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  1. #1

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    This has not cause my guitar playing at this point any problem but the last few weeks notice the side of thumb on the surface is numb feeling. Now I am almost certain the cause but it is not the guitar. I am an avid long distance cyclist so I have my hands on the hoods of the bars. My thumb and first finger are where the hand rest against the shifters. I move them around and that helps. Then on top of this I have been running on my treadmill but I hold on to handrails. I have to do this now due to runner's dystonia or I will fall.

    My question is if anyone here has had similar experiences from this or just playing the guitar a lot. Along with this I have been play the guitar more than i usually do but as such I don't think guitar playing is the problem. Finally I have Reynard's Syndrome and my hands are always ice cold. I mean really ice cold but that in itself does not bother me. I figure some here might have similar things happen. Yes I could stop riding and running but I like to do that as much as play the guitar.

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  3. #2

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    If it persists, see a doc to test for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

  4. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by sgcim
    If it persists, see a doc to test for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
    Dr deacon thinks he has pseudo carpal tunnel in that I have no pain or lost of grip strength. My ulnar nerve does act up and I have relatively long and thinner wrist. Not thick and bunch as the point of the wrist an palm of hand. In fact I have no wrist pain at all it just the tingling in the tips of thump and sometimes all of my fingers. I think I got to stop the treadmill rail holding and simply ride the bike inside on trainer no hands for a few day see if it get better.

  5. #4

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    Quote Originally Posted by deacon Mark
    Dr deacon thinks he has pseudo carpal tunnel in that I have no pain or lost of grip strength. My ulnar nerve does act up and I have relatively long and thinner wrist. Not thick and bunch as the point of the wrist an palm of hand. In fact I have no wrist pain at all it just the tingling in the tips of thump and sometimes all of my fingers. I think I got to stop the treadmill rail holding and simply ride the bike inside on trainer no hands for a few day see if it get better.
    The ulnar nerve only affects the pinky and ring finger. CTS affects the thumb and first finger.

  6. #5

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    The other day my shoulder was soooooo tight, presumably from a longer-than-usual week of typing and mousing, that I tried to self-massage the knot away, and I twanged something (a tendon? a nerve?) that caused my fingers to go numb one at a time, starting at the pinky, then spreading to a,m,i ... then to the entire hand.... within about 15 minutes. I sat down at the 'puter just to check mail and perhaps notify some coworkers that I was taking the day off to recover when I noticed that the sensation began to return, and within an hour or so I was back to normal.

    Takeaway: could it be a shoulder issue? Something called "compressive neuropathy"? Here are some links:

    Nerve compression syndrome

    Nerve compression syndrome: causes, treatment and more

    Good luck & HTH

    SJ

  7. #6

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    Hi, D,
    Aside from your other activities, whenever you have hand pain, always look to improper technique/position and/or playing too long without a rest. Longer practice/play times will have a negative effect on your hands. I once was preparing for an important gig and jumped from 2 to 4 hours daily. Within a week, I had severe nerve pain in my left hand "m" finger. The only solution is to give your hand a rest for a week and re-analyze. It could be longer if you really did some damage. This is a serious problem for all guitarists. Good luck! Play live . . . Marinero

  8. #7

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    I have this issue, numbness inside my palm at base of thumb. Plus a stinging pain. It’s caused by playing guitar.

    It has taken many years to get rid of, by finding a millimeter exact body geometry that doesn’t trigger it. Some guitars work, some don’t. If I forget, it returns and then I can’t play for a few days.

    Hope you find the cause and a way around it.

  9. #8

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    Another thought . . . some players have a problem with a "C" profile neck if they have small hands. What neck do you have on your guitar? Many switch to a "D" neck and eliminate their problem. Play live . . . Marinero

  10. #9
    Last 2 days I forced myself to walk/run on treadmill no hands on the rails. When you have dystonia that can be like walking on ice at times. Also I change the position of my hands on the bike. So now everything is much better. I am lucky so far in that it actually never had any effect on my guitar playing but I just wanted to ask and also not go down a path the wrong way.

    I am 59 and so far never had any arthritis in my hands and ever had any pain. In fact that was the thing the numbness is there but no pain at all. My wrist itself and where inside meets my hand has never given me pain. The one thing though the cause me to not be so cavalier is age does change things. We don't do thing like we did when were 25. I never had any real bad running injuries but then after 50 I had a few that crept up and I had to back off. So like the guitar that I can pick up and simply go at it...........I have to learn that is not a given. My grip strength is pretty good for a generally lean type runner with no muscles. In fact years ago at a sports clinic they had a Chiropractor giving free assessments on muscle balance. He had me squeeze some instrument with my left and right hands. They he look at me and said.....You are right-handed correct" I said yes use my right hand as the dominate without question. Then he said something was funny about the reading because my left hand actually was about 15% stronger than my right hand grip. He said that is completely the opposite of normal. I then told him I was a guitarist and played all my life and of course finger the neck with the left hand. He then said..........oh yes that makes complete sense.

  11. #10

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    Mark - very glad you have found some relief! Hope it stays that way!