# Do I have tendonitis?



## Tyler (Aug 15, 2014)

I woke up yesterday and the middle part of my wrist was aching pretty bad. This is on the top of my hand away from my palm side. I havent played guitar in hte past few days before that, but my desk chair and desk are slightly off level, which I feel may have played a big role. Anyways, any pressure hurts pretty bad, and as for playing, I cant do much. Normal notes dont hurt bad but stretches are very painful, so Im resting my wrist for a while so no further injury occurs. Has anybody ever had this happen? I cant get to a doctor until Monday so Im not sure what exactly to do until then when I can get it checked out.


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## erdiablo666 (Aug 15, 2014)

Until you are able to see the doc, stay away from any activity that causes pain. Apply ice 10 minutes on, 10 minutes off. You can also take some anti-inflammatoires to control pain and swelling. Do you remember doing anything unusual the day before? Without seeing your hand/wrist I can't say a whole lot more. Hope you feel better soon man. 

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor. I work in disability management


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## gamber (Aug 15, 2014)

take an anti inflammatory, seems like a sprain.


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## Tyler (Aug 15, 2014)

erdiablo666 said:


> Until you are able to see the doc, stay away from any activity that causes pain. Apply ice 10 minutes on, 10 minutes off. You can also take some anti-inflammatoires to control pain and swelling. Do you remember doing anything unusual the day before? Without seeing your hand/wrist I can't say a whole lot more. Hope you feel better soon man.
> 
> Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor. I work in disability management



Nothing unusual at all. I literally woke up an it hurt, maybe I slept on it really wrong? Its not swollen either which is weird, it hurts in the center of the wrist too. Ive got it slightly braced for now as well


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## erdiablo666 (Aug 15, 2014)

Sometimes that stuff happens man. Doesn't sound like anything serious, although it really sucks. I would recommend you try to maintain the movement of your hand while avoiding anything forceful or pain-causing. You'll likely find that it will go away on its own before you even see the doctor.


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## Tyler (Aug 15, 2014)

erdiablo666 said:


> Sometimes that stuff happens man. Doesn't sound like anything serious, although it really sucks. I would recommend you try to maintain the movement of your hand while avoiding anything forceful or pain-causing. You'll likely find that it will go away on its own before you even see the doctor.



Hopefully! Thankfully I dont have a show until the 31st, so I have some time before that to recover.


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## redstone (Aug 15, 2014)

Which hand ?


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## Tyler (Aug 15, 2014)

redstone said:


> Which hand ?



Left (fretting)


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## 80H (Aug 15, 2014)

need a doctor to look at it for a genuine diagnosis, and even then, there's a chance they could mess that up...so in the mean time...


RICE:

Rest, Ice, Compression, and Elevation (RICE)-Topic Overview

Basics on stretching: 

How to Stretch - Basics and Technique









eat more vegetables & clean meats 
don't eat shitty food very much 
take a week off at least, if you get cocky, nobody to blame but yourself  
these things can become problems quickly, take care of it now, only way to go. do what you have to to get it looked at by someone that knows what they're doing
always stretch and stay limber, look up the million vids on youtube, there's a couple of good channels to pick from. if you are feeling pain though, this probably won't be your first concern, but hey, dunno not a doctor (` - `)?
drink water 
dont be a dummy


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## redstone (Aug 16, 2014)

Tyler said:


> Left (fretting)



Could be a pitched nerve then. How you feel when you do this ?


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## OmegaSlayer (Aug 16, 2014)

redstone said:


> Could be a pitched nerve then. How you feel when you do this ?



Dafuq is this?
It gives me pain just looking at it!


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## redstone (Aug 16, 2014)

Well it's just what happens when you flex your wrist and fingers completely then extend the first (proximal) phalanges ^^


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## Tyler (Aug 16, 2014)

Yeah it does feel sorta painful when I do that


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## OmegaSlayer (Aug 17, 2014)

That's too bent red!
Last time I saw a wrsit bent that way the guy had a wrist fracture, no joke.
That's insanely bent even if you're like a Yoga scholar. O___O"


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## Alex Kenivel (Aug 17, 2014)

^^I have tendinitis and ulnar fasciitis in both arms, and I cant do that!

This sounds ridiculous but several doctors told me to, when you sleep, wrap a towel around your straightened elbow and duct tape it so you don't bend it while you sleep. It's supposed to aid the innerds in resting and healing properly when not in use.

