Man my thumb hurts!

[Televised]

I have arthritis... and darn the luck if it hasn't set up camp in my left thumb. It's a real bugger after playing the guitar for about an hour and feels like I been stung by a bee. Are there any tricks of the trade like wearing gloves?, wraps?, heavy drinking?, with any of you folks that have had this or do I just man up and quit being such a weenie about it?

[1977CJ5]

About 5 years ago, I was sitting in a chair watching TV, and all of a sudden it felt like someone stuck a hot poker in my left thumb joint. For the next 6 months I could not even even hold car keys or anything that I had to use my thumb for. Needless to say, I did not even attempt to play my guitar. If I extended my thumb it went from a hot pain to an excruciating pain like it had been hit with a hammer. I finally went to a hand doctor, he said the x-ray showed my joint was suffering from some arthritis. I questioned the extreme pain, and he said everyone was different. He had his assistant make me a thumb brace/splint. I wore it for 3 months everyday. When I finally stopped wearing it, I slowly tried to start using my thumb again. About 3 months after removal, I started playing my guitars again, slowly... It has never flared up like that again. There are times it will start to hurt a little, and I freak out. But, it goes away quickly.

I was 49 when that happened, now 54. Besides the brace, I quit drinking, stopped playing barre chords, and I stop playing if my thumb feels weird. I hate it, I am so afraid that it will flare up again.

Good luck, take care of yourself!

[garytelecastor]

I wouldn't just nut up and ignore it.
Make an appt with a Rheumatologist.
It could be arthritis or it could be linked to your shoulder, or your
back. Went through it myself.
Believe me it is worth the time and effort.

[PennyCentury]

Originally Posted by Televised

I have arthritis... and darn the luck if it hasn't set up camp in my left thumb. It's a real bugger after playing the guitar for about an hour and feels like I been stung by a bee. Are there any tricks of the trade like wearing gloves?, wraps?, heavy drinking?, with any of you folks that have had this or do I just man up and quit being such a weenie about it?

I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice.
Aleve or other NSAID pain/inflammation reducer has been known to help.
(unless you have been advised to avoid such medications).

Don't rule out that it might be a RSI (repetitive strain injury).
Heat or ice may help.

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LINK

[Televised]

Mine doesn't sound as bad as your's was but I think it's headed that way. Sounds like it's time to head to the friendly neighborhood MD. Like Dave Barry says, "If you can't see your doctor, at least send him some money!" Thanks for sharing your experience and you take good care yourself!

[Televised]

Geez I can't seem to keep up! Thanks again for everyone chiming in!

[Geoff738]

I was going to post about my wonky thumb, but you beat me to it.

So I'm gonna hijack a bit. Mine appears to be a tendonitis and/or nerve thing.If I put pressure on the back of certain places on my forearm I get it there and in my thumb. There's a little spot kinda on the inside side of my thumb that's at least partially numb as well. Reaching for stuff up high is also very ouchy.

I've had acupuncture (first time ever) for it and have been told to ice it. Which I'm not sure is helping, but I'm doing. I've been told physio might help, but that surgery might be required.

Definitely see a doctor. Pain is no fun.

Cheers,
Geoff

[Muku]

Man today I was singing the McClean's" The day the music died" on the way home from the hand Dr. My xray showed arthritis. His take home pamphlet says that once a thumb joint gets destabilized (stretched, torn etc....) arthritis can accelerate with the wear and tear of this injury.

6 months ago I went in and told him about a little pop that I had playing guitar with bad posture. I was reclining and had the neck up around my left shoulder pushing my thumb against the back of my neck. He then siad it was a strain sprain.


Today he handed me the thumb pamphlet, along with the xrays. showing the bad news. I just wish I never hyperextended or pushed it back so acutely. I saw Sabicas play in 1973 and didn't notice his 80 year old hand arthritis.....SUre wish there was more Dr. articles on hand injuries and guitar playing. After 40 years of playing.....I'm bummed.

