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From time to time, but not really too frequent, I experience slight muscle ache on the top area of my index finger muscle from the i finger knuckle base to the first finger joint.
The ache is like a soft swelling pain that comes and goes but doesn't really persist. It has only happened to me twice since then and I noticed it happens whenever I practice lots of hours on a consistent basis.
Being too sensitive and anxious about it, I fear this could be a sign or symptom of an impending injury? like RSI (repetitive strain injury) or tendinitis?
My question is, does this happen normally to you as well or not?
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to CarloJuan)
I had a big problem with my right hand a couple of years ago.
It swelled up and burned like crazy. I had been practicing alot, so i assumed it was cause by over use. Went to the Orthopedist and they told me i had Tenosynivitis.
Turns out, it was a misdiagnosis. I went to a hand specialist a year later, and it turns out i have Lyme Disease. Its under control now, but i think its a good lesson to realize that, you should go to the doctor and get checked out, dont just assume you know what it is, or what its from. And also, get a second opinion!!
Best of luck, and i hope your hand turns out to be ok. You may just need to take it easy for a while.
I went to a hand specialist a year later, and it turns out i have Lyme Disease.
How did you get Lyme disease? You don't seem like the type who spends a lot time outdoors. I had a really nasty tick bite about eight years ago. Fortunately the pain alerted me to the fact that I had been bitten. The standard treatment must have worked since I've never had any issues related to LD.
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to CarloJuan)
I have a similar problem with my right hand A-finger (same place) which is indeed a form of tendinitis. When you do a move over and over again you run the risk of damaging your tendons. In my case it happened when a dancer practiced fandangos and sevillanas with me for over an hour (an upcoming concert). For practical reasons this kind of rehearsals were planed in front of the dance lessons she was giving that night and to my horror she misused those lessons to practice the same stuff again.... for 2,5 hours. So i ended up playing the same bloody rasgueado for hours and hours and as a result damaged one of my tendons. The very same area you mentioned became swollen and very painful.
It happened over 20 years ago but up to today every time i overtrain my right hand A-finger that weak spot start protesting again, radiating pain with a tendency to swelling.
Best thing would be to limit the amount of time you actually involve that particular finger. Try to visualize the moves in your head in stead, without moving the actual fingers. Visualizing a move in your mind generates the same nerve response as doing it for real and 1 hour of mental visualization can actually beat 1 hour of real playing.
_____________________________
The smaller the object of your focus the bigger the result.
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to CarloJuan)
Use water and ice for your hand when you feel pain or anything... And like 12h of rest, then take it slow and if it still hurts bad give it a bit more time to heal... same recipe!
Hi ToddK, I know this is a very old thread, but i have developed a right shoulder injury recently (had many injuries before) which led me to continue researching my symptoms (started about 11 years ago) with both psychological & physical issues. Suspecting Lyme disease. How did you confirm that you had it at the time?
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to kitarist)
quote:
Konstantin
Thank you Konstantin! i was hoping to get some information from Todd as it is a very complicated disease. I had crazy unexplained muscle & psychological manifestations which forced me go to a shorter scale guitar then chose the lowest action strings and still get injured! playing guitar is only one of many aspects of my life got affected. I was not expecting to find a result when i typed "Lyme" in the Forum search and found one of the best musicians & guitarists here had multiple injuries related to Lyme maybe? I was told recently by a psychiatrist that i might have a chronic Lyme all these years. Thank you for the link Konstantin!
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to CarloJuan)
quote:
ORIGINAL: CarloJuan
From time to time, but not really too frequent, I experience slight muscle ache on the top area of my index finger muscle from the i finger knuckle base to the first finger joint.
The ache is like a soft swelling pain that comes and goes but doesn't really persist. It has only happened to me twice since then and I noticed it happens whenever I practice lots of hours on a consistent basis.
Being too sensitive and anxious about it, I fear this could be a sign or symptom of an impending injury? like RSI (repetitive strain injury) or tendinitis?
My question is, does this happen normally to you as well or not?
I have the same issue if i practice too much in a day or session. It’s in the same exact spot as you but on the fretting hand. I’m doing some hand stretches now after playing which seem to help. I also painfully massage my inner forearms with my opposing thumb while slowly making a fist, it reduces tension in the arm which means it will help relax the tendon.
Thank you Konstantin! i was hoping to get some information from Todd as it is a very complicated disease. I had crazy unexplained muscle & psychological manifestations which forced me go to a shorter scale guitar then chose the lowest action strings and still get injured! playing guitar is only one of many aspects of my life got affected. I was not expecting to find a result when i typed "Lyme" in the Forum search and found one of the best musicians & guitarists here had multiple injuries related to Lyme maybe? I was told recently by a psychiatrist that i might have a chronic Lyme all these years. Thank you for the link Konstantin!
Todd broke his finger some years back and quit music. It was depressing for all of us. I tried to inspire him as my buddy broke 3 fingers on the left hand in a car crash and still plays gigs with me. Last night he took lead guitar on one tune.
