I broke my pinkie finger

[Thursday]

I broke it when I was 4 on my left hand and now when I try play it moves but slowly. It annonies the living hell out of me, because I can't don't anything fast, I can't streacth it out the far and it jerks up and down. Oh my left is my fretting hand. Anyway of making it work normal?

Thanks for ya help

[werbo1]

If it hurts don't use it. Develop a technique that is good for you, and hopefully you CAN get to work with the pinky.

Try isometric excersize just with the pinky, start slow and then build up

[Snarf]

If the pinky doesn't come back, well . . . Django only needed two fingers.

[ukbassboy]

I broke mine on my left hand about 6 months ago and it is still way bigger than the other (which, coincidently I broke about 10 years ago), and it's still a little painful at times. Pinkies are very underused digits so they take a fair bit to get their strength back so even though you broke it yonks ago you may find that some strength exercises with a squash ball might improve things. You will soon have far more strength to move it into positions you normally wouldn't bother with - it worked for me!
A doctor may suggest breaking and resetting it, but that is gonna hurt and you will probably just develop another technique around it.

[Thursday]

Thats true. But why would a doctor suggest that you break your finger and resetting it? I think that is a waste of time.

I'ma try the squash ball exercises.

Thanks

[ukbassboy]

He definately wouldn't suggest that YOU break and reset your finger - that is a procedure used strictly by doctors. They do it suprisingly often if a break has not healed properly. They did it to my dads finger and my mates nose but it is alot more complicated than slamming your finger in the door and having another go!!!
I just carried a squash ball around in my pocket and exercised my other fingers as well. It looked very dodgy but I noticed results in just over a week. Good luck.

[spudmaster34]

i would suggest a tennis ball over one of those squish things. they both gradually lose resistance but tennis balls do it more slowly.

[Verbannter]

While i'm not sure exactly how to treat your predicament (Imagine that, another memeber of Talkbass that isn't a doctor :P), I experienced something similar awhile back that hindered my playing. (Alcohol, Gasoline, and fire don't mix.)

I believe the solution is discipline, and I wouldn't reccomend using left hand technique that is obviously flawed in any situation. Never play a note with another finger (Assuming that you'd ordinarly be expected to use your pinky) instead of your pinky in the name of "Conveniance" . It will eventually end up hindering your playing more down the line than had you worked with your pinky in the first place. (In my opinion, I don't know the exact condition your fingers are in and am by no means a doctor.)

Just my 2 cents

[Thursday]

I know, but it just pisses me off when my pinkie just moves slow or it jerks onto the fret board.

[davemao]

Switch to lefty!