Televised, please keep in touch as to your progress. I cannot play bar chords much either. My Dr. says eventually we can rebuild the joint but that's a year recovery.

Well the cortisone is just a try. Maybe I should go to 9's and flat radius for ultra low action. So much for Tele snaps.

If there is any splints, techniques or promising therapies please let me know.

[tboy]

How do you play? Classical style with your thumb planted on the back-center of the neck, or with the thumb wrapped around to grab the low E once in a while?

My thumb aches occasionally, and I switch to a wrap around style, letting the meat at the base of the thumb provide the pressure. The thumb just kind of hangs out in mid air, keeping the pressure off the joint. A small-thin neck is a boost here. It a bit of a sloppier style, but it works well enough for me when the old arthritis starts talkin to me.

[woodman]

my left thumb joint's been going downhill for 10 years now ... the doc sez it's plumb wore out from 40+ years of playing and there isn't much to be done short of surgery. the alternative is adapting my technique (like tboy, i do the thumb-over thing almost exclusively now, and i have to avoid some of the faux-steel licks i used to love) and taking a hefty dose of Advil before a gig.

my neck for the past two years is a USACG asymmetrical contour, and i've found the shallower shoulder on the finger side helps keep me from contorting the thumb so badly.

[telex76]

I can only play on a neck thats very thick. A thin neck makes my thumb hurt too much to play in about ten minutes. My nocaster neck is alright, but a soft V shape feels even better.

[squeezebox]

....And by that I mean lots of water.....less cartilage friction I think

My routine: Before lengthy practice session or gig, I take 2 or 3 Advil. (I always keep some in my guitar case) And drink lots of water during practice or gigs.

[Doug 54]

Mine will with my EJ Strat

[RomanS]

My thumb starts to hurt really bad only after a couple of minutes playing V-contour necks (man, I hate those), but that depends on playing style, hand size, etc.
Maybe try some Teles with different neck styles (thin, thick, V, C,...) to see what feels best, there's really no way to generalize here!

[BuddyLee]

Not sure what you have available in Oregon, but in California I get the Cannabis joint rub from the club. Stuff is magic.

It makes my elbow feel better after using the powder actuated tool all day. Way better than that Icy-Hot guff.

[octatonic]

A word about anti-inflammatory medication.

Systemic anti-inflammatory drugs like Naproxen are not very good for anything that involved tendons.
I had a steroidal anti-inflammatory injection about 2 weeks ago and it really worked great.

You could look at lighter strings and changing your technique to use less pressure when you play.

[rosett]

I started having osteoartritis pain in my left finger joints about 7 years ago. It started with my little finger, and it REALLY hurt! I went to a hand specialist, and he told me there was nothing he could do about it, but he gave me a tube of Capsaicin cream. It's a cream made from hot peppers that kind of burns the nerves into submission. I used it pretty agressively on my pinky, and it's helped alot. Lately, my middle and ring fingers have started in, and the capsaicin cream has helped them alot too. I highly recommend it, but make sure you get the high potency (0.1%), and make sure you don't get any in your eyes, or other sensitive areas.
I also had pretty severe tendonitis in my thumbs abot 15 years ago that made holding a flat pick pretty painful. I was treated with electronic muscle stimulation and ice. After about 6 weeks of treatment, I was better, and have never had any real problems with it since. I'm also using a 2.75 mm V-pick that I don't have to grip tightly.

[Teleagain]

There are many ways to treat your arthritis....

NSAIDs oral (Advil/Aleve, etc) or topical (Voltaren Gel) or Tylenol

supplements glucosamine, dried cherries, fish oil, all sorts of things

there are hard or soft splints but they would probably be hard to wear and play while wearing

Cortisone shots can decrease pain/swelling temporarily, maybe some day the FDA will approve some of the hyaluronic acid products (Hyalgan, Euflexxa) ( currently only FDA approved for the knee)

