Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Carpal Tunnel Syndrome/Tendonitis

Today I saw a specialist (third time I go to a doctor for this) and she said I have either CTS or Tendonitis. I am going to get checked out with another specialist tomorrow to narrow it down and finally get a diagnosis.

I have burning sensation and mild dull aches in my right hand and wrist, it gets worse from time to time.

May this serve as a reminder to all of you, fellow beginners. I used to secretly smile when I read about someone having hand pain while playing piano, to me it was the easiest thing to do but now since February I've had this problem with my hand which won't go away. I believe I caused it by attempting to play pieces that are not suitable for beginners, practicing for hours without taking breaks and from denying I have tension in my hands while playing. Going to the gym and lifting weights plus endless hours of FPS gaming... Now I've been re-thinking it all, and I'm careful when I play, I try to relax more, I take more breaks, I practice only an hour per day with a day off once per week. I've taken it up with my teacher and we are working on it. As for my gaming career, I think 17 years of gaming is more than enough and I'm done with it in favor of piano playing.

Starting today I'm dropping piano for a month in an attempt to rest the hand/s, I'm going to undertake some treatment and hopefully when I return, the uncomfortable feeling in my hand/s will be gone.

So take it easy, I know how good it feels to make fast progress, but don't do it at the expense of your hands, you will need them for a couple more decades (hopefully as much as possible) and hopefully you can spend that time playing the piano and enjoying the music :P

I never thought I'd be one of those people to have such a condition and only at 22 years of age :S

I hope you can manage the CTS and tendonitis issues Teodor. I wouldn't wish that stuff on anyone. Take the rest and get better.

Taking breaks and realizing that some things are not worth working on yet are the two biggest rules that people should adhere to. Even on days I play piano a lot, it's always in twenty minute spurts with lots of time in between. I've also learned to shelve pieces that are beyond my technique. If my hands feel tired after working on them for a bit I usually shelve them and work on something else.

My condolences. It is really easy to do this and never know it's coming, and then - bingo! There it is.

The good news is that it, very probably, be dealt with. I think you are right that it comes from tenseness often. It can also come from your computer mouse/keyboard being at the wrong height, the over-work, et al. But when I was first addressing this I also saw a physical therapist who had me doing posture and upper body exercises, and I think they helped a lot. I was in my 50's at the time, so I think at 22 you probably have much more rebound capability than I had, and i can still play.

But good luck - and take care. All is not lost - learn with your teacher about the tenseness, and from whatever the physical therapists teach (and I do hope you can get a referrel to a phyiscal therapist, and not just the "take time off from piano" recommendation. PT's can make a huge difference, bless them.)

Cathy

Teodor,
I hope you get it sorted out soon. Taking a month off is probably a good idea. It's not really that long, & you won't forget much. I'm speaking from experience, having just come back from more than a month of not playing - it took about a week to get back to where I'd been.

Oh, that's tough - but a very good decision on your part!

I had problems in my arm in January and I was FORBIDDEN to play for more than 15 minutes a day! And I had to do relaxation exercises. It was very frustrating, but my teacher said it is very easy to have a small problem turn into a big one.

You are very wise to be taking every precaution now, before the problem gets any worse.

I hope you'll still be around to chat with here in the forums!
Good luck with healing!

Sorry to hear this Teodor. Once you get a proper diagnosis, do try to find out what exercises or stretches you can do to help yourself.

I had carpal tunnel in my right hand which I put down to compression (using a small mouse when at computer). Stretching, including piano playing, actually helped.

Gaming may have been a big part of the problem, because it involves tiny repetitive movements, and you tend to get engrossed in the game and tense.

good luck in your recovery!

It's very smart to take thought to make the changes that will help you get well, and avoid a problem in the future.

I had played my whole life, and was up in my fifties when I acquired a similar problem. Never thought it would happen to me! But, I was able to get well with medical help and play now with no pain. You have my best wishes for a full recovery.

And yes, I had to take a break from playing for awhile... with a brand-new piano, just sitting there. It killed me!

Remember, you can make progress with your musical education during this time, without playing.