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to Ricardo)
Hi Ricardo,
I struggled with tragic life (broken family, war, starvation from international sanctions) guitar & music were the only light made me survive so far but the problem is music(guitar) became in the center of my life. I searched the forum for injuries and Toddk posts resonated with me when it comes to the importance of music in my life. I'm at the junction of quitting music for good and probably not survive too long after that as trauma is winning finally. Recently a psychiatrist suspected a Lyme disease causing my general decline mentally & physically at younger age. Problem with Lyme is very hard to diagnose so i'm doing a research and the weird unexpected thing is i typed "Lyme" and Toddk's post showed in results. I was playing full size guitar then switched to 7/8 then 3/4 now with lowest strings tension with Fishman pickup installed and decided to get out and play more music this summer after three gigs i injured myself again (right shoulder rotator cuff) and cant touch the guitar or work for 6 weeks now. Good for you Ricardo lifting up your buddy's spirit to keep playing music and i wish that Toddk can find his way back to what makes him happy.... he is a very talented musician.
Posts: 1990
Joined: Jul. 12 2004
From: San Francisco
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to Ricardo)
I didn't know that about ToddK. That is really sad to hear. And Florian.....a lot of hard work to walk away from, but life has a way of messing up your dreams.
quote:
ORIGINAL: Ricardo
quote:
ORIGINAL: User55
quote:
Konstantin
Thank you Konstantin! i was hoping to get some information from Todd as it is a very complicated disease. I had crazy unexplained muscle & psychological manifestations which forced me go to a shorter scale guitar then chose the lowest action strings and still get injured! playing guitar is only one of many aspects of my life got affected. I was not expecting to find a result when i typed "Lyme" in the Forum search and found one of the best musicians & guitarists here had multiple injuries related to Lyme maybe? I was told recently by a psychiatrist that i might have a chronic Lyme all these years. Thank you for the link Konstantin!
Todd broke his finger some years back and quit music. It was depressing for all of us. I tried to inspire him as my buddy broke 3 fingers on the left hand in a car crash and still plays gigs with me. Last night he took lead guitar on one tune.
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to mrstwinkle)
quote:
mrstwinkle
Hi mrstwinkle!
Humans including me, are flawed when it comes to being in others shoes. It is easy for some people to just quit music and not easy for others when it became who they are. I was hoping to get some information from Todd about Lyme disease cause i read through some of his posts where he had injuries and pain until he was told that he had Lyme which what i'm suspecting in my case and currently working on getting tested for it but in it is late stage is very tricky and can make your muscle and joint very susceptible to injuries. Thank you!
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to Ricardo)
quote:
ORIGINAL: Ricardo
Todd broke his finger some years back and quit music. It was depressing for all of us. I tried to inspire him as my buddy broke 3 fingers on the left hand in a car crash and still plays gigs with me.
Todd had a gig two months ago and bragged about having “formidable guitar skills.”
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to chester)
quote:
ORIGINAL: chester
Are you stalking him or just a huge fan?
Neither. I knew from years ago that he gigged and did a quick search and found these references. I thought I would post to let other Foro members know who might be concerned about him.
He might have beat me in the Tomatito challenge years back, but this is where I play gigs on the weekend! (And yes it is like the vid shows every Saturday).
8/26/22 Michael K and Todd Kreuzburg on the patio Rams Head Tavern - Annapolis -- Annapolis, MD
8/27/22 Michael K. & Todd Kreuzburg Brian Boru Irish Restaurant and Pub -- Severna Park, MD
I live only 20 min from Todd but have yet to meet in him person all these years. Maybe I’ll have to swing by one of his gigs! He was putting up some flamenco vids during the pandemic a while back, didn’t notice any hand issues, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have them of course!
He might have beat me in the Tomatito challenge years back, but this is where I play gigs on the weekend! (And yes it is like the vid shows every Saturday).
“REAL music” - now that’s hilarious! I can’t wait to share that comment with friends. There is some truth to it, too. It’s great that Todd’s playing again and performing in public. He looks happy to be there.
That’s a slick commercial. You and your FCWE made a cameo appearance.
Posts: 1707
Joined: Jan. 29 2012
From: Seattle, Washington, USA
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to CarloJuan)
It's gotten so I try to remember not to shake hands, especially with men. My hands are always so strained from playing that one good squeeze can send me over the edge, i.e., screw up my hand even more for a while. I'm also a luthier and tightening clamps is really bad for my hands. After tightening a lot of clamps, the next morning my hands are practically cramped shut for a while.
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to CarloJuan)
Agreed Ethan. Luckily nobody really wants to meet me or shake my hand so I'm safe in that department. But at work when testing with the small vacuum hand pump I often overdo it and the repetitive motion can definitely cause problems.
Posts: 2859
Joined: Jan. 30 2007
From: London (the South of it), England
RE: Injury and hand concerns (in reply to davewphx)
quote:
Agreed Ethan. Luckily nobody really wants to meet me or shake my hand so I'm safe in that department. But at work when testing with the small vacuum hand pump I often overdo it and the repetitive motion can definitely cause problems.
I'm not sure if this is meant to be hilarious but it is!!
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