repetitive strain thingy

[the amen fan]

i am tryin to learn the gutiar my self but think i m gettin the strain thingy . i keep gettin aches in the muscles in my lower back either side of my spine , it happems when im practicing standing up and sitting , i can only practice for about 10 minutes and ive got these pains. i thought at first that i might be slouching so i sat with my back straight but my back muscles arent strong enough to sit dead straight all the time and i got the pains sitting straight any way , so cyber or anyone have u got any tips cause i think my learnin is being slowed down by these pains and aches:(

[bobcat]

A repetitive strain thingy can never be good! :(

There could be several different things that may cause this pain to occur. First of all, are you able to take a few lessons with a good quality guitar teacher? If so, he/she could take a look at how you are sitting/standing and see if you are doing some strange twisting of the spine. That may be all it is and when they show you proper posture your problems will be solved!

Another thing to consider is your guitar. Does it fit your body? If you have a smaller build and you have a huge jumbo body guitar that weighs as much as you do...that could be your problem. Also look at the strap you are using. Another member was looking for a strap that would better distribute the weight of the guitar over both shoulders. Look at his post under "electric guitar", heading "where can I find".

If this isn't the problem...are you in a school system that has a weight room that is open for you to use? Does your school have an athletic trainer? In the US, we have an organization called the National Athletic Trainers Association (NATA) and all athletic trainers have to be certified though them. If this is the case in England as well, see if you can set up a meeting with this person. They have gone through extensive training in working with athletes and athletic injury rehabilitation. They could show you exercises and stretches that will get you started on a healthy back.

If this doesn't work...are you a member of a fitness center or could you get access to a personal trainer? Watch out for these people as some have much more training and schooling than others! Some national organizations that you may want to find a person certified through is American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), and National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA). There may be others in England that are also high quality. People with these certifications have also had extra training with injury rehabilitation.

If this doesn't work...go to your family doctor and have it checked out. If your pain is severe or persistent, this is what you should do first! They can check your low back area and see if it is just tight muscles, weak muscles or if there is something funky with the spine. If they see muscle weakness, they may be able to send you to physical therapy to strengthen these muscles. Look for a physical therapy office that follows the sports medicine approach to therapy.

In physical therapy you will get a series of strengthening exercises and stretches that will help teach you better body mechanics. These exercises will teach you to re-train your stomach muscles so that they can better support your back. If your stomach muscles are weak, there is more pressure/strain put on your low back.

At home you can work to strengthen your stomach muscles with crunches. Lay on your back, knees bent and lift (curl) your upper body off the floor. Work also going from side to side. If you keep your hands behind your head, be careful not to pull on your neck! Be sure to keep the knees bent. Otherwise you are putting more stress on the hip flexors than they want to have! If there is pain with this, STOP and make an appointment with your doctor to be sure there are not other problems that need to be addressed! To stretch your low back, lay on your back on the floor and with both knees bent, grasp one leg behind the bent knee and gently pull it toward your chest. Change legs and repeat toward the other side. You can also pull both bent knees toward the chest at the same time. If you are familiar with yoga, there is a move called the cobra stretch. Lay on the floor on your stomach and with the assistance of your arms, lift your upper body off the floor, keeping the hips and legs on the floor. Again do NOT do this if there is pain involved. Do this move until you feel a gentle stretch. Always move within your comfort zone. Be sure to always keep you head in line with your spine. Don't allow it to drop backward or forward.

I don't know if this helps or not. But without knowing you, your size, your current fitness level/strength level, past injuries and your current medical history, this is the best that I can tell you. There are many strength exercises with weight machines as well as with free weights that could help you work the muscles of your back and, as important, your stomach! See your doctor for the pain as needed and always start a beginning level strength training program with an individual that has a high quality certification.

