Hand pain issues

[Gio_Force_One]

Unfortunately it looks like I willl have to sell my EBMM guitars , I love them all. I love the way they play and sound and look but unfortunately for whatever reason my left hand does not feel the same way. Before I started playing my EBMM’s again the last year I never had any hand issues playing my PRS or kotzen tele . The last 6 months every morning I wake up and my hands hurt and are so numb. I tried switching the way I play lighter strings nothing helped. The last few weeks went back to my kotzen tele and it’s slowly going away. I guess I just need a giant neck like on that tele for my hand to be comfortable and I use 11-52 on that tele and I’m fine. So I talked to a physical therapist about it and he thinks it’s just becomes the tele neck keeps my hand open more.

It just sucks before I have so many EBMM and I love them. I will keep my 1 Morse and 1 Luke though. The others will unfortunately be sold.
I love this forum and everyone on here is great so I will always pop in. And in Ebmm makes a guitar with a giant neck like the kotzen I will definitely buy one.

 

[beej]

Oh no! I'm so sorry to hear that.

Any chance this is something that resolves with therapy over time?

 

[GWDavis28]

Man Gio, sorry to hear that man.

Glenn |B)

 

[Mixolydian82]

Gio, there are myriad issues that could cause this, and depending on what the underlying issue is, therapy can absolutely help. However, one therapist's advice does not a diagnosis make. An MRN would confirm or rule out some type of nerve issues. Please seek out a specialist and have proper tests run. Second (and third, sometimes more!) opinions are important.

Don't lose hope!

 

[beej]

Given how many people have had issues like this (I've had my own issue with a broken finger), I'm inclined to start a separate thread on people's experiences and advice.

 

[tbonesullivan]

Have you tried bringing your guitars in to physical therapy so they can look at your ergonomics?

 

[Gio_Force_One]

Given how many people have had issues like this (I've had my own issue with a broken finger), I'm inclined to start a separate thread on people's experiences and advice.

Good idea

 

[Jalcom1]

Having recently listed several of my Luke’s, I can empathize with the difficulty of your decision, Gio. I wrestled with the thought of selling mine for months. I agree with Mixolydian82, if you haven’t seen a specialist, please do. Something as simple as a cortisone shot may help tremendously. They can also do nerve conduction tests to identify exactly where the problem lies and target corrective actions accordingly. I hope you get past the pain and numbness. Living with pain sucks.

 

[Gio_Force_One]

Having recently listed several of my Luke’s, I can empathize with the difficulty of your decision, Gio. I wrestled with the thought of selling mine for months. I agree with Mixolydian82, if you haven’t seen a specialist, please do. Something as simple as a cortisone shot may help tremendously. They can also do nerve conduction tests to identify exactly where the problem lies and target corrective actions accordingly. I hope you get past the pain and numbness. Living with pain sucks.

honestly its only when i wake up after 30 minutes or so i am fine. its just the numbness that really sucks. maybe more stretching before playing would help.i also dont have pain while im playing unless i play for hours.
if you dont mind me asking why are you listing your lukes?

 

[Sweat]

Sorry man, I can relate to pain and hand issues but mine have nothing to do with playing, though I am the opposite those huge chunky ass necks kill me.

Hope it gets better and your EBMM's can be saved, unless you want to give them away the selling market sucks!

 

[fbecir]

Hello

Playing guitar is a sport, thus you have to have the same attitude : warm-up before playing, good technique when you play and stretching after playing.
You can also do exercises during the day (if you see a guy doing hand stretching in the Parisian subway ... it's me !).
Try also to change your overall position when you play. If your guitar is too low, your wrist is perhaps too bent and it hurts your hand. The "classical" position with a foot rest is not really rock'n'roll ... but it can help.

Good luck

 

[edhalen]

Hey Gio - something occurred to me. It may be the way you're sleeping which is causing your hand/wrist pain. If you are curling your hands underneath whilst sleeping you can wake up with pain such as you describe. Ask me how I know .

 

[Gio_Force_One]

Hello

Playing guitar is a sport, thus you have to have the same attitude : warm-up before playing, good technique when you play and stretching after playing.
You can also do exercises during the day (if you see a guy doing hand stretching in the Parisian subway ... it's me !).
Try also to change your overall position when you play. If your guitar is too low, your wrist is perhaps too bent and it hurts your hand. The "classical" position with a foot rest is not really rock'n'roll ... but it can help.

Good luck

When I’m in Paris I’ll keep my eye out !!
I generally play sitting classical style. I take lessons from rusty cooley and most of the stuff he teaches , you have to sit that way because of the stretches.

 

[Gio_Force_One]

Hey Gio - something occurred to me. It may be the way you're sleeping which is causing your hand/wrist pain. If you are curling your hands underneath whilst sleeping you can wake up with pain such as you describe. Ask me how I know .

I thought that too. Today I woke up to no pain really so that’s good.

 

[Jalcom1]

honestly its only when i wake up after 30 minutes or so i am fine. its just the numbness that really sucks. maybe more stretching before playing would help.i also dont have pain while im playing unless i play for hours.
if you dont mind me asking why are you listing your lukes?

Hey Gio - something occurred to me. It may be the way you're sleeping which is causing your hand/wrist pain. If you are curling your hands underneath whilst sleeping you can wake up with pain such as you describe. Ask me how I know .

