Double Bass Playing DB with frozen shoulder?

[atomicbass]

Greetings,

Haven't posted in years, but I'm looking for advice and sympathy. Had rotator cuff surgery on my right (bowing) shoulder in Sept, been doing PT for 1 month, and tried playing bass for the first time yesterday. Hurt like **** afterwards, but my student asked me to play for him, so what could I say?

My surgeon says I'm getting a frozen shoulder. I've laid off bass playing for about 6 months (including 4 months prior to surgery), and just can't stand NOT playing any more!

I'm wondering if anyone out there has the same problem, and what have you done about it?

Thanks.
PS. I'm a 50-something female...and it's my dominant shoulder/arm.

 

[logans59]

Since I'm going to school to become a Physical Therapist, this post makes me cringe. The best thing for you to do is to keep up with PT to regain your strength/ range of motion from your surgery. Frozen shoulder is often caused by doing too much too fast, causing the biceps tendon to inflame. If you're only 1 month post-op, a few more weeks of going easy and keeping up with PT could get you back to normal, but if you do too much, you could be dealing with this problem for months, or even years.

 

[edmidlifecrisis]

Much sympathy from an electric player here. A good PT can help with that, during therapy sessions and with at-home exercises. I had that surgery one year ago. It's been a long trip back. I'm not an upright player (electric only) but it was still a long road back. My therapist was excellent, a doctorate in the field and works with many professional athletes, knows her stuff. Group PT won't cut it, you need individual PT sessions. Quick action can prevent permanent problems. Good luck and most importantly, DO THE AT HOME STUFF YOUR THERAPIST TELLS YOU TO. If it is passive only, stay passive.

I just saw logan's post and think it is great!!

 

[jaff]

Add occasional acupuncture treatments to your physical therapy routine. This can further stimulate circulation in the affected region, while stimulating brain endorphines and the immune system.

 

[notabene]

I have had chronic (right) shoulder pain for over ten years since surgery to tighten a shoulder that had dislocated 5 times. Traded chronic pain for occasionally excruciating pain (dislocation). Strengthening (rubber bands) exercise seems to help a little. But two of the things I enjoy most, bicycling and bass playing, both arco and pizz cause next day's pain increase. When I am enjoying life most, playing and cycling, the pain is pretty continuous. For me, acceptance of how important these activities are for me makes me grin and bear it. Ibuprovin or asperin may help, but I am now trying acetomenephin. Good luck.

 

[powerbass]

Adhesive Capsulitis is the medical term for frozen shoulder and it is common after shoulder trauma/surgery. As logans59 pointed out you need to continue w/PT otherwise you will loose further mobility and have increasing pain. Requesting more PT from your primary care MD is important. Rehabing shoulders is tricky, there are a lot of muscles and the shoulder has a large range of movement - progress is measure in many months to years. A PT can help get you on a home mobility/exercise routine that you will do faithfully! Bowing is painful because it requires significant rotator cuff activation - you have scar tissue that is making movement painful. See your doctor

 

[atomicbass]

Wow, these are all great comments! I appreciate the fast responses. Good to know other bassists out there know about this condition! I see my PT 3X per week (really painful afterwards!), but sometimes get lazy at home and don't do my "homework" stretches. Think I'll warm up my shoulder right now and get to my stretches....

 

[StyleOverShow]

Logan59 seems to have the right answer, PT and lay off. If you want to play try an ebg, not the same thing but the shoulder positioning makes it easier (IMO). Hurt my shoulder putting the finishing touches on a kitchen remodel, several years ago,and had to leave the big boy in the corner for six months. Sleeping was 'not easy' either. My sympathies...

 

[atomicbass]

Thanks, Style. Dr. said I could start playing DB now...officially (9 weeks post-op for rotator cuff surgery)! However, no heavy lifting, so I think I have to find a roadie... As for pain after playing, Dr. said I just need to do my stretches, and then more stretches, and then follow up with some more stretching after that... I guess that is the treatment for frozen shoulders, just tons of stretching in-between bass playing. Not a lot of fun. :-(

 

[freshbass]

Greetings,

Haven't posted in years, but I'm looking for advice and sympathy. Had rotator cuff surgery on my right (bowing) shoulder in Sept, been doing PT for 1 month, and tried playing bass for the first time yesterday. Hurt like **** afterwards, but my student asked me to play for him, so what could I say?

My surgeon says I'm getting a frozen shoulder. I've laid off bass playing for about 6 months (including 4 months prior to surgery), and just can't stand NOT playing any more!

I'm wondering if anyone out there has the same problem, and what have you done about it?

Thanks.
PS. I'm a 50-something female...and it's my dominant shoulder/arm.

I don't have frozen shoulder but I do have degenerative osteo arthritis in my left shoulder that is now a bone on bone joint and was originally diagnosed as frozen shoulder. Since I'm right handed that means it's my neck hand side, and my right is not much better, nor is my lower back or hands. These are not conditions that will improve but will one day require corrective surgery. This all makes it impossible to play my upright bass "correctly" but I still play pizzicato by using a bass stool to "sit" and resting the lowered bass (2nd endpin notch) into my thigh at a roughly 30 degree angle , thus giving me full fingerboard access, and I play w/ low action and a light touch. Rather than move from my shoulders I keep them both tucked in to my side and move from my elbow with my left hand and keep my right elbow at varying angles and pluck further up the fingerboard than is normal ala Michael Moore . This lowers the volume you can achieve w/o an amp but who plays w/o an amp now unless they are in an orchestra? I do play arco as relaxed as I can and move my right arm to the end of the fingerboard so the bow has clearance. I don't play arco much except for practicing from the simandl method book and occasional intros and endings in jazz. I don't play classical or solo with the bow... yet. For standing I would recommend Emilio Guarino's Chromatic Endpin. And finally, whatever works to allow one to continue to play is right, even on electric where I have gravitated back to light short scale hofner basses.

 

[LouisF]

John Hay has a version in carbon fiber that is very sturdy: BeginPin Plus – John Hay Enterprises LLC

HOWEVER: as someone who had to relearn how to play the bass after having 5 of the vertebrae in my neck rebuilt with titanium pins (!), IMO and IME --

IF you have neck and shoulder issues, the bent endpin is a problem rather than a solution (again from my trial and error experience during rehab etc); the angled pin throws the weight of the bass (even slightly, depending on your set-up) onto the shoulder, which is the LAST thing you want -- even if it is the LEFT shoulder (in OP's case, not the frozen one), as it will twist you slightly out of alignment, and this is not good. Of course, if the left shoulder is the bad one, even worse!

My solution (and I'm only saying this is what I have found works for me) is to sit on a low (24") stool, with a straight endpin out about 1/2 and inch; the bass is centered, my shoulders are back (and even), right arm bowing is close to the body and left arm position changes are done without ever raising or lifting the shoulder (or squeezing it at the neck) (See blue light photo). Like I say, this works for me. Rehab was very slow -- 3 months before I could even hold the bass; but that was almost 10 years ago and I am, at the age of 75, still playing in several community orchestras. (I've sort of modeled it on the Vienna basses in the other photo)

 

[turf3]

I have two shoulders with painful impingements and as a consequence I play the bass a couple inches lower than standard. This makes it difficult to play arco as low as I need to, but due to my ape-like arm length I can pizz where I need to. Since 99%+ of my playing is pizz (I practice quite a bit with the bow), it's worked out OK.