Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar etc

[PallarAndersVisa]

Re: Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar

argh, if I couldnt play, I'd go insane! what the hell would i do?!

[slayer]

Re: Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar

I hape some serious Carpal Tunnel syndrome and it is worse in my Left hand, which is my fretboard hand. Sometimes I can`t play for days after only playing for an hour or so-it sucks [img]/images/graemlins/baby.gif[/img] Jack.

[Newc]

Re: Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar

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Matt - I've tried loads of over the counter lotions etc, and the best thing so far is a prescription 'embroilent' cream, which is OK, but it helps, rather than prevents.

I drink loads of water and fruit juice right now, and I don't ever put soap, shampoo, hair gel etc on my hands - I have a helpful wife [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] I've had alergy tests (all negative) and recently finished a course of UVA treatment which definitely helped, but I have a feeling they took me off that a little bit too early....

It's one of those things that while I know there are plenty of people in a far worse situation than myself, it's still difficult to stay positive about it when nothing seems to make it go away....

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Do you use any sort of string lube or string/fretboard cleaner?

[St.James]

Re: Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar

This is a strange one, but about 7 or 8 years ago I lost all strength in my hands. I didn't have the strength to turn a door knob to open it.

Playing guitar was out of the question. When I tried to bend a string my fingers just buckled. Scared the hell out of me.

That went on for several months. I think it happened because I quit smoking. It started about 2 weeks afterwards. I can't be sure of that though.

Now my hands and arms hurt and my finger joints swell, get stiff and sometimes my right hand goes numb. This is from working on the computer all day every day. Plus I was real rough as a kid. I did pushups on my knuckles and finger tips, breaking boards and all that shit. That kind of stuff will catch up with you as you get older.

[neilli]

Re: Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar

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Do you use any sort of string lube or string/fretboard cleaner?

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Nope....

[nateb]

Re: Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar

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Instead of just packing it away,use the time as a maintenance shutdown..That way when you are ready again,so is everything else.

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I also did this... Everything was ready when I recovered.

-Nate

[atomic charvel guy]

Re: Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar

Donovan,
I've had to hang up my spikes, not by choice, and the void is pretty painful, and I have a feeling I could be done playing for the rest of my life. It's a scary thought, but if you have it in you to continue, then do it. I have come to find I don't have the want, or the strength left to climb back into the arena. It kinda sucks, but I look back and see all the time that I did get to play, and that makes me smile once in a while. I hope you get it all back.

[pro-fusion]

Re: Anyone ever been faced with not playing guitar

The CTS surgery doesn't always work, and sometimes it makes things worse. The docs tend to push the surgery on you, since it's the only treatment they can do for you personally. I've come down with CTS *twice* and finally got rid of it permanently without the surgery by doing the following:

--I NEVER play my electrics unamplified. I used to noodle around while watching TV etc, and that's a problem because you almost always hit harder so that you can hear your playing without amplification.

--I use low action, really thin strings, and detune. This was the most important step for me. I currently play the following:

1. seven-string guitars with .008-.038 + .054 tuned down to Eb.

2. Charvel 750xl with .009-.042 tuned down to D.

3. Jackson DK27 baritone guitar with .009-.042 tuned down to Db.

4. ESP Mirage Custom w/Floyd using two or three springs, .009-.042 tuned down to D.

Since I was having problems with the Floyd on the ESP returning to zero pitch with only two springs, yesterday I experimented with putting five springs on it with the same strings and tuning. After a couple of hours of playing it, I felt definite signs of tightness and fatigue in my hands/arms. So that was a real lesson for me--I've gotta keep things slack.

Here's an important first step for you: STOP PLAYING IMMEDIATELY. Do not even pick up the guitar again--AT ALL, FOR ANY REASON--until the pain and numbness have gone away. That may take a month or two, but by playing while your CTS is bad, you will only make the problem worse. I also recommend limiting your touch typing, if at all possible. I spent a couple of months "hunting and pecking" on the keyboard while I was recovering, and it was frustrating but worked.

Once you've recovered, I strongly recommend going down to thin strings and low action. You also need to reconfigure your technique so that you use as soft a touch on the guitar as possible. Do not use a death grip on the guitar with your fingering hand or use your picking hand as a bludgeon. Yeah, that's not very "metal", but so fucking what, if the alternative is never playing again.