Disclaimer: I was a nurse in the Army 28yrs ago. I don’t practice medicine today. Always consult a doctor for your care

As Ed mentioned, you may have developed some carpal tunnel inflammation and could benefit from wearing wrist guards while you sleep, especially if your numbness is short lived after waking. A lot of people don’t realize that they’re curling their wrists in or holding them stiffly while sleeping. It takes a while to get used to the guards but you’ll see results right away if you have a tendency to curl your wrists while sleeping. Wrist guards can be purchased at Walgreen, CVS, etc. and cost $10-$15 each. Depending on the extent of your inflammation this may be all you need but you should consult with an orthopedic specialist to be sure. A specialist will ask if you’ve tried wrist guards and will suggest them if you haven’t.

It‘s good that you’ve identified when the pain and numbness are worst. Carpal tunnel can progress over time and may require surgery if not treated. I was able to correct my left hand with a guard but needed surgery on my right hand in 2018. Too many day job mouse clicks + hours of guitar. It took roughly 9 months to fully recover my right hand to 100%. The first few months were a pita.

Why am I selling my Luke’s? The simplified version: Mayo Clinic diagnosed me with CIDP (chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy) and I’m losing my job for not being able to fully perform my role due to the accommodations the disease requires. Part nature, part necessity and a lot of frustration. I’ve been playing for 40 years and within the last year, despite playing everyday, my dexterity has diminished to the point that I need to play even basic songs at 60-70% tempo. I just started a new therapy this week. I should see some improvement but nobody knows how much I’ll regain.

 

[Gio_Force_One]

Disclaimer: I was a nurse in the Army 28yrs ago. I don’t practice medicine today. Always consult a doctor for your care

As Ed mentioned, you may have developed some carpal tunnel inflammation and could benefit from wearing wrist guards while you sleep, especially if your numbness is short lived after waking. A lot of people don’t realize that they’re curling their wrists in or holding them stiffly while sleeping. It takes a while to get used to the guards but you’ll see results right away if you have a tendency to curl your wrists while sleeping. Wrist guards can be purchased at Walgreen, CVS, etc. and cost $10-$15 each. Depending on the extent of your inflammation this may be all you need but you should consult with an orthopedic specialist to be sure. A specialist will ask if you’ve tried wrist guards and will suggest them if you haven’t.

It‘s good that you’ve identified when the pain and numbness are worst. Carpal tunnel can progress over time and may require surgery if not treated. I was able to correct my left hand with a guard but needed surgery on my right hand in 2018. Too many day job mouse clicks + hours of guitar. It took roughly 9 months to fully recover my right hand to 100%. The first few months were a pita.

Why am I selling my Luke’s? The simplified version: Mayo Clinic diagnosed me with CIDP (chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy) and I’m losing my job for not being able to fully perform my role due to the accommodations the disease requires. Part nature, part necessity and a lot of frustration. I’ve been playing for 40 years and within the last year, despite playing everyday, my dexterity has diminished to the point that I need to play even basic songs at 60-70% tempo. I just started a new therapy this week. I should see some improvement but nobody knows how much I’ll regain.

Oh man I’m so sorry to hear that!! I hope the new therapy helps you. Guitar is so much joy and frustration at the same time. I thought about giving up because of my hand but I’m gonna keep going. I’ve been to a couple of hand specialists over the years and had wrist guards made but I have no idea where they went. However today is a good day I wasn’t that numb and not in pain. So we shall see I guess I’ll got to cvs or Walmart and see what they have for braces.

 

[Jalcom1]

Thanks. I’m still trying to play everyday even if it’s slow. There’s just something about being able to play the sounds I hear in my head or from my favorite artists that I can’t let go of. I guess that’s why we’re all here. And it doesn’t stop me from GASing. I’ve been talking myself down from Sweat’s GC for weeks. I can barely play, but I need it right now.

My guards are off the shelf from CVS. Tbh I don’t like wearing them but they've helped Over the years. And my wife finds them dead sexy of course jk

 

[DrKev]

Also not a medical doctor in any way shape or form but my experience taught me that nerve-like sypmtoms can have a non-nerve cause and finger/hand/arms stuff can be neck- or shoulder-related (all the nerves in the arms and hands pass through there so problems in one place can cause pain/numbness anywhere else). I had crippling electric shock type arm pain with some finger numbness, I was certain it was arm nerve stuff, but my doc was like, "nope, not nerves, we look at neck first, then shoulder". I thought he was an frickin' idiot but he was right. Turns out my shoulder is a giant mess, because of muscle loss/lack of activity due to Long Covid. That limited motion which caused the pain when I went too far. It also affected how I held my arms and hands while sleeping and lying in bed (re: what @edhalen said) which was causing numbness. Started physio before Christmas, trying to do my exercises at home regularly (yeah, we old now) and it's made a huge difference.

The frustrating thing - had the right person just asked me to move my arm in certain ways the major diagnosis would have been obvious from day one and we could have avoided most of the months of waiting between MRI, X-rays, echos, nerve conduction tests, more MRIs.

 

[mikeller]

Really sorry to hear Gio - hopefully the pain can be resolved. Over the past few years I have developed Dupuytrens Contracture - first started in my right hand and now in both. So far it has not caused any real problems in playing, but it may at some point. I am constantly stretching my hands and my fingers as much as I can.

Best of luck to you

 

[edhalen]

Wow - so nice to know I'm not the only one with hand/wrist/arm issues. I guess in the back of my mind I realize that but it sure is nice to get the confirmation. I'm still working through covid-caused stroke myopathy in both arms and my neck/base of my skull. It does affect my playing (some days are better than others) some but the more I stretch the better I feel. The older I get the more I need to move - imagine that . Anyway, sorry to digress a bit but I figured since we're on the subject.... I may go pick up a set of wrist guards. I fold my hands under whilst sleeping which doesn't help for sure. Best to everyone who reads this who is fighting pain of any type. It sucks.