I started playing piano about two months ago and got carpal tunnel syndrome for both my hands recently! (Not to mention I've already had cubital tunnel syndrome before starting piano.) I felt tingling and muscular weakness over all of my fingers. I can totally understand how you feel. Actually I feel devastated the first time I experienced this newly developed symptoms after playing piano. I think that is caused by my overpractice and perhaps incorrect posture. I will have my first piano lesson tonight and hope that I will learn correct posture that will not aggravate my symptoms.

It's weird that I have no loss of strength in my hands, is it possible to have carpal tunnel/tendonitis and still be as strong as before? I have no tingling sensations. I've been trying to find out what's wrong since March when I first saw a doctor. Now my left hand is in bad shape too, my index finger hurts. Tomorrow is my last day at the piano as I need to tie some loose ends before I take that break, I have to arrange for my lessons with my new teacher who I'm to meet tomorrow. (I have a new teacher just for the summer months, because I'm in another town)

Hi Teodor,
Loss of muscular strength comes after numbness and tingling sensation. Your nerve damage is not as severe as mine. But it is also possible that yours is not carpal tunnel syndrome but tendonitis. Tendonitis does not weaken muscle as does capal tunnel syndrome. I think I'd rather get tendonitis than carpal tunnel syndrome if I can choose
Take a rest and do not practice too hard. That is what I am doing now.

What's weird is that when I am asleep and just before I wake up completely there is no pain, I can sit on my hand and it won't hurt but after I wake up completely it starts to feel bad.

The doc said I probably have both, the tendonitis caused the carpal tunnel syndrome which is right now a mild case but will get worse if left alone. She said she will prescribe medication only after seeing the results of the tests. I'm to get tested tomorrow with another specialist

I'll ask about physical therapy too.

I had CPS/tendonitis/tennis elbow when I was about 22 years old too. I, and a number of other in the music department also came down with this all at the same time. Stress was definitely a factor given the rigorous demands of learning repetoire within a certain time frame.

A friend of mine actually took the entire year off to heal. I myself had to restrict my repetoire to pieces for the left hand (Scriabin and a few others). In any event, with rest we all recovered. BUT, when I practice sometimes these days (I'm now in my 40's) I still get the same sensations. But, since my career doesn't depend on me performing, the condition goes away pretty quickly if I rest for a day or two.

So, take care, and be very mindful of your posture, relaxation, and breathing in order to lessen your stress on your body while playing.

Didn't you try to to some kind of one hand push-up with one finger and ended up hurting your hand?

I'm skeptical over practice is the case. At 22, plus the rather short duration of piano practice, being diagnosed with CPS is not something very likely.

I would think the problems were sparked by events outside of piano, andpracticing just exacerbated your symptoms.

Best wishes.

Well even so I have to take a break. I did only one of those pushups with only fingers by the way. And I did use to play pc games all day long before piano, so carpal tunnel is possible.

I get bouts of tenosynovitis in my right wrist - it first flared up when I was in my late teens, and working in an electrical shop (no piano at that time). I had to help lift washing machines up and down the stairs for a couple of weeks, and I think it was this that caused it in the first place.

Now, I think it is mostly aggravated by using the computer mouse too much. It basically makes the tendons in the side of wrist nearest my thumb very weak and tender - to the point where I find it difficult to lift a cup of coffee. Best thing for it is rest - playing piano doesn't seem to make it worse unless I practise way too much.

Just reading this thread makes my thumb hurt! Last year, at 39, I took up fingerstyle guitar and played until I got De Quervain Sydrome (like carpal tunnel, but on the thumb side).

I'm paranoid about reaggravating it, as I couldn't even turn a doorknob for several months, and had to give up guitar (and switch to piano). I had a corticosteroid injection, which worked much better than physiotherapy.

Now I keep several ice packs in the freezer, and whenever feel as much as a twinge I ice my wrist and then wrap with a tendor bandage after playing.

I don't know if this is good or bad news. A neurologist did a test and found no nerve damage or pinched nerves, no carpal tunnel syndrome. So it's probably tendonitis I guess. No real way to confirm it 100% as far as I know.

It is good news. For one thing, you have an answer, and that is valuable. So the object of treatment is to reduce the runaway inflammatory process and prevent the formation of scar tissue.

It is good that you have gotten on this quickly, that is a considerable help to your recovery.

I had my first symptom of CPS recently.

Definitely from using the mouse. My wrist was often red from the pressure of having it there for hours.

You can get mouse mats that have a support. A bits late for some of us now.