Hope for hand/finger injuries

tbk · #1 March 9th, 2005

Hi Folks:

My first post to this forum. I think Kirk's method/book/dvd is stellar. Best that I have seen. Been only playing guitar for 5 years and Kirk's method is getting me over the fear of playing up and down the neck.

What I wanted to quickly share was that I had a severe chronic hand/finger injury on my left index finger which was diagnosed as severe tendonitis and ailed me for over 3 years while playing. Western medicine (ie, celebrex, msm/glucosamine/chondroiten, physical therapy) did not work and cost me over $4000. 5 months ago, I started the flextend regimine for my finger (www.flextend.com) and started accupuncture 2.5 months ago. Today (believe it or not), I am at about 100%. Take it for what it's worth but it's worked for me. Dunno if it will work for the next person though. Just wanted to share in case someone else out there has similar injuries and has tried western medicine to no avail.

thanks!!!

Kirk Lorange · #2 March 9th, 2005

Thanks tbk. For those wondering, the book is PlaneTalk, designed for more advanced players who want to use the whole fretboard.

I'd never heard of 'flextend' before. I'm glad it works for you ... what could be worse for a twanger than tendonitis! I started getting what appeared to be arthritis a few years ago. It was the year we planted tomatoes -- lots of tomatoes -- and we ate them every meal in all guises. I then read that tomatoes are from the poisonous Belladonna family and if you eat to many, you get stiff joints. So I abstained for a while and my joints were fine again.

tbk · #3 March 9th, 2005

Hello:

Definitely "PlaneTalk" is the real deal. I'm addicted to practicing it. Been about 2-3 weeks now and I notice I'm starting to just "go to the positions" without thinking. Easily worth the price. Anyone want to buy my "Scales over Chords Improvisation" book or my "Everything about Guitar Chords" book? I have no use for them now that I have this PlaneTalk method.

> I'd never heard of 'flextend' before. I'm glad it works for you ... what

Flextend is also promoted by physical therapists. It really does work. Alternative to Carpal Tunnel Surgery.

> I then read that tomatoes are from the poisonous Belladonna family
> and if you eat to many, you get stiff joints. So I abstained for a while

Thanks for the information about tomatos. MSM is also an economical safe anti-inflammatory that's very effective in stiff/sore joints and tendons. Also, I cannot say enough about accupuncture as it is not a scam. I "thought" it was but could not believe that it cured me of my 3 year chronic injury that western medicine could not. It's also known to help with arthritis in addition to tendonitis.

The PlaneTalk DVD is definitely worth getting "even" if you have the book.

thanks!!

Maurice · #4 March 25th, 2005

Hi tbk,

I have a weird feeling in my index finger on my left hand for a few months now.
I don't know what it is, I am playing guitar for about a year now and suddenly that weird pain showed up.
When I wake up in the morning I cannot bend my index finger and it really hurts. I have to let hot water run on my finger and then bend it slowly and then it is fixed. Even if I sleep for an hour and I wake up, same thing, really weird. I thought it would go away but I have it for three months now.

Did you have those same symptoms tbk?

Maurice

Dan Carey · #5 November 11th, 2005

Well, I'm glad the acupuncture helped. I'fe tried it for shoulder pain and it worked well for me.
Back in 1981, my hands were trashed in a motorcycle accident. My fingers scraped the road an the "quick" (the area where the fingernails actually grow) of four fingers on both hands was damaged. I recovered and now take glucosamine chondroitin supplements along with a daily exercise regimen using a Gripmaster light (the mediums can cause tendonitis if you're not careful). This has helped my playing dramatically.
The morning pains are now gone and my fingertips are much less senditive than they used to be. I've been left with fingernails that are paper thin and prone to splitting so I just keep them short and use fingerpicks now.

