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Bad left hand

B

bassfastpik

Aug 13, 2006
29
0
northern new york
#1
About 5 years ago I broke my left hand. Shortly afterwords I picked up the guitar and played constantly. The pain got to me but I took a break every fifteen minutes or so to give my hand a rest. A couple months ago i got into playing the bass and fell in love. The problem is however that when i play on the upper frets my hand gets to me because of the position of my thumb against the back of the neck. This problem accurs more frequently with the bass because the neck is much longer than that of a guitar. Usually this wouldn't be a problem. I would just take a rest. But what started as just a hobby is now turning into an important part of my life and im gonna be playing in public a lot more than what i used to when i was in my previous bands. So now im gonna have to perform with the pain because i just can't take a rest every 10 minutes. Am i doomed with this pain forever or are there hand excercises that i can do to make the pain less intense? Please share some related problems such as this.
 
#2
You would do better off in the Technique forum I would imagine.

What type of bass are you playing?
What is the neck radius?
Do you practice proper technique?
Where is the pain in your hand?


I would say try these steps:
Lower your action

Buy lighter gage strings

Get a slimmer neck; like a jazz bass neck.

Aspirin or Beer. but not both.
 
#3
FYI - This should be in the Technique forum

Drop your elbow so your arm comes in more perpendicular to the neck of the bass. That should help.

You can always try a short scale bass such as "SG" style basses, hofners, steinbergs. That way the effects of the longer neck will be reduced.
 
#5
This used to happend to me. While i was in my dream theater cover band we had to arrage sets of songs deppending on the abuse of the left hand (for me and the guitarrist). Sometimes just adding a gutar solo played by the singer would give us time to cool down a little bit...
If i were you i would try to get a short scale bass cos your little pain might turn into tendonnitis (sp?), and you dont want that... I would suggest rather getting an ampeg dan armstrong bass, an alembic stanley clark brown bass (really expensive) or a status king bass.
 
#7
If you are having pain, that is not a good thing. But you have given us too little information to go on. What bass are you playing? Are you using correct technique? Where is the pain exactly? If you're new to the bass, there will be some soreness initially in your left hand and forearm until you get used to playing. But if you have pain, rather than soreness, and it persists for a while (weeks) I would check with a doctor. Pain is you're body's way of telling you something is wrong.
 
#8
I had my left hand ring finger crushed about a year ago.
The nerve damage is pretty bad.To help get back into shape
I use a light gauge nylon string by Fender on my fretless Ric.
and pretty much the same thing on the fretless Jazz.It will take time as your hand just isnt used to the work out.Start slow and you will find a more comfortable approach to the changes.Slow is the key here and, as Dean T. posted consult your doctor.
Good Luck
Bill
 
#9
Yeah playing with pain sucks,i messed up the tip of my middle finger when i was younger surfing,cord got caught around it and a wave ripped the cord and pulled the tip of my finger sideways,hurt for weeks,just to touch it,i think it was either broken or just ligaments and stuff,anyway 13 yrs later i have arthritis setting in,i can't play acoustic guitar anymore,but i still play bass in bands and plan on playing till my finger falls off.
 
#10
What i would recomend to you is. DONT JUST DEAL WITH THE PAIN. thats VERY important. and thats becasueit can cause further problems with your hand down the road. and taking medication to get rid of the pain may be even worse. but.. on the bright side. try this: bring the neck closer to you, by ither movein your bass so its more comfortable, or buying a short scale bass, or a 5 string bass and put a capo at the 5th fret. hey, its kinda slopy, but it could work. if you feel that the pain id due to lack of exersice, try the Gripmaster. there usualy around 10 bucks, you can find it on musicians friend. also, when you play. play with your thumb backing your middle finger. if you dont already do that.
anyway, i hope stuff works out for ya. and i hope you have fun rockin on stage:bassist: ... i sure wish i was right now.
 
#12
thanx for all the advice. Im currently playin a squire p-bass. (girlfriend let me borrow it). The break was from the base of the thumb to the the start of my wrist. I am farely new to the bass. (been playing for a couple months) but I played guitar for years. I guess it just bothers me more because of the length of the neck. Iv'e been looking into shorter necks. I came across an epiphone sg looking thing so i'll probably get that. A friend of mine just gave me a cort vintage p-bass to but thats not gonna help the pain any because the neck is just as long.
 
#14
If your thumb is bothering you, practice playing without your thumb resting on your neck. Your thumb should just be a guide, you shouldn't be exerting any pressure with it. If you can't play with your thumb off the neck of the bass you need to have someone show your proper technique.
 
#18
There may be exercises you can do to help strengthen your hand. As some of your fellow TB ers have mentioned, a doctor will be able to diagnose the problem and offer suggestions. A shorter necked bass might be the answer. You should also look at the width of the necks. Sometimes the curve at the back of the neck can make your hand cramp up. Try several basses to see if the neck radius is an issue. If they all end in the same hand pain, perhaps looking at a shorter scaled bass will help.
 
#19
Having broken both my wrists in an accident years ago I think I can relate. What I do to ease the pain (besides having a tube of aspercream in my case) is what a previous poster mentioned. I raised the strap, kinda dangle my right hand across the body of the bass to ease it, and tilt the bass up at a little of an angle to ease the left hand. Also, and I hated to admit it at first, I eased up on my chops. I play what "needs" to be played and no more. And you know what? The band LOVES it!. I guess it took a car wreck for me to learn that less really is more.
 

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