tennis/guitar elbow re-re-visited
Paul Cohn
shed some light on my situation.
it started as a pain in my right wrist (and maybe a tiny bit in the
right elbow), mainly as i moved my hand to the right. started on ibu
and later began having pains all over, and eventually settled to
mainly both elbows, with some pains in various parts of the hands or
wrists at times, maybe a little bit along my arm depending on use. but
mostly elbows. it seems like normal tendonitis. the first two doctors
i saw said it was tendonitis.
then, i started feeling numbness and tingling in my left thumb. i
don't really feel it unless i move certain ways, like stretch out my
left arm and move my hand to the left. and there's a spot on the base
of my thumb, near the side of the wrist, that if i press on it, i
really feel the tingling/numbness in my thumb. haven't noticed it in
any other fingers. the third doctor i saw felt around my elbows and
wrists and said i didn't show any signs of tendonitis, no restriction
of movement. but it definitely feels like it. i really feel it in my
elbows. but i'm concerned about this thumb numbness...
any thoughts, suggestions? similar experiences?
Neil Lamb
I have had the elbow problem off and on for several years. Recently
it got bad enough to really interfere with my gigging. The cure , at
least for me , is described in the article in this link.
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/phys-ed-an-easy-fix-for-tennis-elbow/
Regarding the left arm pain/numbness which I have also had it may be
related to tightness in the neck area through which pass the the
nerve channels for the whole arm. A good massage therapist/sports
trainer was my cure there. After relaxing my neck and shoulder
muscles and teaching me some stretches the numb thumb disappeared.
Best wishes,
Neil
Steve Freides
A lot of arm and hand problems originate in the neck and shoulders.
Look into treatment by someone who understands that possibility and can
treat it. E.g., my sister was diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome in
both hands - after having surgery on one, and having it be absolutely no
better, she looked into the alternatives, and is now making progress
with an acupuncture therapist and regular massage. Chiropractor, ART
(active release techniques), trigger point massage - all have the
possibility to help. Depending on what part of the world you're in and
what they practice, an osteopathic physician (US) or a physiotherapist
(Canada) can also help.
The clue here is that where you experience the symptoms moves around,
and that suggests the pain is what's sometimes called referential, a
Google on "referential pain" will find you things to read about trigger
points.
-S-
tom walls
> any thoughts, suggestions? similar experiences?
I feel compelled to answer, although I make no claims of authority.
The numbness makes me think that it's some kind of nerve issue. I once
successfully treated numbness in my fretting hand fingertips, by
wearing a wrist brace to bed. Eventually I developed better sleep
posture habits and was able to eliminate the brace(now I have it on my
other wrist for the tennis elbow). I've made no progress on my own
tennis elbow thing, although I've been in physical therapy for two
months. My therapist says that you can't put a timetable on the
healing. Sometimes it heals quickly, sometimes slowly.
John Link
I had an elbow problem for over a year caused by playing frequently
and holding the pick too tight believe it or not, anyway the pain was
with me for well over a year. After visiting doctors and wearing a
strap for months without any improvement the fellow who runs the local
pharmacy advised me to go on a ten day regimen of Motrin, and to cut
out any alcohol for the ten day period. That cured my elbow pain and
from that point I have been pain free.
Tim McNamara
<9fe795db-9530-4b61...@s3g2000yqs.googlegroups.com>,
Paul Cohn <psc...@gmail.com> wrote:
Get an evaluation for carpal tunnel and ulnar tunnel syndromes. This
may include having an electromyelogram done although a lot of the
evaluation is purely physical (e.g., holding your arm and wrist in
certain positions to aggravate the symptoms. The cause can be located
anywhere from the spinal cord to the hand.
http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec04/ch042/ch042f.html
I'd talk to a neurologist, personally. If there is some kind of damage
going on it needs to be treated sooner rather than later as permanent
losses in sensation and motor function can happen (how's that for a
"Happy New Year" greeting?). Often these things can be treated
non-surgically, sometimes surgery is necessary.
It might pay to call around to find a musician-sensitive doc. If you
have an orchestra nearby, they might have a recommendation as classical
musicians have a lot or repetitive stress injuries.
pmfan57
Your elbow problem might have been bursitus. That can take a year to
go away. You're lucky it responded to Motrin because often it
doesn't.
Mark Guest
Sounds like what I've been going through. I sprained my L wrist, had a
massage therapist put it out of joint (by accident), then saw a good
chiropractor, who put the wrist back in line, and prescribed a forearm
brace (neoprene), and a wrist brace (adhesive tape). Massage and rest
helps. Playing guitar doesn't. So it's improving slower than it could
if I'd just quit playing. I also take Aleve almost daily, which
probably helps.
Good luck! It's a bitch getting oldere. Don't know if this applies to
you, but it's true! I shudder to think of the aches facing me in the
next couple or 3 decades...
All the best,
Mark Guest
Jazz Guitar
www.markguest.net
www.cdbaby.com/cd/markguest
Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do
without."
Confucius (c.551-479 BC)
tom walls
If you're not sure whether Aleve is working, try something else. My PT
says that the various anti-inflamatories effect people differently.
Aleve did nothing for me, while over-the-counter Advil worked fine.
Joe Finn
news:9fe795db-9530-4b61...@s3g2000yqs.googlegroups.com...
I'm sorry you are having these problems. It seems like you are following up
appropriately. For what it's worth the tendonitis I had was different from
what you describe so I would lean more towards the 3rd opinion.
