Should i pop my blisters or what?

[sawzalot]

Try using chocolate milk made from 70% Cacao Organic Dark Chocolate.

Seriously, I've been playing for 25 years and I've never once had a blister. In fact the callouses I get, if you want to call them that, are really just a little toughening of the skin on my picking fingers. Almost no callouses/toughening on my fretting hand. So I'm a little curious about your technique--or it really is the chocolate milk.

In all seriousness, one way to test it would, of course, be to eliminate the chocolate milk without changing anything else.

Tom

 

[InhumanResource]

What's with all the dairy talk? I eat/drink dairy all the time and my fingers don't blister. Once in a great while I'll get one on my feet from walking in the wrong shoes for too long.

 

[Morris2103]

I'm either really tired.. or this thread makes absolutely no sense?

 

[InhumanResource]

I'm either really tired.. or this thread makes absolutely no sense?

I mean, I thought I had it down and we were just talking about blister management. I kind of glazed over the chocolate milk thing in the OP since it is totally insane. Either the dairy references are sarcastic or there's this whole milk-blister relationship that has eluded me for my entire life.

 

[Ric5]

I keep getting blisters lately, (most likely from my craving for chocolate milk) and i'm not sure what the proper and healthy thing is to do. Is it okay to pop them? I cannot imagine playing with the blister still on....

And a side question: Any way to prevent blisters besides avoiding choco milk? Do blisters show up from bad technique or is it normal to get them often?

Do so manual labor to toughen up the skin on your fingers. Also using a pick can save your finger tips.

 

[RickyWoo]

Don't pop them. Play your bass with them. You'll be able to hammer in nails with your finger tips with the callouses you'll develop.

 

[fhm555]

I've always peeled the skin off blisters I got from playing. It hurts for a minute but that's about it. A bigger problem was the fluid weeping out of them, but submerging them in peroxide or lacquer thinner for a few minutes will dry them up for a couple of hours.

 

[RickyWoo]

I've always peeled the skin off blisters I got from playing. It hurts for a minute but that's about it. A bigger problem was the fluid weeping out of them, but submerging them in peroxide or lacquer thinner for a few minutes will dry them up for a couple of hours.

I do not suggest soaking an open wound with lacquer thinner or any solvents, for that matter. Highly toxic stuff there man.

 

[johnson79]

What's the best chocolate milk for metal?

 

[Oddly]

What's the best chocolate milk for metal?

Dammit. I was just about to ask that!

 

[bucephylus]

Blisters on the pizz fingers and thumb can certainly be an issue; and I am actually kind of surprised by all the bashing I'm reading here. That's unfortunate. I do not believe that any player doing any kind of gigging and playing pizz or slap does not run into it. This is a pretty big deal if you are gigging somewhat regularly.

Blisters on the right hand are an even bigger deal on upright, where projection requires more pizz energy, hence heat, in the finger tips/edges. The cats who are on the road with the Jazz gigs eventually develop bunyans. When I do jazz gigs on upright, I even have gotten blisters underneath my callouses; which is a major pain in the neck, because you then lose the callous. And, that's a big deal on a three or four set improv gig. I have seen cats who can't play enough wrap their fingertips with adhesive tape. It's a battle.

Electric bass is easier to maintain callouses; and generally playing into blisters on bass guitar is a sign of over playing and not allowing the instrument to do the work for you. In any case, even that does happen to me from time to time.

I am not advocating this procedure; but, what I do is grab the thinnest sewing needle I can locate in the house, sterilize it with a butane flame, and then lance the edge of the blister closest to my palm to drain the fluid. I try to keep the fluid drained, which can require repeated lancing. Sometimes, the overlying callous will somewhat re-adhere to the underlying dermis. The objective is to keep the overlaying callous in place as long as possible to allow the underlayer to begin toughening up. And it's important to keep your hands clean and needle sterilized to avoid infection. User beware; as stated, I'm not advocating this procedure, that's just what I do.

As to chocolate milk, I'll take mine in a 3 shot mocha, thank you very much.

 

[Worldeeeter]

What's the best chocolate milk for metal?

This - it's the best chocolate milk for EVERYTHING. Even stoner/doom.

 

[Fat Freddy]

This - it's the best chocolate milk for EVERYTHING. Even stoner/doom.

View attachment 891233

That stuff will give you blisters if you're not careful

 

[INTP]

Sounds like a plan!

My experience is that CA is exothermic while it is curing (i.e. it gives off heat). You may not notice this if you just get a bit of the thin stuff on your skin, but if you have a concentrated volume of it, it gets quite hot, very quickly. If it contacts anything that acts as an accelerant (including water-based liquids) the heat will be even more intense. Suppose you put a drop or two under the flap of a blister, and it combines with the blister fluid which would act as an accelerant...that would literally burn.

 

[GuiTuber]

I just got my first real blister last night. I already have some callous so I was surprised the blister formed. But, thinking back, I did play a little hard last night and I did turn up to try to compensate, but the blister was inevitable.

I've gotten small blisters in the past that would a little fluid for a few hours but by morning, it was gone. This one ain't going away and I have a gig this afternoon and again Monday evening.

I'm hesitant to pop it because I don't want my playing today to rip off the protective layer. I'm thinking I'll just leave the blister as is, turn it up and play softly (if I can).

I don't drink chocolate milk very often, but I actually did have some yesterday morning. Hmmmmm

 

[el_Bajo_Verde]

So, for those that do get blisters - are there any warning signs that one should look out for? Are there any symptoms that one could notice and then decide to take a break for a few days to avoid the formation of a blister?

 

[Shortie]

So, for those that do get blisters - are there any warning signs that one should look out for? Are there any symptoms that one could notice and then decide to take a break for a few days to avoid the formation of a blister?

Before a blister forms, your fingertips will be red and sore - it's like a friction burn going from first to second degree. You don't have to take off from playing - should not take off - get some new skin: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] , play through it and you'll develop some good callouses.

 

[Shortie]

My experience is that CA is exothermic while it is curing....

Uhhh - yeah - that's what I said.

 

[GuiTuber]

I left my blister alone and played through yesterday's gig without a hitch. I turned up my amp much higher than I usually do and I played very gingerly and it all worked out.

The blister was really no worse off than it was the night before. In fact, it may have even been in slightly better shape than it was after Friday night's gig. And this morning, the fluid is gone, the tenderness is almost gone and the callous I already had seems to have improved.

I've only been playing bass for just under two years. Everything is a learning experience but I learned a valuable lesson through this. I've always been afraid of playing too loud, i.e. my amp turned up too high. I'm kind of a natural hard player. But I learned that I could turn up and take it easy and play just fine. I know it's an obvious thing for seasoned players, but it's a great experience to learn things first hand.

 

[Tom Bomb]

I think, once you go beyond the limit, you will get blisters. I've often drained them, the way INTP describes (#6), with limited success. Most often the surface skin dies, dries, and peels away anyway. Developing resilience, toughness, is the go - same kind of thing as building fitness and stamina, almost. Start cautiously, never overdo it, and work up to 'match fitness'.

I've discovered recently that a little dab of neat tea tree oil on the tips of sore fingers, after a good stint, really helps. This stuff gets in, goes right through the surface, and helps to calm any irritation. It's not a good idea to lean on this stuff too much, though. Put the brakes on before you suffer the dreaded blister. Bottom line - nothing's gonna save you if you go too far, except healing time and a lay-off. The more you play, over time, the better off you'll be.