pain in thumb joint - carpal tunnel syndrome/thenar atrophy?

[Virgman]

 

Why? Picking speed? That was my consideration some years ago, I know I could pick much faster with my lefty hand, but I could never imagine being able to fret with my right.

 

 

Coordination of both hands.

 

And this is weird. If I play air-guitar I tend to do it lefty without any conscious thought. Not that I go around playing air-guitar but sometimes I hear a cool song and go into air-guitar mode for a few seconds, and it is usually lefty style.

 

That's kind of weird because I have never played guitar left-handed.

[Jasco]

Not that I go around playing air-guitar but...

 

Mmmm Hmmm...

[jeremy_green]

 

Virgman on a Saturday night!

[Virgman]

Wait!

 

That guy is right-handed!

[meganutt7]

Thanks ! I have read about it, it's the powerball thing, right? Looked at their website abnd got confused because they have like dozens of different models

 

Yes, it's a gyroscope that generates a lot of torque and you do hand exercises with it that strengthen your muscles and joints while increasing flexibility and preventinjg further injury.

 

You can really get any of them that you wish. Get the cheapest one and, do yourself a favor, invest in a pack of extra starter cords. Those things disappear and get messed up. A pack of 5 will cost like a buck or two. Certainly worth it.

 

Also, sidenote. This thing is GREAT for a warm up. Instead of practicing the chromatic exercises and whatnot, use this little guy for like 2 minutes in each hand, give yourself a good hand/arm stretch and see how you feel!!!

 

[Santuzzo]

Yes, it's a gyroscope that generates a lot of torque and you do hand exercises with it that strengthen your muscles and joints while increasing flexibility and preventinjg further injury. You can really get any of them that you wish. Get the cheapest one and, do yourself a favor, invest in a pack of extra starter cords. Those things disappear and get messed up. A pack of 5 will cost like a buck or two. Certainly worth it. Also, sidenote. This thing is GREAT for a warm up. Instead of practicing the chromatic exercises and whatnot, use this little guy for like 2 minutes in each hand, give yourself a good hand/arm stretch and see how you feel!!!

 

Thanks, Danny !

 

I will get on the case:thu:

[Espresso]

 

Hi, I was not sure in which forum to post this, but I think the Lesson Loft might be a good place, but I know it's somewhat off-topic, I apologize. For some while (a few months or at least weeks) I have been having (not very strong) pain in the joint of my left hand thumb. Sometimes this pain is also in the wrist and the underarm. I found in online articles that one of the possible effects of carpal tunnel syndrom is thenar atrophy which is the thumb muscle in the palm becoming smaller. So I immediately checked on my hands and noticed that this thumb-palm-muscle of my left thumb is noticeably smaller than it is on my right hand, so this worries me a lot. Has anybody else had experience with this? or anything similar? I will have this checked by a doctor tomorrow, but I wanted to get some information beforehand, since this really worries me. Thanks, Lars

 

 

If you experience the pain in your underarm too,it's unlikely to be carpal tunnel syndrome. Sometimes pain in the upper limb, originates from the neck: the vertebrae in the neck could press on the nerves and cause the symptoms.

A much simpler explanation for your symptoms is that they might be caused by repetetive motion injury i.e resulting from staying in the same position for prolonged periods while practicing the guitar. If the latter's the case taking frequent breaks during your practicing sessions should help.

Hopefully your doctor will figure it out:thu:

[pasteface]

whan That hapens to me I go burn it Up some put it in Some Fire not Long to burn Ur Skin but to get It red an Warm then Smack it on the corner by the Door

[Tubefox]

I had exactly the same problem as you, here's what you do:

 

1. Play somewhat less for a while.

2. When you do play, take breaks and ice your wrist.

3. Look up stretches one does for carpal tunnel, do those.

4. DO NOT PLAY THOSE IBANEZ RGS.

 

Seriously, they're great guitars, but Wizard necks are only slightly more ergonomic than a running chainsaw. You don't have to stop forever, but those things are basically The Wrist Destroyer. As soon as I switched to something with a bigger neck, my wrist pain dropped by about 90% in two days.

 

You don't have to switch to a baseball bat sort of neck, even a stock strat's neck is thick enough to make your wrist way better.

 

Seriously, if you don't have anything non-skinny, go out and drop a hundred bucks on a squier strat. Your wrist will thank you.

[Santuzzo]

 

I had exactly the same problem as you, here's what you do: 1. Play somewhat less for a while. 2. When you do play, take breaks and ice your wrist. 3. Look up stretches one does for carpal tunnel, do those. 4. DO NOT PLAY THOSE IBANEZ RGS. Seriously, they're great guitars, but Wizard necks are only slightly more ergonomic than a running chainsaw. You don't have to stop forever, but those things are basically The Wrist Destroyer. As soon as I switched to something with a bigger neck, my wrist pain dropped by about 90% in two days. You don't have to switch to a baseball bat sort of neck, even a stock strat's neck is thick enough to make your wrist way better. Seriously, if you don't have anything non-skinny, go out and drop a hundred bucks on a squier strat. Your wrist will thank you.

