fretting hand (left hand) arm pain and remedy.

[tofuhippo]

I am having trouble with my left forearm cramping up and becoming painful as well as my hand cramping and becoming painful at the pinky tarsal and metatarsal bones. Does anybody else have this and what have you done to make it go away?

[John Flynn]

I have had left hand problems also. Unfortunately, there are no easy answers: This is what I have done, and what I recommend:
1. Get an orthopedic hand specialist to check it out. He may or may not be able to prescribe quick relief, but the key is making sure there is not a serious problem going on.
2. Do the stretches on musicianshealth.com as often as you can, at the very least everytime before you play. These really help!
3. Get a professional set up on your mando and go with a lighter gauge set of strings. T-I mediums would be a good choice, at least until the problem settles down.
4. Work on lowering the pressure you use to press down the strings when you play. Most of us play with too much pressure. It can not only cause injuries, but it limits your playing and wears out your frets.

Also, keep in mind that with hands, everything is connected in a series of "pulleys and levers." The spot where the pain is may not be the same spot where the cause is. For instance, too much finger pressure can cause forearm problems.

[mandogrouch]

I had a nice case of tendonitis in my right forearm a while ago. Serious pain in the forearm! The therapist I went to indicated that it could have been from playing as I don't participate in any of the sports that agrivate the tendons there. The remedy was along the lines of what Johnny was talking about but there are exercises that go along with the stretching. My problems went away, and stayed away mainly because I stuck with the stretching and strength training. You must start off slow, apply heat before, and ice down after you do the stretches and exercises. It'll evenually get worse if you don't take care of the problem now. You should be able to track down a therapist who can help you. In my area there is a Hand Therapy group and they were wonderful.

[Obsessive Monkey]

No pain in my left arm, yet!

However I tore a ligament in my left thumb about five years ago and my thumb really aches when I play...

I guess I'll be going to some kind of doctor about it fairly soon.

[tofuhippo]

Thanks for the help, the musicianshealth site is informative. I'll start doing these stretches.