch! Of course, dummy me, I smacked the tip of my left index finger with a hammer last weekend. Good news is that it was a rubber-headed hammer, and it was a glancing blow. Still smarts when I play guitar, though!
# Posted on September 15th 2006 by pn5jn