Members C-4 Posted March 10, 2011 Members Share Posted March 10, 2011 I do not have CP, but I lost both nerves running up my left arm, causing my fingers to go numb and I lost the ability to raise my fingers upward while they were in an extended outstretched position on a table. I had to re-adjust my left hand playing position, and the weight of my guitars became a slight problem, even though they were not even medium weight guitars. I realize everyone cannot or would not do this, but I searched for a guitar that was totally different from my wood guitars. (At this time, I was also becoming bored with my wood guitars anyway). I wound up getting a carbon graphite guitar weighing 5 pounds, with a terrific neck profile. I strung it with 8-36 strings (GHS custom shop gauged). While I lost some of my dexterity, this guitar offers me the opportunity to play a lot of what I could no longer accomplish on my other guitars. The strings are quite low to the fretboard, but the tone is not lost by using such light strings. They actually feel heavier to my hands, which are weaker as a result of the nerve loss. I did what I felt I had to do. I probably would have still gotten the carbon fiber guitar anyway as I had hit the wall on playing the same old type guitars for so long, but the guitar's weight and neck have certainly made me excited to keep playing in a band, which I do 2-4 times per week. I no longer feel tired at the end of a night's work, and my hands do not hurt as they once did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cybersecretary Posted March 11, 2011 Members Share Posted March 11, 2011 Weleda massage oil with Arnica. at the health food store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members stormin1155 Posted March 11, 2011 Members Share Posted March 11, 2011 I just sold my Gibson Byrdland to a guy that is suffering from carpal tunnel, and he reports back to me that the short scale and thin neck makes all the difference in the world. Now a Byrdland is a bit on the spendy side, but some of the other short scale guitars would seem to be a good avenue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ajympt Posted March 11, 2011 Members Share Posted March 11, 2011 WD 40 is mainly mineral spirits and mineral oil. There's a reason it killed the hamster. Petroleum distillates are not good for you - Read the MSDS sheet on it- NOT for spraying on your skin, and remember that things on your skin can absorb deeper than the surface. http://www.wd40.com/files/pdf/msds-wd494716385.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MDLMUSIC Posted March 11, 2011 Members Share Posted March 11, 2011 Ever thought about slide guitar and/or lap steel? Seriously, I've been looking into this more and more as I get older and my fretting hand fingers are starting to cramp up after a few hours of playing. I have a Peavey Powerslide on order and as soon as it gets here I'm going to start practicing like crazy and see if it would be possible to use this in lieu of my regular six-string. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members T-rex111 Posted March 11, 2011 Members Share Posted March 11, 2011 Why suffer? Get that {censored} fixed! I had carpal tunnel release surgery on both hand 2 1/2 years ago and it's the best my hands felt in 20 years. A few hours of your time for surgery, a few weeks to recoup and good as new! The only bummer is I can't blame my cts for my crap playing now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members headfilter Posted March 13, 2011 Members Share Posted March 13, 2011 I have arthritis is my hands and I got to the point I could only play a few minutes before the aching started. My mom bought me some of those magnetic copper bracelets. They really worked. After a couple of weeks wearing them, the pain was gone. I don't know if it's science, magic, voodoo, or placebo but whatever it is, it works and they're cheap. It's worth a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members phaeton Posted March 13, 2011 Members Share Posted March 13, 2011 Why suffer? Get that {censored} fixed! I had carpal tunnel release surgery on both hand 2 1/2 years ago and it's the best my hands felt in 20 years. A few hours of your time for surgery, a few weeks to recoup and good as new! The only bummer is I can't blame my cts for my crap playing now. How is your strength affected? AFAIK (at least going back to the late 90s, early 2000s), that carpal tunnel surgery (cutting the tendon and allowing it to become longer in its healed state) removed the pain but traded it for weakness. Is this still true? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members T-rex111 Posted March 14, 2011 Members Share Posted March 14, 2011 My strength might be affected a little bit but I'm a lot closer to 50 than 20 these days so take that with a grain of salt. The old type of sugery was the reason I waited so long to get my hands fixed. What they do now is called carpal tunnel "release". They make about a 1 inch incision in the palm of your hand close to your wrist and release the tunnel, 4 stiches, good as new. They do it outpatient, a few hours time. Stopped and had lunch on the way home, had it done on a Thursday and I was back to work on Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lp_junkie Posted March 14, 2011 Members Share Posted March 14, 2011 I moved to the 58 or 59 Gibson profile necks, and also had surgery on my wrist, I have more problems with arthritis than any residual pain from the carpal tunnel. I had the surgery 17 years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BA.Barcolounger Posted March 14, 2011 Members Share Posted March 14, 2011 Shorten your strap and hike your guitar up. It'll open up the angle on your wrist. You'll look like a dork, though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarcat46 Posted March 14, 2011 Author Members Share Posted March 14, 2011 Thanks again everyone for your responses, and advice! I narrowed my choices down to 2 different guitars. The first one is an Epiphone G-400, and the otherone is a Squier Jaguar. I'm kind of leaning towards the G-400, but the Jaguar is a slightlyshorter scale. I can already tell that I'm going to focus on being more of a rhythm playerfrom now on. I did get a wrist brace like my doctor recommended, so onlytime will tell how much relief I'm going to get! Thanks guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members hifidude55 Posted March 15, 2011 Members Share Posted March 15, 2011 I don't if someone already mentioned it but have you considered a fanned-fret guitar? They are designed with a different scale length for each string to maintain more even tension across all the strings. Most people adapt to the fan very quickly and some players find that the design of the frets actually keeps their fretting hand (and wrist) in a more natural position. Most guitars of this variety are prohibitively expensive but more affordable models do exist: Agile 6-String (Natural)Agile 7-String (Black) I've heard that Agiles are usually comparable in quality to most of the mid-priced imports on the market such as Epiphones, Schecters, and Mexican Fenders. however I have no personal experience with Agile as a manufacturer or with rondomusic as a retailer. If you decide to give it a try, I would be very interested to hear your reactions. Especially if you decide to go with the fanned-fret design! Yo soy muy curiouso. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members straycat113 Posted March 15, 2011 Members Share Posted March 15, 2011 I suffer from Cubital Tunnel Syndrome which affects the Ulnar nerve in the elbow and causes the middle and pinkie fingers to go numb as well as having a Neuroma on the inside joint of my thumb which is a small tumor like mass of live nerve endings that feels like the shock you get when you bang your funny bone in your elbow but only in the thumb. I have been dealing with these issues for three years and will need two surgeries this year, the only reason I delayed them was because my crummy health insurance was not accepted by the doctors recommended to me and I would be damned if I was going to get it done by a shoemaker. I went 13 months without playing after never going more than a month in over 30 years which nearly drove me insane. I am basically a Roch/Blues player in the vein of Hendrix, Beck and Clapton though I enjoy many styles. The way I am able to get in an hour or two a day is exactlly by what Arrowhead has mentioned, gone are the days of wrapping my thumb around the neck ,which I could not do if I wanted as it has to be dead center on the neck and on the pad of my thumb. I will say that even with the help of God if everything goes fine after surgery I will maintain using this form as it is much eaier on the hand though it took me months to be able to bend from this position which I am still not all that comfortable with. The only advice I can give and this goes for everyone even those who do not have hand issues-First before you play run your hand under really warm water for a few minutes as this will get the blood flowing and works wonders, and something I learned from Steve Morse. Then go through five minutes of hand and arm stretches which can find anywhere on the web, and take a 10 minute break for every 60-90 minutes of playing you do. Also if you have a practice routine try and get rid of repetative exercises like 1-2-4/1-3-4 and so on and work on an improvised piece as it is documented that your hands are not under such heavy stress when playing freely. Do not hunch over and slump and play with good posture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members phaeton Posted March 15, 2011 Members Share Posted March 15, 2011 Shorten your strap and hike your guitar up. It'll open up the angle on your wrist.You'll look like a dork, though Yup, this is what I do. Basically, I sat down in an appropriately-sized stool, positioned the guitar like the Classical players do, and then adjusted my strap to keep it there all the time. So I stand up and have the guitar up really high, with the neck at a 45-degree angle and the top horn just under my collar bone. Yes, I look like a dork. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dgo ratt Posted March 15, 2011 Members Share Posted March 15, 2011 Hey Guy's..I have been a member here for years. This is not the first time these issues have been discussed. I started my own guitar co based on this entire thread.. Durango Guitar Works,,Give a look,, Not to mention the Tru-Oil Maple neck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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