Surgery....fusion, gets rid of the joint/pain but you lose motion, there is at least one joint replacement (actually just replaces half the joint) but there are wear (longevity) and dislocation issues, and there is what we call the "anchovy interpositional arthroplasty" where you essentially remove the arthritis ends of the bones at the base of the thumb and put in a "spacer" of tendon....there is significant cast time and hand therapy

you usually start with the least invasive things and move up toward surgery

that kind of covers the range of options

your thumb does much of the work of the hand, the joint at the base of the thumb is probably undersized for the demands we place on it

"It's alway thumbthing"

[magicguitar]

Go see the Doc and find out what type of arthritis you have. Then a treatment plan can be made. I came down with a severe case of rheumatoid arthritis last year at this time. I was almost an invalid for about 2 weeks. This past January I was finally able to get in to see a rheumatologist (if it weren't for the front part of our wonderful health care system I would have seen the specialist SOONER). Within in 2 months most of my symptoms were gone. 3 months ago my Dr. wasn't pleased that I wasn't symptom free, so he put me on Humira. I use the pen in lieu of the syringe. So far I have taken two doses and am starting to notice that the lingering symptoms are starting to go away. He said I should be back to 'normal' (what ever that is) after 4 or 5 injections. Since I started getting treatment. I've not had a day that I couldn't play. So go see the Doc and find out what you have and get treated. The sooner the better, as the longer the inflammation and pain persist the more chance of joint damage and you really don't want that!

My regards!

[Teleagain]

I forgot hand/occupational therapy

paraffin baths..

ice...and probably a few other things as well

then there are the other "arthritises"...rheumatoid, psoriatic etc..medical (drug) therapies are possible for these type problems....

all this is for informational purposes only..x-rays/tests would determine what exactly is going on with your thumb.......

statistically, you probably have osteoarthitis (wear and tear)

see your healthcare provider

[a.miller]

I have a good amount of arthritis in my hip. I had always had what I thought was stiffness or muscle pain.

I went to the doctor and received a lot of info regarding joint degradation and how cartilage works, etc.

My doctor was very clear that there is no cure. However, he suggested taking Glucosamine on a daily basis. Honestly, my hip feels much better.

I would suggest trying this. The stuff ain't cheap, but it's least expensive at Costco.

[HOBBSTER01]

+++++1 on the perafin wax bath.
After a night of playing, I dip both hands at least one time per hour for 4 hours the following morning.
It will make a huge difference in dexterity if you have a big weekend of playing.

[Big John]

Originally Posted by PennyCentury

I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice.
Aleve or other NSAID pain/inflammation reducer has been known to help.
(unless you have been advised to avoid such medications).

Don't rule out that it might be a RSI (repetitive strain injury).
Heat or ice may help.

+1 so get help !!

[magicguitar]

According to my arthritis specialist Dr., he says that today most forms of arthritis can be put in complete remission and if caught early enough joint damage can be prevented. So far the ONLY form of arthritis that they have not been able to beat is osteoarthritis. Don't just go see a MD, get a referral if necessary, but go see an arthritis specialist. Most regular MD's only have a vague idea of how to treat arthritis in it's many forms and not enough knowledge to treat the disease effectively. Before I was able to see the specialist, my local MD put me on Methotraxate which is the first choice of drugs in the defense of Rheumatoid Arthritis, but at the onset of the disease the Methothraxate needs a boost to make it work properly. Once steroids were added, I saw results immediately. And 7 months later I still have some symptoms, so my Dr. added Humira to my treatment plan. So far I've only given myself 2 shots, but already notice some results as I was having lingering symptoms in my toes and knuckles of both hands. My Dr. said that I should be completely symptom free after 5 or 6 injections. Looking forward to that!

Again, good luck with your treatment.

[eddiewagner]

Originally Posted by tboy

I switch to a wrap around style, letting the meat at the base of the thumb provide the pressure. The thumb just kind of hangs out in mid air, keeping the pressure off the joint.

that is exactly what i am doing right now and it helps. after some weeks my thumbjoint seems to heal. my wife brought along some homöopathic pills (schüssler salt nr. 12) and i take those as well for a couple of weeks now.