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For the past few months I've been bothered by some
aching in the forearm muscles on the tops of my arms
near the elbows. I've been trying to think what caused
it, and the best that I can figure is that I strained the
muscles and tendons last fall when I had to spend a lot
of time carrying our poor 70 lb. dog, who was having
trouble walking up and down the stairs from our house
to the street.
The big problem is that I'm a pianist, and I'm afraid by
continuing to practice I'm prolonging the healing
process--and yet of course I hate to go too long without
spending time at the piano. I've been cutting down my
practice time significantly, and practicing much less
strenuously. In addition, I've seen a doctor who
recommended some simple arm braces that cushion
the area near my elbows, which I wear as often as I
can, even when playing sometimes. I've also had a
nurse friend recommend that I gently stretch and warm
the muscles up before practicing, and even put some
Miracle Ice on them, and then ice the areas after
practicing. About two weeks ago I started taking some
extra Vitamin C and Glucosamine as recommended on
this website, and in fact I take a tablet that combines
Glucosamine and boswellia, which I also saw
recommended here. I also have been going to a
Hellerwork practitioner regularly for years, and those
sessions are very beneficial.
I'm just wondering if there's anything else I can do, if I'm
crazy to try to practice at all, that kind of thing. If it's just
going to take 6 months to go away I can live with that,
but most importantly I don't want to put myself in a
position where it just never goes away. Any ideas?
Rich
In Reply to: tennis elbow/tendonitis posted by Rich on April 03, 2001 at 21:21:49:
I have suffered with this before & don't think there is any short/magic cure....
Best recommendations are:
ICE, stretching, HEAT, and transverse friction massage to stimulate the blood flow.
Tendonitis takes a LONG time to heal--- it can be prevented if you stretch/warm uo good beforehand; but once you have it, it takes long to heal.....
Be patient, don't overdo it & do the 4 things,,,,,
good luck Rob
In Reply to: tennis elbow/tendonitis posted by Rich on April 03, 2001 at 21:21:49:
Hi, Rich.
The chances are that, if you do not do something very different, that this is not ever going to clear up.
If I were in your situation, I would find a good Rolfer or Hellerworker AND start practicing Alexander Technique OR Feldenkrais for the rest of my life.
Also, if you are not already practicing an effective SR you need to do that to permanently deal with the bracing that invariably contributes to this problem.
See the glossary for any unfamiliar terms.
Let us know how you do & what you learn.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: tennis elbow/tendonitis (in a professional piano player) posted by Walt Stoll on April 05, 2001 at 10:09:52:
Well...that's certainly a frightening forecast. When you
say "if you do not do something very different", are you
referring to just outright stopping playing for awhile? I
have read that serious rest for the tendons and
muscles is about the only real solution when coupled
with various other therapies.
I do actually see a great Hellerworker and have been
doing so for several years--this problem is relatively
new and we are definitely attempting to work with it at
the sessions. Interestingly enough I also did quite a
bit of work on Alexander technique a couple of years
ago and was thinking of going back to work on that
again, since it had a tremendous positive effect on my
posture at the piano. (I even did some Feldenkrais
back in the 80's and found it very useful, but lost touch
with the teacher since then.) I also picked up the
Stress Reduction Workbook you recommend and have
been reading through that this past week, but I'm still
just in the early parts of the book.
Are these techniques the kind of thing you're referring to
as far as doing something different, or again does it
come down to stopping playing?
In Reply to: Re: tennis elbow/tendonitis (in a professional piano player) posted by Rich on April 05, 2001 at 14:05:37:
Hi, Rich.
You are doing some of the right things. I hope you will soon find the SR that works for you. You are far ahead of most people with chronic tendonitis. I would suggest considering adding the magnesium dimension (see the archives).
Pick which (Alexander Technique OR Feldenkrais) you prefer and become a real student of the technique--ask your Hellerworker.
You MAY have to stay away from playing for a while to get ahead of the curve---although I doubt it.
Let us know how you do.
Namaste`
Walt
In Reply to: Re: tennis elbow/tendonitis (in a professional piano player) (Archive.) posted by Walt Stoll on April 07, 2001 at 09:48:10:
Thanks, I'll check out the magnesium info in your
archives. I think I'll go back to my Alexander teacher,
and meanwhile continue with everything else I'm doing
(or avoiding). I'll let you know how things go in a couple
of months. I'm already finding the Stress Reduction
Handbook interesting and valuable.
Rich
In Reply to: Re: tennis elbow/tendonitis (in a professional piano player) (Archive.) posted by Walt Stoll on April 07, 2001 at 09:48:10:
In the interest of getting as much information as I could,
I went to a sports medicine/orthopedic specialist today
to find out if I really have what I think I have. In his
opinion, after examining me, I do not have tendonitis or
tennis elbow, but compressed radial nerves in each
arm. (The tenderness is in the radial tunnel and not in
any of the areas around the elbow that would involve
tendonitis.) He has set me up for a diagnostic test
which involves some electrodes and needles in my
arm to shoot electricity through and find out if this is
indeed the case. If it is, he insists there is nothing to do
but surgery--"nerve release" in my arms.
As you might imagine, if this is indeed the case it's
pretty frightening, and I'm wondering if you have any
knowledge that might help. In particular, I'm hoping that
perhaps non-invasive procedures like acupuncture and
continuing with the Hellerwork could help this situation,
or is that just wishful thinking. I'm sure not interested in
having someone cut into my arms and mess with the
nerves. I'm going to get at the very least a second
opinion on the diagnosis and possible treatment(s),
but I'd be interested to know what you think my options
are, if this does turn out to be the problem. Thanks.
Rich
In Reply to: Re: tennis elbow/tendonitis (in a professional piano player) (Archive.) posted by Rich on April 09, 2001 at 20:46:34:
Hi, Rich.
I would bet that this guy never even heard of Hellerwork, SR, low intracellular magnesium or Alexander Technique.
"To a hammer, everything looks like a nail."
Let us know what these tests show. IF the guy is right, and he likely is, about the diagnosis (not the surgery) all this means is that this will be easier to clear up with these approaches than tendonitis which would have been a further extension of the causitive process.
IF the nerve is involved as he suspects, 100 Balanced B Complex twice a day will likely help the symptoms and rate of healing of the nerve. Certainly could not hurt.
Walt
Hope this helps.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: tennis elbow/tendonitis (in a professional piano player) (Archive.) posted by Walt Stoll on April 11, 2001 at 08:41:11:
Thanks for the good words, I'll continue with those
approaches while I investigate this further.
Just as a side issue, I have to say this guy had the
absolute worst bedside manner I've seen in my life--he
basically talked to his assistant (or into a hand-held
memo recorder) ABOUT me and not TO me the whole
time. Most of it was medical jargon which he did not
bother to explain, and he actually walked out of the
room as I was asking him what the diagnostic test he
was recommending involved--I had to get the answer
from his assistant. I was in his office for an hour and
fifteen minutes and I would say that he actually spent
about 5 minutes with me, most of it talking to someone
else and avoiding eye contact with me. My wife's
response was, "Well, the worst diagnosis and
recommendations I ever got were from a doctor with the
worst bedside manner I ever experienced, so I certainly
wouldn't take this information as gospel."
I feel much better knowing that there's at least some
hope of improvement with a combination of
non-invasive methods.
Rich
In Reply to: Re: tennis elbow/tendonitis (in a professional piano player) (Archive.) posted by Rich on April 11, 2001 at 12:37:12:
Thanks, Rich!
Only a monopoly............
Another reason why the monopoly has to fall.
Namaste`
Walt
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