building up nerve stamina - is it a thing?

[AztecViking]

Sounds like what I happens when I don't relax enough when I play. Not relaxing enough can make you tense areas you don't really need to and cause inflammation where the un-needed tensing is occurring. I'm also a competitive swimmer and not relaxing enough is usually the cause of swimmers shoulder bursitis. The best swimmers actually are "relaxed" even when racing full bore.

My brother's a golfer and he claims the longest shots are done when relaxed. It's not muscle tension or strain that actually makes the shots go longer. Same principles also apply to playing an instrument. You'll get a lot more out of playing an instrument "aggressively" if you can do it when relaxed. Sounds contradictory but it isn't. With too much strain you end up fighting yourself and then comes the injury.

Also look into Tai Chi. That's all about active relaxation.

 

[duncan_guitars]

Rest, warm up, then play with confidence. That's it.

 

[Bondobass]

3. As others have said, try to play without the thumb behind your neck. Very very good practice.

So this would be like a "let go from the shoulder" feeling? Where there is no thumb to clamp the fingers to the fret board.

Jammie speaks in-depth about this subject. Check out:
GUITAR PRINCIPLES | Jamie Andreas | Creator of the Principles of Correct Practice for Guitar

It's not just for guitar, theories here can be applied to any stringed instrument, IMHO.

 

[Bondobass]

And I am not affiliated nor do I get any kick backs. I am only a believer in her writings and theories. Nowhere have I found info like this where anyone makes connection between how the mind/body acts and the guitar reacts in this intricate way.

Hell, sign up for the newsletter, it's free.

 

[Bondobass]

I seriously believe all day use of a computer mouse is detrimental to wrist health. Lots a people getting surgery because of it. Thinking if I dug ditches for a living, my arms, wrist and hands would be better off. Who knows.

 

[Badwater]

I'm no doctor, and don't even play one on TV. But there is a lot of difference between nerve pain and muscle pain. You should get it checked out by a MD. And see what recommendations they have. Better to address the issue early on. Or hope it gets better as time goes on.

 

[buldog5151bass]

1. Good technique.
2. Build up stamina. Don't overdo it.

 

[el murdoque]

Stretching was the key for me. Prickly fingers, cold sweaty hands and tennis elbow were my main problems.
I realized than when i trained Wing Tsun (Martial arts) one day, where we did a lot of wrist stretching stuff, the problems got actually a lot better. I nearly did not go training that day because i overdid pracitcing bass before and my arm was in bad shape. I did not want to stress it further, but also not miss out so i opted to go and just have a word with the trainer so i can take it easy when i get problems. I guess that was why he did a lot of wrist-related stretching that day - and i'm grateful for that.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

I seriously believe all day use of a computer mouse is detrimental to wrist health.

Normally I use my right hand for the mouse, but today I was helping someone with their laptop & for some reason I can't use a trackpad with my right hand
Cut to later in the evening when I picked up my bass & immediately after playing bass just a wee bit, my arm was bad enough to almost want to put it in a sling.

The cramps in my arm come & go throughout the week, but this evening's are the worst I've experienced in a while & it's extremely disconcerting.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

I swear, sometimes I think I can't win for losing...
Doctor said to try Glucosamine, & I started that as well as fish oil, which helped.

Been ramping up my playing little by little, 45 minutes here, 45 minutes there, sometimes getting 3 hours/day.
but then when I sit here at night watching TV & doing nothing, my forearm starts aching

 

[Killed_by_Death]

Been managing this for years, but it finally crept back up on me. It's odd, a stretch is what put me here, a 5-2-fret pull-off in a song I'm learning.
Ironically I was able to accomplish the stretch today using the Bill Wyman position:

almost immediately afterwards my arm started showing tennis-elbow symptoms again

Didn't play all weekend, allowing my arm to recover from last week's aching. Been trying all sorts of stretching techniques since the beginning of the year, only just resting it helps.
I worked through it last time with the Wyman method & a stretching technique I learned.

 

[jsbachonbass]

Could be your ulnar nerve which runs from the inside of the elbow to your ring/pinky fingers. Look up exercises for ulnar tunnel and carpal tunnel on youtube and see if they help. I had surgery on both on my left arm about 17 years ago and it helped. My whole hand would go numb or feel like it was on fire sometimes.

Yes, its called Cubital Tunnel Syndrome. I developed it back in 2011 in my right arm, and I couldnt pluck the strings with my first finger correctly. It causes weakness between thumb and first finger, making motions like turning a key in a doorlock difficult. Also causes numbness/tingling between 3rd and 4th finger. It took me a year after surgery before I could play again. If bad enough, can causes permanent muscle wasting.

Be careful with your forearm and elbows as well as your wrists.

 

[juggahnaught]

Could be your ulnar nerve which runs from the inside of the elbow to your ring/pinky fingers. Look up exercises for ulnar tunnel and carpal tunnel on youtube and see if they help. I had surgery on both on my left arm about 17 years ago and it helped. My whole hand would go numb or feel like it was on fire sometimes.

I had this hit me in my last gig with my plucking hand. It was awful. My hands were cold pre-show and I did warm up my fingers a bit, and I rubbed my arms and loosened them up, but man. Not ideal.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

I've been struggling with tennis-elbow since the beginning of the year & now that it's February I've decided to do something about it.
It's an inflammation, because Meloxicam takes away the pain, but I don't dare try to play bass while on Meloxicam, because then my symptoms will just be worse when the drug wears off.

Have an appointment to see a G.P., but that's not for almost two weeks. I'll be putting my arm to the test tomorrow however, tenderizing some pork jerky.