I hope you feel better soon. ....joe
--
Visit me on the web www.JoeFinn.net
Paul Cohn
> On Dec 31 2009, 11:40 pm, Paul Cohn <psc...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > i've read both threads a couple times, thought maybe someone could
> > shed some light on my situation.
>
> > it started as a pain in my right wrist (and maybe a tiny bit in the
> > right elbow), mainly as i moved my hand to the right. started on ibu
> > and later began having pains all over, and eventually settled to
> > mainly both elbows, with some pains in various parts of the hands or
> > wrists at times, maybe a little bit along my arm depending on use. but
> > mostly elbows. it seems like normal tendonitis. the first two doctors
> > i saw said it was tendonitis.
>
> > then, i started feeling numbness and tingling in my left thumb. i
> > don't really feel it unless i move certain ways, like stretch out my
> > left arm and move my hand to the left. and there's a spot on the base
> > of my thumb, near the side of the wrist, that if i press on it, i
> > really feel the tingling/numbness in my thumb. haven't noticed it in
> > any other fingers. the third doctor i saw felt around my elbows and
> > wrists and said i didn't show any signs of tendonitis, no restriction
> > of movement. but it definitely feels like it. i really feel it in my
> > elbows. but i'm concerned about this thumb numbness...
>
> > any thoughts, suggestions? similar experiences?
>
> Paul,
>
> I have had the elbow problem off and on for several years. Recently
> it got bad enough to really interfere with my gigging. The cure , at
> Regarding the left arm pain/numbness which I have also had it may be
> related to tightness in the neck area through which pass the the
> nerve channels for the whole arm. A good massage therapist/sports
> trainer was my cure there. After relaxing my neck and shoulder
> muscles and teaching me some stretches the numb thumb disappeared.
>
> Best wishes,
> Neil
>
> www.neillambmusic.com
i've been planning on getting that rod...which one should i get?
is there a way to tell if what i'm having is coming from my neck/
should area? would i be able to trigger numbness by pressing a spot
near my thumb/wrist if that was the case? what kind of doctor should i
see?
Neil Lamb
I am using a Theraband Flexbar that is 12" long and 1-1/2" in
diameter. As to doctors I would start by asking around professional
orchestras. It seems that string players and pianists have many of the
same problems and there are always certain doctors and/or physical
therapists that these folks gravitate to. I have been amazed by how
much improvement can be made without drugs with the proper guidance.
Best wishes,
Neil
Steve Freides
> is there a way to tell if what i'm having is coming from my neck/
> should area? would i be able to trigger numbness by pressing a spot
> near my thumb/wrist if that was the case? what kind of doctor should i
> see?
Paul, I tried to answer this question in my reply to you - there is _no_
way to know over the Internet, that's for sure, and even in person and
with a "professional" giving the opinions, there's still no way to be
absolutely sure. But if you visit a chiro or massage therapist or
similar and they report tightness in your shoulders, knots in fascia,
etc., that's certainly a more conservative place to start than a
surgeon, immobilizing your wrist, or other similarly narrow views of the
matter at hand. I had a soreness on one thumb a few years ago, and
after about 10 minutes of examination, a Canadian physiotherapist
cracked my neck a certain way and my thumb returned to normal and has
stayed that way since. I don't profess to understand all the ins and
outs, only to offer that looking for trigger point kinds of issues is a
good place to start an investigation like yours since no harm can come
to you as a result. Z-Health is another one to look into - like A.R.T,
it's a practice started by a chiropractor but one can get certified to
pratice Z-Health completely apart from having anything to do with
chiropractic. NB: I've never been to a chiropractor in my life, but I
have experienced the benefits of ART and Z-Health.
Just my opinion, your mileage may vary.
-S-
JoeC
Paul,
I am sorry to hear about your trouble. As a health professional (I
am a periodontist-- but the principle is the same for any health
problem), I would say the most important thing before any TREATMENT is
always an accurate DIAGNOSIS. If you have a family practice doc,
perhaps that person could recommend the best specialist to see. Most
importantly I would think someone that is conservative and not quick
to go to a surgical option (unless the diagnosis indicates that is the
best option). As you can see from at least one of the previous
posts......chasing pain (without an accurate diagnosis) with
treatment is not a good idea as you might be providing good treatment
for the wrong problem and not get any relief.
I once has some tendonitis in my elbow. My family practice doc me to
a conservative sports medicine doc who found the problem and a
conservative (i.e. non-surgical-----physical therapy) treatment as the
first step; which worked. I know of colleagues that went to a highly
respected orthopedic surgeon and had surgery on both elbows a within 2
weeks of their initial exam for the same problem. How does the cliche
go: "If all you have is a hammer every thing is a nail". Good Luck!
All the Best,
joe
andy-uk
specialists looked into it]... the conclusion was that swimming was
very beneficial exercise for guitar players.
DanielleOM
"andy-uk" <andy.u...@googlemail.com> wrote in message
news:b7c89afc-8e43-495b...@m25g2000yqc.googlegroups.com...
> My old classical guitar teacher had problems [and a lot of doctors and
> specialists looked into it]... the conclusion was that swimming was
> very beneficial exercise for guitar players.
Interesting. About 10 years ago I was experiencing back discomfort with no
much relief from chiropracters and exercises. Problems went away after I
started swimming regularly.
Danielle
Steve Freides
It's wonderful exercise for most people, not only guitar players.
-S-