Stop playing if it hurts. 
....I didn't and now I'm perma-fvcked.​


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## redstone (Aug 17, 2014)

Tyler said:


> Yeah it does feel sorta painful when I do that



Same place ? That posture exaggerates the main causes of most left arm injuries, flexing the wrist and extending proximal phalanges, especially at the same time and near the nut.


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## redstone (Aug 17, 2014)

OmegaSlayer said:


> That's too bent red!
> Last time I saw a wrsit bent that way the guy had a wrist fracture, no joke.
> That's insanely bent even if you're like a Yoga scholar. O___O"



Don't worry


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## Paul Reed Shred (Aug 17, 2014)

redstone said:


> Same place ? That posture exaggerates the main causes of most left arm injuries, flexing the wrist and extending proximal phalanges, especially at the same time and near the nut.



Redstone, it may be the pre-med in me speaking, but do you have any more "anatomy-based" technique advice? "don't bend your wrist badly" is colloquial advice for sure, but speaking in terms of what is physiologically a no-no lets me work around what I shouldn't do versus trying to work around what hurts/doesn't. (prophylactics > restoratives)


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## EcoliUVA (Aug 18, 2014)

80H said:


> Stretchy-stretch and stuff



Stretching is where it's at. I used to get nerve issues once a year or so and my forearms were frequently tender/sore to the touch. Started stretching for a few minutes every day before a session and haven't had problems since. Do be mindful of your wrist position too, though, as mentioned above.

And don't be this guy: 

He's clearly doing something wrong if he's straining that much.


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## Tyler (Aug 18, 2014)

Haha absolutely. Out of the 9 years Ive been playing Ive never had any problems. Honestly I _do_ think the culprit is from when I was working an 11 hour shift at my job as a cook. Lifting heavy fryers with each hand and having to turn them to dump things into bowls might have done it, plus I was exhausted so it might even be a stress fracture. I have an appointment at 2:45 to get it checked out though since its still hurting, but not as bad as it was a couple days ago


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## redstone (Aug 19, 2014)

Be careful with stretches though, I had similar issues because my extensors are too loose. 



Paul Reed Shred said:


> Redstone, it may be the pre-med in me speaking, but do you have any more "anatomy-based" technique advice? "don't bend your wrist badly" is colloquial advice for sure, but speaking in terms of what is physiologically a no-no lets me work around what I shouldn't do versus trying to work around what hurts/doesn't. (prophylactics > restoratives)



Plenty, but most are very specific and couldn't be presented that way, for example, if you want to play lots of fast consecutive inside/outside picking moves, don't use the flexion/extension of the wrist as a string-changing motion but as a string-skipping motion. Because you won't have the strength to sustain the string-changing motion and injure yourself.. that's why Steve Morse can't arpeggiate faster actually. Not very helpful, right ?


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## DougL (Aug 19, 2014)

Hey Tyler,
I had this exact pain recently,
Middle of the wrist joint, on top of the fretting hand. 
Tried ice and that made it hurt more , tried to rest it but then realised that I had to stop playing guitar. I ended up hitting it with the heat pack quite a bit and then staying away from the big stretches on my guitar for a while.
It has come good for now but is always in the back of my mind.
I've been playing for 22 years ( although it may not show ) and have had countless wrist /hand/elbow pains , resting until the pain is gone and then easing back into my playing routine seems to work best .
I just bought an ibanez s8qm so my wrist may be in for a rude shock.
Cheers,
Doug


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## Aescyr (Aug 25, 2014)

Seems like a good place to ask, I occasionally get pains running down the inside of the lower half of my forearm and into my wrist/palm, makes guitar pretty much impossible. At it's worst time it extended into my pinky finger on the right side as well. If I stop playing for a few days it goes away again for awhile.

Think it's worth getting checked next time it surfaces? I've just been assuming it's related to my systemic sclerosis, but I'm starting to wonder.


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## Alex Kenivel (Aug 25, 2014)

I deal with this pain every day because I didn't take care of it when I should have. Please see a doctor.


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## Glosni (Aug 25, 2014)

redstone said:


> Could be a pitched nerve then. How you feel when you do this ?



Hurts just looking at it.


Like the others said, plenty of ice and definitly a break. Better to take a 2 week break to make sure your hand is okay then years of problems...

And another hint: Horse balm. The one with the herbs and shit. Cools the skin down and helped me a lot with my carpal tunnel.


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