In early February of 2011, I was in my second year of my undergraduate degree in Oboe Performance and was home grabbing a stack of plates out of my kitchen cupboard to set the table for dinner, when a sharp pain ripped through my hand and it immediately cramped up. Although it wasn’t stiff for very long I couldn't use it for a few hours. The next day I woke up feeling completely normal, however as the day progressed I had less and less strength and could barley hold a pen. Then by mid afternoon I could no longer do simple things such as pulling out a chair from under a table. Confused, I urgently tried to find a doctor and went to one suggested to me by another music student. I was lucky enough to get in to see him a few hours later.
This first doctor I visited seemed to have all these weird notions of what was
potentially wrong with me. He shot cortisone into my wrist, which made
everything worse. I left his office feeling really unsettled and my hand and
arm swelled like a balloon. After that I couldn't even bend my wrist for 3
days. I immediately started seeking another doctor and did a little more
research this time. During this period of time not only was in pain but I was
also so confused. I had felt uncomfortable while playing before and had even
taken a week or few days off on occasion, but had never had what I considered significant
enough pain to lead met think I had an actual physical problem. I guess part of it was that it always made
sense tome that playing an instrument for 20 hours a week wouldn't leave your
body feeling great. And with so many weekly playing deadlines I never stopped
to think, I just worked until I had a good reed made or was ready to perform
whatever I needed to. I didn’t think about much else.
After a few more doctors I
found myself meeting with a sports medicine specialist where I was tested for
Carpal Tunnel through and EMG exam, and was diagnosed with severe carpal tunnel
in my right-hand. My median nerve was barely functioning and the doctor was
shocked I had as much mobility left as I did. That day was Feb. 14th, 2012 and
that doctor told me would be lucky to retain function in my right hand and that
I would probably never play my oboe again. I was in shock. Only 2 weeks earlier
I had been totally fine and was planning recital and festival auditions. I was
having a really hard time believing that things could change so
drastically, and so quickly AND really be this bad. But it was undeniable. The
test results were there, all of the symptoms and I was in so much pain. Two
week later I went ahead with carpal tunnel release surgery and then started my
long recovery.
I have been very fortunate
and since surgery I have had no major mobility issues at all. Unfortunately,
initially post surgery oboe playing didn't come back as pain free as I had
hoped. During recovery I came to realize that I had been in more pain than I realized
and I had become too used to it. Under these circumstances I was attempting to
prepare for a jury to finish up the incomplete I’d taken when I dropped out for
surgery during my sophomore year
Now the journey towards relearning the oboe in a healthier way had begun. I especially encountered trouble with the pain in my thumb and was limited to short 20 minute practice sessions. I tried out a neck strap and hated the way I felt it limited my range of motion and it seemed to increase the tension I already felting my upper back and shoulders. I was very eager to find an alternative. I came across the thumb rest called the Kooiman etude2 on Charles Double Reeds website. I knew nothing about it but anxious to find an alternative to the neck strap so I purchased it on a whim and it made the biggest difference. It took about a week for me to decide it was something I could get used to. The etude is adjustable on so many levels and redistributes the weight of the oboe to the back joint of the thumb instead of the tip which for me made all the difference. Although the pain in my hands that was directly correlated to playing was be eliminated through the use of my new thumb rest, the general pain and soreness still came often and even today I experience the numbing symptoms of carpal tunnel. During the summer in an effort just to feel a little more pain free, I got started looking for a new doctor to get a second opinion from. I had another EMG performed where it was discovered that my nerve in my right arm was still not functioning properly. Oddly enough though it was responding well at the top of my arm but had poor response by the time it was just above my wrist. This meant that something between my elbow and wrist was still causing constraint on my nerve. He took the machine and shocked my median nerve all the way up and down my arm and marked the spot where the nerve response dropped and it was always the same.
