!-Tendonitis-!

Last month I started a 5-week contract performing on a cruise ship. They only required me to play 3-4 hours a day, with breaks, 6 nights a week. The first week went fine. At the start of the second week I noticed a little twinge in my right wrist when I made certain movements (like moving the hand sideways in an arpeggio). I might have ignored this (since I've never had anything like it), but it got worse

Hi Alan, you have all my sympathies. I have had tendonitus so bad I could not even move my arm without anguishing pain. I have managed to keep it under control by the following methods :

1. Keep your hands warm with nice thick gloves. Even if the episode subsides, still try to wear gloves when you can.

2. Wear wrist support whenever lifting or any other strenuous activities using you hand

3. Indocin is a miracle drug for me. However, it has been known to have major side effects for some people. See the doctor about it.

4. When you do play, spend some time scrutinizing and analyzing your fingering. It could be you find a much more 'tendon friendly' way of doing things such as using two hands for arpeggios rather than one hand with lots of thumb under/over. I noticed many painful things I was doing but did not need to do that way.

5. Do not ignore those small twitches and pains. Get the gloves on.

I'm starting with the assumption that you are a seasoned professional. In other words, the schedule you mention could be hard on someone who was not accustomed to playing that much. The amount is not excessive for a professional, so with that assumption a few thoughts. I find that the only drug - prescription or otherwise - that helps tendonitis for me is Naproxyn. OTC name is Aleve. Prescription strength is 600mg, but you can take one otc three times a day and it works fine. As to cause, I would suspect that the seat height on the ship is different than you are accustomed to. If it is either higher or lower relative to the keyboard than you are accustomed to, it will tend to cause tendonitis or at least it can. I've also seen problems with the angle of the piano to your audience. You might be turning your shoulders slightly to see your audience. Tendonitis is difficult to get rid of. You will probably have to back way off on your playing - possibly for months. As soon as it hurts, you must stop. I do this for a living too, and I know that is difficult to do.

Good luck

Hi Alan, As you begin to play again, you will need to analyze your technique more thoroughly. You need to check the height at which you routinely sit and you need to pay close attention to what position your hands are in during arpeggios, widely broken chords etc. It is not unusual for tendonitis to strike when the hands are routinely held out of alignment with the forearm. Many people play trying unconsciously to make the thumb and the fifth finger the same length by cranking their wrists away from the thumb. This is painful and harmful. The thumb is shorter than the fingers - therefore, it should play much closer to the edge of the keys than the other fingers, and the other fingers should play deeper into the realm of the black keys than the thumb. This relieves pressure on the tendons on the outer edge of the hand and forearm. You might practice something hands separately so you can really concentrate on the position of your hand as it plays - watching it intently. Take note of when your wrist goes out of alignment and see if you can figure out what you can do to prevent that. You will need to build a new and better habit..... Good luck. Since making music is mental therapy for most of us, not being able to do it is depressing, I know.

I'd bet there is a good chance it isn't tendonitis, as that just seems to be the default thing doctors pull out with wrist pain.

DON'T LET THEM OPERATE.

BE CAREFUL OF BANDAID TREATMENTS (drugs, heat/cold, etc), as these won't really fix anything, just make you feel better temporarily.

Buy 'The Athletic Musician' as a starter. It's pretty good.

Buy 'Somatics: Reawakening the Mind's Control of Movement, Flexibility, and Health'

They both are easy reads, and the Somatics exercises are very effective and easy to do. For wrist specific issues, you may need to see a specialist as the wrist isn't covered in the book specifically. But, it could easily be that the problem is not in the wrist, but the nerves which travel through the shoulder (and are getting pinched for example)

That's a start, do some reading and studying - KEEP OFF THE INJURY (no playing - practice mentally), and good luck.

Dan

: Last month I started a 5-week contract performing on a cruise ship. : They only required me to play 3-4 hours a day, with breaks, 6 nights a : week. The first week went fine. At the start of the second week I : noticed a little twinge in my right wrist when I made certain movements : (like moving the hand sideways in an arpeggio). I might have ignored : this (since I've never had anything like it), but it got worse : overnight