THIS painful injury nearly ended my career…

[@beneunson]

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[@captainmorgan5449]

Wow. I am on a similar path. I was given a free Squire Jazz bass over a year ago. My heart has always been to learn guitar but since I received a free bass...why not try. After only 30 days of learning and playing; I started to develop pain under my index finger on my right hand from strumming the strings. I put the bass down for months and the pain persisted. X-rays revealed no arthritis. After physical therapy it was suggested that the tendons could have gotten irritated from playing. I sold the bass and now I am starting anew on the electric guitar. I will use a pick because that takes pressure off the finger tendons. The guitar felt good, lighter and smaller strings. I am not over weight and my hands are average size. I had issues stretching my fingers across the frets on the bass too. I am waiting patiently for my Squire Classic Vibe 70's Strat to arrive from Fender so I can start practicing. Great Story...🎸

[@beneunson]

Thanks so much for watching, and thanks for sharing your journey! 😀

[@Truthinshredding1]

So many players I know go through these injuries, even the best players. Glad you recovered and means you look for it in the future.

[@beneunson]

Absolutely, thank you so much!

[@michaelsargeant7454]

Hey Ben. I remember this time really clearly. Congratulations on your amazing career

[@beneunson]

Thanks Michael, great to hear from you! Thank you for watching and I hope all is well! 😀

[@andreasjonsson5823]

Thanks Ben. Always helpful, didn't know that you had this problem. Never had a full-blown injury but definitely pain at times, which I try to be aware of. Interesting discussion

[@beneunson]

Thanks Andreas!

[@Double_0_7_Strings]

I’ve had my own struggles with hand pain, due to over-practicing as a teenager, and it forced me to really go back to basics around the time I started learning jazz, and I had to focus on proper wrist alignment and finger placement to avoid tweaking anything. I’m not as tight as I was 10 years ago, but I can improvise more freely because I’m not white knuckling both hands aiming for speed and perfection. Legato is my friend haha.

[@beneunson]

Thanks for sharing!

[@seasider2164]

I had a similar forearm pain develop, but I recognised it for what it was and knew I had to leave my guitar alone for a few weeks. I could still do “off guitar” work; listening, ear training etc. With that discipline I avoided worse longer term effects. This episode caused me to look hard at my posture and hand positions, a good teacher can help here. Touch wood there has been no re-occurrence

[@beneunson]

Indeed, touch wood it doesn't come back! Thanks for sharing your story!

[@Returnality]

Shawn Lane had psoriatic arthritis in his hands and look what he was able to do! Never give up, there is always a way forward :)

[@Faz99Master]

I’ve had a bout with tendinitis in my early years of playing. When the pain was such that I couldn’t practice, I went to see a doctor. He told me to stop playing entirely for 3 months or face the consequences. Stop now or never play again. If you feel pain….STOP…and cool it until the pain goes away. If it returns….STOP….take a vacation. I’ve also been afflicted with psoriatic arthritis for the last 24 years. Until my rheumatologist got me on the right medication, I was sidelined. I’ve been playing ever since although not at the same level technique wise. But I’ve found other avenues of expression to compensate. Tendinitis if a different animal and worse that arthritis in many ways. There’s a certain threshold you must not pass. I know some musicians whose careers have been cut short because of it.

[@Returnality]

​@@Faz99Master True, I don't think I was clear enough. Sometimes the way forward is to do nothing at all for a while. It's also worth mentioning that Shawn had a signature guitar built for him by Vigier that have the lowest action you can get on a guitar, where the guitar had 8 gauge strings and a completely flat radius so it took no effort at all to play. Not everybody can afford 4k+ guitars!

[@beneunson]

Absolutely, thanks for sharing!

[@majorleaguemodelsbystevewo9451]

Hello Ben, I absolutely love your playing and fantastic musicianship.im a 70 year oul professional guitarist and have giged for Manny many years.im also a model builder of base ball stadiums and have always kept in shape.many years ago when I'd be practicing I noticed a slight numbness in my left fretting hand.id shake it and it would go away.however it just got worse.i saw my doctor last year and he sent my to a hand specialist. I found out carpletunnel.3 months ago I had the surgery and it's helped greatly!!! Love your vids!!!!! Cheers steve!!!

[@beneunson]

So glad to hear the surgery helped you, that's fantastic! Thanks for sharing, Steve!

[@jackcarrolton12]

Yes this happened to me... At the time they called it "repetitive strain injury" or RSI, not sure if this is still what it's called, but it raged on for a few years. Painful stuff, very encouraging to hear that you dealt with it too (and beat it!). Thanks Ben have a great weekend

[@beneunson]

Thanks for sharing, Jack! I really appreciate hearing your story

[@ericsimonson8002]

Positivity and a nice review of medical advice that considered the strains musicians endure and prescribed a functional treatment. Electric guitar was the treatment for your ailment! How cool is that? I'm officially entertained.

[@beneunson]

Haha thanks for watching!

[@We-all-watched-the-video]

Had rheumatoid arthritis from 16-18 and now tendinitis, never give up!

[@beneunson]

Thanks for sharing!

[@VirtualGuitarAndBass]

Hola, tengo 43 años y nunca sentí ningún dolor serio de tocar.Ahora empiezo a notar molestias en el codo de la mano derecha, todos los días hago ejercicios,pero no tengo dinero para ir a terapia, inevitable la edad hace que cada vez toque peor, cuidate mucho Ben, ojalá hubiera tenido yo la suerte de poder tratarme, como tu

[@beneunson]

Thank you so much for sharing your story, and thanks for watching!

[@stephentatterton4766]

I spent some time tying to learn acoustic guitar in the style of Nick Drake. I was a fairly dedicated amateur, playing / practicing six day a week or so. Ended up having to quit due to the pain on the back of my right hand. It took about 5 years for those feelings to go. I’d still get the pain from typing/ using a computer, which I need to do for work. I’ve restarted playing again, but on an electric guitar using a pick. Which is going OK. It’s still worth the odd break from playing and some stretching of the hand and fingers.

[@beneunson]

Thanks for sharing your story! Best of luck on your playing journey after restarting playing! 😀

[@chemagore7762]

Could you tell us about any exercise, stretching, rest routine, diet or supplements that helped you at that time? Thanks a lot! I've been struggling with tendonitis for a long time. After seeing several traumatologists and physiotherapists it is still a real hell for me. I can't even use the computer normally, in fact, writing this is already an ordeal for the pain of tendonitis.

[@beneunson]

Thank you so much for sharing your experience! I'm sorry to hear you've dealt with so much pain. There's not a lot more that I can share about this, as it differs so much from person to person. I wish you all the best in your recovery! 😀

[@tylerk1013]

I broke my left wrist years ago. My wrist was broken and dislocated so bad it was sitting on top of my forearm. I had reconstructive surgery and i have a plate and pins in my wrist. The doctor said I will almost certainly develop arthritis in life, and would probably never play guitar well again. Joke's on him cuz I play better now than I ever did before, and I'm in a country band . Jury's out on arthritis tho, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

[@beneunson]

Great to hear you're playing better than ever! Best of luck on your journey