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Had to go home at lunchtime today. Too much pain I was grinding my teeth. Now just come out of a private Physiotherapists as I couldn’t wait until Thursday. All taped up and feeling a lot better. So far he thinks it’s more muscular and postural. Maybe a little arthritis too but he’s improved my range of movement and reduced the pain. Ice ice baby for the next couple of days and back to see him a Friday.
Ok, so doctor has set up an Xray for tomorrow and a steroid injection for Saturday. Then we’ll look at surgical or physio referrals. Thank you NHS! I’ve also got a private physio tomorrow as the muscles in my neck and back are really knotted. Hopeful I will be feeling better after the injection.
an x-ray, not some kind of soft tissue scan? that's surprising to me, as it's a lot more likely you tore a muscle than broke a bone, but hopefully the doctor knows his business. good luck with the steroid injection... which makes me think the doctor expects this to be a soft tissue injury, which makes me wonder again why he ordered an x-ray.
hope you're feeling better soon!
Hmm, suspicious. The working assumption is that it may be arthritis or bone overgrowth. If not I’ll be referred to a specialist. Probably an NHS triage thing - rule out the cheapest options before we use the expensive machines. At least she’s covering all bases. Also Xrays can be done next day whereas I could be waiting weeks for a scan.
i'm not awake and i'm sick, so i didn't think of it, but it does make sense to check for arthritis. that's why she's the doctor and i'm the sick bass player
Had the Steroid injection yesterday. Didn’t hurt any more than a blood test. I’d read horror stories of foot long needles and people fainting and puking but this was nothing like that. Honestly can’t feel any difference or improvement at all. No increased range of movement, nothing. I’ve heard it can get more painful for 24-48 hours. All I know is I had a thumping headache about 2 hours afterwards and was suddenly really tired. I slept for around 90 minutes and felt better. Pain in shoulder is back to where it was originally - sharp pain around the joint. All the additional knotted muscle has settled down a lot mainly thanks to the physio and icing. This improvement happened before the injection. So I’m waiting for the X ray results next week and still off the bass.
I've had hozone injected in my back many years ago and the needle was huge. It worked pretty well though.
That’s what I was told to expect by my physio. Not convinced the doctor did a good job to be honest. I’ll wait for the X Ray result and then I’ll either get a proper physio program or a surgical consultation. The pain is manageable, but the limited activities (no bass, no mountain bike, limited cooking, driving etc.) is frustrating.
I feel your frustration, believe me. I was diagnosed with L5-S1 herniated disk when I was around 20 years old and I started having lots of problems despite my little wight, so I started getting those injections that helped a lot, as well as swimming, physio, stretching and limited/prudent gym activity to develop back muscles. I'm 41 now and never had major problems since then, but I must keep myself in good shape and constantly watch my movements in certain situations. Good luck and keep us posted.
I’d read 24/48 hours so I guess I’m jumping the gun a bit. Just frustrated because I keep waking up in pain when I move in the night.
The injection began to work on Sunday night. Such a relief. But... I’ve still needed painkillers this week. Mostly if I’ve had to type or use the mouse a lot at work. Then on Thursday the smoke alarm went off at home while I was cooking bacon. Had to reach up and twist it to get it down and turn it off. In my panic I forgot to use my left arm. It’s been almost back to square one since then. Lord knows how bad it would feel if so hadn’t had the injection.
X Ray results are clear for arthritis which is a relief. Still don’t have a proper diagnosis yet though. So back to the doctors in 2 weeks when I’ll push for a scan. The NHS don’t generally offer this unless you push for it. Often they’ll send you to physio and hope for the best. But how can you treat it if you don’t know what you’re treating? So I’ve made a private appointment with a very good osteopath for Tuesday to get his diagnosis first. Anyway, still off the bikes and the bass (I have picked it up a couple of times for a very short noodle - it’s like a drug sitting there tempting me!). Back on the co-codamol (codeine) in the meantime.
X Ray results are clear for arthritis which is a relief. Still don’t have a proper diagnosis yet though. So back to the doctors in 2 weeks when I’ll push for a scan. The NHS don’t generally offer this unless you push for it. Often they’ll send you to physio and hope for the best. But how can you treat it if you don’t know what you’re treating? So I’ve made a private appointment with a very good osteopath for Tuesday to get his diagnosis first. Anyway, still off the bikes and the bass (I have picked it up a couple of times for a very short noodle - it’s like a drug sitting there tempting me!). Back on the co-codamol (codeine) in the meantime.
physical therapy can help, but if you have a tear in a muscle or more than one, it could make things worse.
what i did when i could barely play is got a ubass - i got an acoustic version, but the solid body is nice and thin. you can get metal wrapped strings for them, and if you play them sitting, you can position yourself so you don't have to reach over the body beause it's so thin.
there's the rondo music version, too. they're out of the solid body version, but maybe you can find one used.
Rondo Music Bass Guitars
the acoustic version available on amazon for more money
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I went through excruciating right shoulder pain because the bass i was playing was causing me to lift my right shoulder about an inch. Went through several $$ for sports massage and was referred to a doc for a possible torn rotator cuff.
I switched basses and the pain went away in a week.
I posted this several months back.
=================================================
I regularly switch hands for my computer. If you're just clicking on the web and not doing intense graphics work, you should have no trouble getting used the using your other hand with the mouse.
Thanks for the suggestion but that is one of the things I can’t do. Any reaching or load bearing with arm outstretched is really painful and makes it worse. I can’t get my arm straight up, either in front of me or to the side.
Thanks. I forgot to reply to Jimmy earlier in the thread about weight. I have a very light Ibanez 7lbs 11oz and a heavier Lakland Skyline. I play both sitting and standing, I’ve tried shorter strap and longer. Longer helped my wrist angle but short seems better for this. Hopefully I’ll get a proper diagnosis tomorrow.