 

 

Thanks.

 

Yesterday I paid close attention to my wrist angle trying to keep it as straight as possible, and I had no pain at all.

[RenegadeMinds]

I had a similar problem before. Aspirin helped a lot because it's an anti-inflammatory and that reduces the inflammation that causes a lot of pain. Not sure if it would work for you. A doctor could tell you more. There are other medications to help out as well. I was on some, but don't remember the names.

[meganutt7]

I said it twice already, but it bears repeating: Dyna-Flex Gyro!!! Dude, I had some serious wrist problems and even an elbow issue... This thing seems like a joke, but it is magical... Just learn how to use it properly (they all come with a little DVD nowadays, as I understand it, that show you the motions, etc.)

 

This will alleviate all your hand related problems (unless they are nerve related as Tubefox suggested..)

[jeremy_green]

 

I said it twice already, but it bears repeating: Dyna-Flex Gyro!!! Dude, I had some serious wrist problems and even an elbow issue... This thing seems like a joke, but it is magical... Just learn how to use it properly (they all come with a little DVD nowadays, as I understand it, that show you the motions, etc.) This will alleviate all your hand related problems (unless they are nerve related as Tubefox suggested..)

 

 

Ordered one yesterday cause of your referral Danny! You should hit them up for a commission!

[Santuzzo]

Thank you very much guys!

 

I jsut came back from my GP's appintment, and she said it's very unlikey that it's carpal tunnel syndrome, but since I told her I play guitar a lot and it's very important to me, she referred me to a neurologist to do the CTS electrodiagnostic tests.

I have that appointment no sooner than next week wednesday, so still one week until I know for sure.

But the GP already said it is very unlikely that I have CTS, which already calmed me down quite a bit.

 

Thanks again everyone.

 

Danny, I will definitely order the Dynaflex Powerball!

[Santuzzo]

 

Ordered one yesterday cause of your referral Danny! You should hit them up for a commission!

 

 

Awesome!

 

Which one did you order?

[jeremy_green]

 

Awesome! Which one did you order?

 

 

Blue Powerball + Docking Starter $59.95 ($U.S)

Starter Cords - 5 Pack $1.50

 

Looks pretty funky.

[Santuzzo]

Apparently there are 2 different companies making those powerballs:

 

http://nsdball.com/

 

http://www.dynaflexpro.com/

 

Confusing as in which one to order from

[meganutt7]

Dynaflex is the one you want... the "power base" starter is not necessary... But it comes as part of the package for some of these things...

 

Trust me. It's your new warm up routine. Just do it for 1-2 minutes in each hand before you play and you will fel like the strings are made of rubber... your hands will feel mad powerful!!!

 

 

 

And as far as the site, the dynaflex one is whjere you wanna go. not that NSD one or whatever...

 

Though I did find this bit interesting:

 

http://nsdball.com/music.php?m=Benefits

 

The NSD site might be the same, the ads and pics look pretty similar, but I have ordered from the http://www.dynaflexpro.com/ site.

 

Again, I think you guys will be pleased with the results.

 

__________________

Danny AKA Professor Parkinson

[mosiddiqi]

Just saw this..good luck with the tests Lars!

[Espresso]

Dynaflex is the one you want... the "power base" starter is not necessary... But it comes as part of the package for some of these things... Trust me. It's your new warm up routine. Just do it for 1-2 minutes in each hand before you play and you will fel like the strings are made of rubber... your hands will feel mad powerful!!! And as far as the site, the dynaflex one is whjere you wanna go. not that NSD one or whatever... Though I did find this bit interesting: http://nsdball.com/music.php?m=Benefits The NSD site might be the same, the ads and pics look pretty similar, but I have ordered from the http://www.dynaflexpro.com/ site. Again, I think you guys will be pleased with the results.

 

It sounds interesting. I often feel that my left wrist is not strong enough especially now that i have started to use higher guage strings. I'm gonna trust your wisdom and order one of these.

[Santuzzo]

Just saw this..good luck with the tests Lars!

 

Thank you !

[1001gear]

No X-rays?

[Santuzzo]

No X-rays?

 

No x-rays.

 

My GP told me this electrodiagnostic test will give clarity whether I have carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) or not.

Maybe x-rays would be the next step if it's not CTS

 

Oddly, today I felt this tingling in my thumb, index- and middle finger, which is also a very typical symptom for CTS.

 

the worst part right now for me is that I could not get an appointment for said test until next week wednesday, so I have to wait one more week until I know if I have or don't have CTS....

[Espresso]

 

No X-rays?

 

 

Simple X-rays are only helpful when a bone leison or fracture is suspected. They don't help with diagnosis of problems related to tendon, muscle, nerve etc...

[1001gear]

Usually X-rays are the first thing they do. My first thought was stress fracture or joint wear from bar chords and the like. Or a simple sprain. Carpal would involve stiffening and pain at the top of the hand and/or inside the wrist area. No?