Finger hand pain and swelling after gig last night

soul warrior · #1 07-06-2009, 11:27 AM

New here so my apologies if this is in the wrong forum.

I been playing bass for 30 yrs. Took a break for the last 8. I started working as a bassist again 6 months ago, working weekends. i was on vacation the past 2 weeks. I did my first gig after returning from vacation and halfway through the night started to develope some pain on the top of my right hand, my fingering hand. i use my fore-finger and middle-finger for pickin. i always have. the tip of my middle finger got sore early on in the gig, as i noticed i was fingering hard due to a new drummer who was louder than my last and i didnt have enough volume. i eventually turned up and picked easier. by the end of the night the top of my hand was really sore. by the time i drove home it began to swell. i iced it last night. this morning the swelling is even higher. i have been icing on and off regularly. the swelling looks like it may start to be going down. i have never had this happen before. i have done alot of playing in the past six months with no ploblems, and this came on very sudden with a good amount of pain and swelling. could it be a 1 time injury or the start of something more? personally i think i may be hitting the strings too hard, and last night after 2 weeks off over plucked due to the volume situation. the pain is in the top of the hand where the bones coming from the two fingers join togehter at the bass off the hand near the wrist. any help, info, or advice would be appreciated.
also i have a rehearsal thurs and another gig this weekend.
thanks!

oi_pride · #2 07-06-2009, 11:33 AM

i believe this may be tendinitis. i have noticed the same thing happening to me if i don't play all the time. just take some motrin (ibuprofen is a good anti-inflammatory) and let your hands rest, when the swelling goes down start a playing exercise, and keep it up everyday. if it happens again after re-training your hands then you should go to the doctor and have it looked at.

soul warrior · #3 07-06-2009, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oi_pride

i believe this may be tendinitis. i have noticed the same thing happening to me if i don't play all the time. just take some motrin (ibuprofen is a good anti-inflammatory) and let your hands rest, when the swelling goes down start a playing exercise, and keep it up everyday. if it happens again after re-training your hands then you should go to the doctor and have it looked at.

Thanks! any good plucking exercises you can recomend. i usually peddle the 2 fingers a bit before playing. also my wrist may be bent a bit too much, but i like the bass up a little high. it hurts now when i bend my wirts down...i may have to lower the bass. i switch to a new bass 3 months ago also and dont have the same rest position i used to have with my old bass. i may be playing this one a bit higher also.
could be a perfect storm scenerio last night...i hope so. right now it feels a bit scarey and sucks.

oi_pride · #4 07-06-2009, 12:00 PM

just playing scales is a good exercise. also i recommend doing hand and finger stretches. me and my guitar player do this before playing and it really does help.

the height of the bass may be an issue, but just adjust it until it is comfortable for your wrist. just play around with it.

soul warrior · #5 07-06-2009, 12:53 PM

i also just realized i was wearing a new braclet on that wrist last night that could have been restricting when i bent my wrist. wow...too many factors to consider now, but i will be more concious of all these things for my upcoming rehearsal/gigs and try to eliminate as many of these issues as possible.
any more thoughts are welcome