Right hand wrist pain

[troglodit]

Hello fellow pianists!
Lately I was starting to feel numb pain in my RH wrist. I would really appreciate anyone pointing out what I might be doing wrong.
First I'll explain my situation- I started playing when I was 6 years old with a teacher. At about 12 I stopped playing, and about one and a half years ago I heard a Chopin valse and that's inspired me to play again I'm 17 years old.
Since then I play almost every day, varying from half an hour to three hours. I can play valse brilliant, fantasie impromptu, some Mozart sonatas and parts of liszt'z insane pieces that I like very much, like totentanz and mephisto valse.
The pain that I have now is not something new, I had it when I over-played the Chopin winter wind etude about half a year ago, but at that time I went on a vacation for a month, and it was over.
Now I'm feeling that kind of numb pain again, mostly when I don't play, which is wierd. I try to focus on keeping my hand relaxed, but sometimes I still strain it. I really like playing difficult and powerful pieces, but I'm afraid of injuring my hand permanently... Any tips to keep playing while helping my hand heal and stop hurting for good?
Help appreciated!
David

[chopinlover01]

Play really simple stuff, so that your hand keeps (somewhat) in shape but you don't permanently damage your hand.

[adodd81802]

Hello troglodit, can you record you playing anything, from a right hand view, maybe if you got two cameras, from an over head view would also be helpful, it's very difficult to suggest what you could be doing wrong without seeing how you play.

from what you have said it looks like you're overstraining the wrist somewhere, but without seeing it would be hard to be sure.

There's a difference between a "relaxed" hand and a good hand, I can flop my wrist all over the place it doesn't mean it won't cause pain just because it's relaxed, you're obviously talented, and I am almost certain if I can see you play I (or many other talented individuals on this site) will be able to identify right away.

[mjames]

Think about it, you returned to the piano after a really big break (no playing from 12-15, that's A LOT). You might have jumped back too soon in to demanding repertoire, and over the process you might have acquired some bad habits. I'll rephrase LovingChopper's post, it's time to take a step back, revisit the basics and fundamentals, and from there you work your way back up. If you're not careful bad habits might lead to temporary or even permanent injuries. Please be careful with yourself, and consider getting a new (or your old) teacher.

This is just my guess, we don't really know how and how well you play. Post a video recording of your playing so the experts can be give you more accurate diagnostics.

[dcstudio]

numbness could be coming from your posture--the neck possibly.   

so try to put a full shot of yourself in the vid as well so we can see how your are sitting and how you hold your hands.

 

[pianoplunker]

Hello fellow pianists!
Lately I was starting to feel numb pain in my RH wrist. I would really appreciate anyone pointing out what I might be doing wrong.
First I'll explain my situation- I started playing when I was 6 years old with a teacher. At about 12 I stopped playing, and about one and a half years ago I heard a Chopin valse and that's inspired me to play again I'm 17 years old.
Since then I play almost every day, varying from half an hour to three hours. I can play valse brilliant, fantasie impromptu, some Mozart sonatas and parts of liszt'z insane pieces that I like very much, like totentanz and mephisto valse.
The pain that I have now is not something new, I had it when I over-played the Chopin winter wind etude about half a year ago, but at that time I went on a vacation for a month, and it was over.
Now I'm feeling that kind of numb pain again, mostly when I don't play, which is wierd. I try to focus on keeping my hand relaxed, but sometimes I still strain it. I really like playing difficult and powerful pieces, but I'm afraid of injuring my hand permanently... Any tips to keep playing while helping my hand heal and stop hurting for good?
Help appreciated!
David

I dont know your technique but one thing you can try is to apply ice for 20 minutes, followed by heat for 20 minutes. I am not a doctor or expert at anything, buy have had issues in the past with my wrists and the regimen seemed to work well for me.

[esmusssein]

Pain and numbness may be a sign of degenerative disk disease, and the disk in question is probably on your neck. You need to see an orthopedist as soon as possible. If a disk is out of place, and you are under 25 years old, it's fixable, otherwise you will have to do physical therapy for the rest of your life to ensure good posture so that the nerve that causes pain is not hit by the disk. That's what doomed me 30 years ago, only I was misdiagnosed and was only correctly diagnosed at 40. But numbness usually means nerve issue.