Wrist pain

[Nana_Ama]

Whenever I practice, I notice my right wrist begins to hurt.  This doesn't happen in my left wrist though?  Sometimes it happens when I type as well.  Do you know what could be causing this or do you have any suggestions?  It's been going on for about 2 months...

[happyface94]

Don't play too close to the piano, your right hand can sometime try to play chords but when you're too close, it will put pressure on your wrist. Typing in the other hand is abnormal to me. I had it happen to me when I was practicing the op119 klavierstucke from Brahms.

[Siberian Husky]

search the forum for wrist pain, tendinitis, and carpal tunnel... i wrote a semi lengthy response to a question similiar to yours...but in synopsis..cut back on playing and ice massage with a cube of ice the pained area after playing..or whenever you experience discomfort..

[xvimbi]

There is only about a million reasons why your wrist might hurt. It doesn't even have to be piano-related. Do you write a lot? Do you use a computer mouse a lot? Piano playing might merely aggravate something you acquired somewhere else.

The reason is of course misuse of your body, but where? Thus, you need to be very observant about the quality of your movements throughout the day. Pay particular attention to any tension that might creep up anywhere. When you detect tension, change your movements to release the tension. It could be how you use your shoulders, just like problems in the shoulders might be caused by misuse of the fingers.

Very often, it is not that easy to find the cause for pain in pianists, so, first be very observant and aware about all movements, then ask yourself if these movements are proper. Finally, change them if they are not.

[i_m_robot]

pain and pianists

every real doctor knows its just psychological

[Siberian Husky]

There is only about a million reasons why your wrist might hurt. It doesn't even have to be piano-related. Do you write a lot? Do you use a computer mouse a lot? Piano playing might merely aggravate something you acquired somewhere else.

The reason is of course misuse of your body, but where? Thus, you need to be very observant about the quality of your movements throughout the day. Pay particular attention to any tension that might creep up anywhere. When you detect tension, change your movements to release the tension. It could be how you use your shoulders, just like problems in the shoulders might be caused by misuse of the fingers.

Very often, it is not that easy to find the cause for pain in pianists, so, first be very observant and aware about all movements, then ask yourself if these movements are proper. Finally, change them if they are not.

usually..when a pianists has wrist pain..its predominantly from playing piano...and THIS is when other activities ADD to the problem...our wrist tendons just werent meant for such movements..

[gilad]

i'd suggest seeing a specialist, a physiotherapist, a or bio-kenetisist. cause of the strain aside, they can show you how to treat it and maybe even prevent it. best of luck.

[xvimbi]

usually..when a pianists has wrist pain..its predominantly from playing piano...and THIS is when other activities ADD to the problem...

True enough in many cases, but often not. So, one has to be careful to jump to conclusions too early. For example, my own problems were due to strange sleeping habits (believe it or not) combined with issues acquired from rock climbing and computer work.

our wrist tendons just werent meant for such movements..

I don't agree. I strongly believe that our anatomy and physiology are entirely compatible with playing the piano. Injuries are NOT a necessary result of playing the piano, but are simply a result of not using our body correctly.

[jeremyjchilds]

I jsut went through a stage of bad wrist pain.

I limited my playing to 45 minute spans, and only did one thing for 10 minutes at a time withing those spans (reading, tech pieces....reading tech pieces) and then took a break. I also put a tensor bandage on my wrist to suppoet my tendons a little. I had my wife massage my wrists about 3x a day.

Believe it or not, my pain completely went away ( and i still managed to practice a total of 4-5 hours a day) incredible...but don't tell my wife, cause I love the wrist massages...