Good Luck! :p

[6StringDan]

cant really add too much to what bobcat said. any chiropractor or physical therapist should give out charts on exercises to strengthen your back, or you could probably find the same info on the internet. a lot of people breathe really shallow when theyre playing, which starves your muscles of oxygen and causes pain.try and lay sitting back using only the muscles that are absolutely necessary and relaxing as much as you can. slouching will screw your back up whether you play or not, so attack it from that angle

[Jason9x19]

Whatever it is, address it now.

I got diagnosed with CTS Wednesday. I miss my guitar. :annoyed:

[diron]

CTS?

:confused:

[ianb]

CTS = Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

The carpal tunnel part of the wrist that various nerve fibres go through to reach the hand.
Any swelling in the tendons of the hand can put pressure on the nerves as they go through the narrow part of the carpal tunnel, causing numbness, "pins and needles" and pain.

Rest, sometimes works, I found using a wrist brace to keep the wrist straight when I am sleeping helps.

Next step is probably Cortisone injections


and if that doesn't work then a Carpal tunnel release operation might be needed. One of the people I work with has just had this done and it hurts.

Carpal tunnel isn't really repetetive strain injury, they are slightly different (according to one consultant I asked, but I didn't get a good answer on why it isn't).

[ianb]

The back pain, isn't CTS or RSI either, it sounds like posture and the information on strengthening your trunk muscles given above is the best advice.

Also Google "Alexander Technique".

[Jason9x19]

CTS = Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

The carpal tunnel part of the wrist that various nerve fibres go through to reach the hand.
Any swelling in the tendons of the hand can put pressure on the nerves as they go through the narrow part of the carpal tunnel, causing numbness, "pins and needles" and pain.

Rest, sometimes works, I found using a wrist brace to keep the wrist straight when I am sleeping helps.

Next step is probably Cortisone injections


and if that doesn't work then a Carpal tunnel release operation might be needed. One of the people I work with has just had this done and it hurts.

Carpal tunnel isn't really repetetive strain injury, they are slightly different (according to one consultant I asked, but I didn't get a good answer on why it isn't).

Pretty good run-down. The nerve that gets pinched is called the median nerve. There are a few other things one can do...I'm wearing my wrist brace 24/7 and taking it off and doing stretches every hour or two. In my case, I was prescribed Ibuprofin to reduce swelling. I've also started physical therapy, which essentially consists of heat treatments and exercises. Surgery isn't always necessary, as long as you change your habits (the way you hold your guitar...maybe get an ergonomic keyboard) and take it easy for awhile. But my point is, if you're having problems now, get it taken care of, because if you don't you might have huge problems and medical bills later.

Fortunately, my work is paying for all of mine. Then again, it probably has everything to do with me having it, too.
:annoyed:

[PickChewer]

LOL....look at the date of this post! bahahahaha ahhhhhh you guys are so nice to try an help this guy. i guess this could be useful for further reference anyways. just thought it was funny that someone was digging that deep in the forums and replied.

[Jason9x19]

As long as people are still reading and posting, what difference does it make? Is there a rule that every thread only applies to the person that started it? It's still relevant to me.

Now, increasing your post count by teasing the thread's contributors...that's another story. :p

[PickChewer]

i have been a member of this forum just as long as you (probably longer because i used to have a different log in) just because i have less posts doesnt mean i want to increase that number....if i cared what my post count was i believe it could be more that 104 or whatever it is, i have seen many many many meaningless threads and posts that i could have added to but i havnt. (sorry if i seem irritated, well i am...i hate people that post just to have a high post number so it pissed me off when you accused me of it)

i just found it funny that this post was from so far back, and i mentioned that i understood it could be used for further reference....i wasnt teasing anyone really. some people these days

[Jason9x19]

It's just tired. If I had a dime for every time I saw someone go "OMG! THIS THREAD IS 3 YEARS OLD AND YOU GUYS ARE STILL POSTING ON IT!" I'd be rich. It's not very creative and all it does is make the people contributing to it sneer. If you've been on here as long as I have, I would think we'd be on the same page on that.