My point is that there are many different courses of treatment and it's up to you to find the one that works.
Hope this helps some,
Dan

silverbullet5774 · #6 November 20th, 2005

Glad to hear you are feeling good tbk! I am gonna haveta ask my Botany prfessor about the tomatoes being a cause of stiff joints, thats very interesting. I can say from my experience to treat your hands good. When I first started learning 2 years ago I though I should be great overnight, it was a summer break when I got my first guitar so I pretty much had all the time I wanted to play. I started off practicing 10 hours every day but the weekends. Then I got ahold of some of the stuff from the John Petrucci DVD Rock Discipline and tried the stretching exercises. I couldn't do them and became so frustrated I started to stretch my fingers everywhere I went. This turned out to be a BAD idea. My fingers swelled up and hurt for about 2 weeks straight, and I learned my lesson that things must take time. I later learned of a famous composer named Schuman who was a piano player. He had done something similiar to what I had done and it destroyed his ability to play. Of course he could still compose, but I think at the end of the day Mr. Schuman wished he hadn't done it. I am very glad I learned my lesson fast.

drabbag · #7 December 15th, 2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maurice

Hi tbk,

I have a weird feeling in my index finger on my left hand for a few months now.
I don't know what it is, I am playing guitar for about a year now and suddenly that weird pain showed up.
When I wake up in the morning I cannot bend my index finger and it really hurts. I have to let hot water run on my finger and then bend it slowly and then it is fixed. Even if I sleep for an hour and I wake up, same thing, really weird. I thought it would go away but I have it for three months now.

Did you have those same symptoms tbk?

Maurice

I have the same thing going on right now with my left hand index finger. Ive only been playing about 5-6 weeks now. But everyday I play at least 2 hours. And this pain hasn't gone away or even gotten any better for that matter. Im just curious if its gonna last like this or eventually go away. I actually cant bend it all the way closed as I can with my index on right hand.

After I start playing for a while the pain goes away and I feel fine, but come morning its back again. Kinda frustrating...

Ben Lawson · #8 June 22nd, 2006

I have the same probelme - did you ever get an answer? Did it ever go away?

Ben Lawson · #9 June 22nd, 2006

Did you ever get an answer? I hae the same issue. Thaks.

drabbag · #10 June 22nd, 2006

Im still having the problem. The only way it really goes away is if I stop playing for a few days. Then as soon as I start playing again it comes back...

I think Im gonna try and see a specialist because it is very annoying. It keeps me from playing as much as I'd like. I was taking Glaucosamine but it really was not noticeable... probably a mental thing haha.

fly135 · #11 June 22nd, 2006

I smashed my left ring finger knuckle a few years ago and had surgury on it. The knuckle is a bit enlarged and has diminished flexibility. But the worst part is it's slightly bent towards the pinky at the knuckle and makes the distance I can get the pinky from the ring finger smaller. What I need are some good exercises for getting distance between my fingers. This is probably a common guitar players problem it's just worse for me.

Sano · #12 June 22nd, 2006

As long as we're listing our respective injuries...I got a crush injury in '87 on my right hand. The middle 2 fingers inner tendons got displaced. Each finger apparently has 2 inner tendons and 1 outer. The 2 inner tendons fix at each joint and these joint fixings were ripped off. Got surgery to replace the fixings but obviously not perfect anymore. These 2 fingers don't like to independently move from each other. I got some finger exercises from somewhere over the years and have recently started doing them - same time as registering on this forum, coincidence or what. And, I must admit there has been some improvement.

allthumbs · #13 June 22nd, 2006

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sano

As long as we're listing our respective injuries...I got a crush injury in '87 on my right hand. The middle 2 fingers inner tendons got displaced. Each finger apparently has 2 inner tendons and 1 outer. The 2 inner tendons fix at each joint and these joint fixings were ripped off. Got surgery to replace the fixings but obviously not perfect anymore. These 2 fingers don't like to independently move from each other. I got some finger exercises from somewhere over the years and have recently started doing them - same time as registering on this forum, coincidence or what. And, I must admit there has been some improvement.

Glad to hear that Sano

FarBeyondDriven · #14 June 22nd, 2006

Well this is not really an injury but I just started playing the guitar and I was wondering if it was normal for your fingertips to get sore, if it is how long will it take for healing?

USGold · #15 June 22nd, 2006

Ok--suggestion----A SORE FINGERS STICKY-----and concerning hand injuries--heres my two cents worth---tomatos are a belladonna-same as tobacco--they are a type of poison--if your susceptable to joint disease they could accentuate it. The stiffness in the morning could be 1 of several different things---first--you could be squeezing the life out the poor guitar (wringing it's poor little neck), two you could be developing new muscle-(ache =strengthening), three you might be sleeping on your hand in the night, four it could be arthritus or even carpal developing, keep an eye on it if it continues or worsens-I would suggest professional consult.