Usually nerve issues occur because there is a point of constraint either in the wrist (carpal tunnel) or the elbow. Even though I had had one (my wrist) released, I was still feeling pain because there was another point of constraint mid-way through my arm. This doctor suggested that I start up physical therapy so I could begin getting ASTYM treatments and get some help with the stiffness in my shoulders. He suspected that maybe my current issue was a result of scar tissue built up from repetitive use that needed fixing. He thought the scar tissue and bad posture could be contributing to the point of constraint that was in the middle of my arm. Immediately I started physical therapy and ASTYM treatments, which you can read about here. What it does is it breaks down the scar tissue which frees up room in your arm for the nerves to move and work properly. As suspected, my scar tissue build up stops in the exact same place that the other doctor pinpointed was the place the nerve stopped functioning normally. In short, my nerves were functioning subpar only in the areas of my arm where there was scar tissue build up. Since beginning this treatment through physical therapy I have been as pain free as I’ve ever been. On occasion I still have issues but for me, physical therapy and ASTYM finally did the trick.
My doctor has given me some stretches to-do several times everyday that are supposed to help continue to break down the scar tissue in between treatments. He stressed to me last time however that doing these after practicing or even just often will really help it from rebuilding. After only 4 weeks there is a significant visual decrease in the scar tissue in both of my arms and an even more significant decrease in pain. I was extremely thrilled with this discovery. It’s been a long journey to pinpoint what the real issues have been but I finally feel like I found the road to having a healthier playing experience.
I am so thankful to all of the doctors, family and friends who have been such a great support through this weird year. And I’m glad I didn’t listen to that first doctor because he was wrong, I definitely played again and will definitely continue to play forever.
You can check out the etude thumb rest here:
Now the journey towards relearning the oboe in a healthier way had begun. I especially encountered trouble with the pain in my thumb and was limited to short 20 minute practice sessions. I tried out a neck strap and hated the way I felt it limited my range of motion and it seemed to increase the tension I already felting my upper back and shoulders. I was very eager to find an alternative. I came across the thumb rest called the Kooiman etude2 on Charles Double Reeds website. I knew nothing about it but anxious to find an alternative to the neck strap so I purchased it on a whim and it made the biggest difference. It took about a week for me to decide it was something I could get used to. The etude is adjustable on so many levels and redistributes the weight of the oboe to the back joint of the thumb instead of the tip which for me made all the difference. Although the pain in my hands that was directly correlated to playing was be eliminated through the use of my new thumb rest, the general pain and soreness still came often and even today I experience the numbing symptoms of carpal tunnel. During the summer in an effort just to feel a little more pain free, I got started looking for a new doctor to get a second opinion from. I had another EMG performed where it was discovered that my nerve in my right arm was still not functioning properly. Oddly enough though it was responding well at the top of my arm but had poor response by the time it was just above my wrist. This meant that something between my elbow and wrist was still causing constraint on my nerve. He took the machine and shocked my median nerve all the way up and down my arm and marked the spot where the nerve response dropped and it was always the same.
Usually nerve issues occur because there is a point of constraint either in the wrist (carpal tunnel) or the elbow. Even though I had had one (my wrist) released, I was still feeling pain because there was another point of constraint mid-way through my arm. This doctor suggested that I start up physical therapy so I could begin getting ASTYM treatments and get some help with the stiffness in my shoulders. He suspected that maybe my current issue was a result of scar tissue built up from repetitive use that needed fixing. He thought the scar tissue and bad posture could be contributing to the point of constraint that was in the middle of my arm. Immediately I started physical therapy and ASTYM treatments, which you can read about here. What it does is it breaks down the scar tissue which frees up room in your arm for the nerves to move and work properly. As suspected, my scar tissue build up stops in the exact same place that the other doctor pinpointed was the place the nerve stopped functioning normally. In short, my nerves were functioning subpar only in the areas of my arm where there was scar tissue build up. Since beginning this treatment through physical therapy I have been as pain free as I’ve ever been. On occasion I still have issues but for me, physical therapy and ASTYM finally did the trick.
My doctor has given me some stretches to-do several times everyday that are supposed to help continue to break down the scar tissue in between treatments. He stressed to me last time however that doing these after practicing or even just often will really help it from rebuilding. After only 4 weeks there is a significant visual decrease in the scar tissue in both of my arms and an even more significant decrease in pain. I was extremely thrilled with this discovery. It’s been a long journey to pinpoint what the real issues have been but I finally feel like I found the road to having a healthier playing experience.
I am so thankful to all of the doctors, family and friends who have been such a great support through this weird year. And I’m glad I didn’t listen to that first doctor because he was wrong, I definitely played again and will definitely continue to play forever.
You can check out the etude thumb rest here:
Or see my specific blog
post about it here: