Kent - Posted - 10/21/2008:  09:36:28

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I continue to have problems with my right hand. It doesn't do what I tell it to do. I think the issue is with my ring finger. I find that if I curl my ring and pinky up under my hand (usually rubber band them in a curled position), then I can play. But I lose out because I no longer have my pinky anchored to the banjo head, so I lose stability and I tend to pick too hard and sometimes too deep.

I went to the Banjo Retreat in Nashville this last weekend. Someone mentioned the possibility that I might have "focal dystonia". Do any of you struggle with this issue? What have you done to combat this condition? Any info would be appreciated. I'm really getting discouraged.

Wyattjerry - Posted - 10/21/2008:  10:04:46

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Velcro works for some of my students. put a piece on the spot where you would anchor your pinky( and don't worry about your ring finger there is no law of banjo that says you must anchor your ring finger) and put te otherpiece on your pinky Stick the two together and your pinky won't move from where it is anchored after a little training you shuold be just fine.

Chuck Honsinger

Kent - Posted - 10/21/2008:  10:15:32

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quote:

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Originally posted by Wyattjerry

Velcro works for some of my students. put a piece on the spot where you would anchor your pinky( and don't worry about your ring finger there is no law of banjo that says you must anchor your ring finger) and put te otherpiece on your pinky Stick the two together and your pinky won't move from where it is anchored after a little training you shuold be just fine.

Chuck Honsinger

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The pinky isn't the issue, it's the ring finger. The only way to pick at this point is to tuck both the pinky and ring finger up under my hand. It may be possible if I can plant both fingers, but the ring finger will not stay put. Really, can a ring finger by trained to stay put on the banjo head and not move when the middle finger moves? For those people who can do this, they are blessed, but it seems that other people have a physiology that will not permit this.

pickercymru - Posted - 10/21/2008:  10:28:56

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Kent
I don't know how long you've been playing but if not that long I suggest you forget about the fingers for now and just play. I know there are good players out there that do not plant ring or pinky - to me its the most natural thing to plant the ring at least and you may grow into this technique in time but for now I would just carry on as you feel comfortable. If it is a problem down the line with stability then that will be th etime to stick the ring to the head with superglue maybe - only kidding
R.

Let Ol'' Tenbrooks run!!

eagleisland - Posted - 10/21/2008:  11:34:39

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Kent - not quite sure if I understand the issue here. If the issue is that you've got things happening with your hands and your fingers aren't working properly, stop typing questions to the Banjo Hangout and go see a doctor - preferably a hand specialist.

If the issue is simply that you really can't plant both your ring and your pinky and the ring seems to have a mind of its own, just ignore the ring, plant the pinky and let the ring do what it wants. Some of the best pickers in the world only plant the pinky (which I personally find a Very Good Thing because I sho 'nuff can't plant both).

eagleisland

"I was halfway to Old Kentucky when the drugs began to kick in." - Hunter S. Monroe

steve davis - Posted - 10/21/2008:  11:49:11

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If your hand doesn't do what you tell it to do then stop telling it what to do.
By that I mean don't tape it or tie it in a certain position,just let it be where it's comfortable and you don't have to think about it.
I'm with you,Skip...Pinky and Proud.

concerning gardens...weed ''em and reap

Wyattjerry - Posted - 10/21/2008:  11:52:24

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Kent as I tried to explain ---- My ring finger moves all the time and my pinky stays put YOU DON"T NEED TO ANCHOR YOUR RING FINGER !!!! I have played for more than 30 years with a moving ring finger.

Chuck Honsinger

banjoman69 - Posted - 10/21/2008:  12:48:10

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I also saw Rob McCoury's ring finger do the same, and if it is good enough for him,,, now just think about that for a minute -- premier picker, very unheralded and his isn't anchored... hmmmmm, wonder what he knows??? as my grandmother use to say "just leave it be"

according to Craig Smith your whole hand should be loose and free to move around.. he chastised me for wearing out a spot below the bridge where my fingers were anchored... too much emphasis on it... just leave it be

Kent - Posted - 10/21/2008:  14:08:25

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I appreciate your responses about planting fingers. I've been playing for 30 years with just my pinky on the head. What I'm trying to find out is whether or not anybody else has had issues with their right hand, such as carpal tunnel, focal dystonia, etc. I know that Tom Adams has medical problems that keep him from playing. Yes, it is a good idea to see a doctor, but I'd also like to get info from banjo players who have had issues. What did they do about them? What worked? What didn't work?

Focal dystonia was something that came up in conversation at Banjo Retreat this last weekend. When I got home, I looked it up on the web. Sounds like it is a problem that is experienced by many musicians, and that there may not be a cure. It also sounds like it is hard to diagnose and in many instances, persons go for years misdiagnosed.

Anyway, any thoughts, ideas, information, and suggestions would be appreciated.

robin jones - Posted - 10/21/2008:  14:45:49

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I still don't understand what the problem is. Is your ring finger somehow interfering with your picking attack? Is it something that has just developed recently? If so, that doesn't sound good and picking the banjo could be the least of your worries. Go see a good doc.

"I find your lack of faith disturbing." Darth Vader

Kent - Posted - 10/21/2008:  19:19:52

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quote:

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Originally posted by robin jones

I still don't understand what the problem is. Is your ring finger somehow interfering with your picking attack? Is it something that has just developed recently? If so, that doesn't sound good and picking the banjo could be the least of your worries. Go see a good doc.

"I find your lack of faith disturbing." Darth Vader

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I have been playing for 30 years. Was doing pretty good. Several months ago I noticed that my fingers were responding in a weird way, sort of clumsy, missing strings, hand tensed up, etc. It was a feeling I'd never experienced before. Initially I thought it was my middle finger, but after awhile, I have concluded that it is my ring finger. If I plant my pinky on the banjo head, the ring finger feels like it is causing the whole hand to act in a weird way. So I started to try to pick without planting my fingers on the banjo head. As I noted above, I experienced increased speed and less clumsiness, but my accuracy changed because I didn't have my pinky down as a reference point. I've tried to plant both fingers, but if that's going to work, then I will really have to spend a great deal of time practicing that way, and there is no guarantee that it will work.

Long and short is, something is causing my hand to act up. Jury is out on the cause (carpal tunnel, tennis elbow, etc.) Believe me, it's extemely frustrating to try to play and have your fingers disobey, no matter how slowly you pick. Agai, I'm wondering if anybody else ever experienced this type of thing. What did they do to handle it? Etc.

declan - Posted - 10/22/2008:  12:21:52

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Hi Kent,
Sorry to hear about your recent hand problem - I have focal dystonia - after playing for 22 yrs it affected my right index finger - It is quite possible that that is not your problem but here are some of the things that are common with FD, it does not just start and then it's there, there is a time span of several months that it comes on. the thing that I noticed pretty early was that my finger (index in my case) seemed to start missing the string strike like it wasn't reaching out far enough leaving alot of missing notes in my rolls, the forward roll became very difficult to execute and even keep even at a slow pace, there was no pain associated with it but in trying harder to make my hand and finger's work as they had before I was overplaying and tensing up the hand ( the index would pull toward my palm) and I did get a very tight feeling across the back of my wrist and in the lower forearm, rolls and tunes can be played at a slow pace but as soon as the speed was applied, the finger pulled more into the palm of my hand and was unresponsive to my wishes for it to work at all, you might notice at first that you can play more like you used to if you remove the finger picks - it seems to "work better", in time this will not make much difference but at first it is very noticable. A few things about Focal Dystonia: though it effects our fingers, what is happening is not "in" our fingers - it all happens in the part of our brain that controls muscle movement, a chemical imbalance is now occurring. There are 3 chemicals that are released that cause the neurons to fire and cause a muscle to move, suddenly one of those chemicals is released in a higher than normal dose which is causing a continual contraction of the set of muscles that pull the finger inward and not enough is being released on the other set which would cause the extension of the finger, this happens at lightning speed - the faster and harder we try to play the rolls the more chemicals are released - this is usually accompanied by a heightened sense of anxiety as well, which releases even more of the imbalanced chemicals - it is simply a maddening cycle. Focal Dystona they say is "sensosomatic" meaning that a certain set of conditions must be in place for the Dystonia to "kick in" it is "task specific" meaning it will only effect that finger when you are doing that fine motor skill - "a banjo roll", it is dependent on how the hand is held, wearing the picks or not (only at first), and the speed at which you try to execute the skill. It has been theorized that it is most common in people who are performing a fine motor skill, are 38 to 50yrs of age, usually at the height of their playing ability and that they are genetically predisposed to have it - if we weren't banjo pickers and it never showed it's self in anything else we did we might never get it. I suspect that in this information age since people can talk to everybody through a keyboard from everywhere that it seems like a new "thing" these past few yrs - you will find that most Doctors are unaware of ithe condition at all and the neurologists have only begun focusing on musicians in the last decade because they are coming for help - in the past I think that FD was just as previlent, but it didn't have a name and when a pickers hand didn't "work" no more they after much angst would make the decision to either give up the instrument or move on to a different instrument - one that didn't cause the dystonia to "kick in". There is no cure at this point, but some of my dystonia friends have found help with BOTOX injections - this is not anything to be afriad of if you should want to try it - it's not deadly except to your wallet unless your health plan can cover it. then if it works for you it must be repeated every 4 months as the BOTOX wears off. The BOTOX works by creating a barier between the neurons which decreases the amount of the chemicals coming through, this causes less of the "pull" that is keeping the finger from working correctly. It is injected into the forearm during an electronic current test to see which muscles work which fingers - they try to hit the right spot with the right dose - too much and the finger may go numb for a few days, not enough or the wrong spot and it might not work very well at all. There are other thoughts on what might help and experiments ongoing with research. Some pickers have tried to change they way they play even going to left handed - it's a tough road ahead if it is indeed dystonia if one is a banjo picker. You can contact me at declan429@aol.com if I can be of any more help or you have questions - it will be import to see the "right" kind of Neurologist is you want to persue a diagnosis and treatment - all the Best to you and hopefully it's not Dystonia.
Sue Galbraith

Kent - Posted - 10/23/2008:  09:20:04

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quote:

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Originally posted by declan

Hi Kent,
Sorry to hear about your recent hand problem - I have focal dystonia - after playing for 22 yrs it affected my right index finger - It is quite possible that that is not your problem but here are some of the things that are common with FD, it does not just start and then it's there, there is a time span of several months that it comes on. the thing that I noticed pretty early was that my finger (index in my case) seemed to start missing the string strike like it wasn't reaching out far enough leaving alot of missing notes in my rolls, the forward roll became very difficult to execute and even keep even at a slow pace, there was no pain associated with it but in trying harder to make my hand and finger's work as they had before I was overplaying and tensing up the hand ( the index would pull toward my palm) and I did get a very tight feeling across the back of my wrist and in the lower forearm, rolls and tunes can be played at a slow pace but as soon as the speed was applied, the finger pulled more into the palm of my hand and was unresponsive to my wishes for it to work at all, you might notice at first that you can play more like you used to if you remove the finger picks - it seems to "work better", in time this will not make much difference but at first it is very noticable. A few things about Focal Dystonia: though it effects our fingers, what is happening is not "in" our fingers - it all happens in the part of our brain that controls muscle movement, a chemical imbalance is now occurring. There are 3 chemicals that are released that cause the neurons to fire and cause a muscle to move, suddenly one of those chemicals is released in a higher than normal dose which is causing a continual contraction of the set of muscles that pull the finger inward and not enough is being released on the other set which would cause the extension of the finger, this happens at lightning speed - the faster and harder we try to play the rolls the more chemicals are released - this is usually accompanied by a heightened sense of anxiety as well, which releases even more of the imbalanced chemicals - it is simply a maddening cycle. Focal Dystona they say is "sensosomatic" meaning that a certain set of conditions must be in place for the Dystonia to "kick in" it is "task specific" meaning it will only effect that finger when you are doing that fine motor skill - "a banjo roll", it is dependent on how the hand is held, wearing the picks or not (only at first), and the speed at which you try to execute the skill. It has been theorized that it is most common in people who are performing a fine motor skill, are 38 to 50yrs of age, usually at the height of their playing ability and that they are genetically predisposed to have it - if we weren't banjo pickers and it never showed it's self in anything else we did we might never get it. I suspect that in this information age since people can talk to everybody through a keyboard from everywhere that it seems like a new "thing" these past few yrs - you will find that most Doctors are unaware of ithe condition at all and the neurologists have only begun focusing on musicians in the last decade because they are coming for help - in the past I think that FD was just as previlent, but it didn't have a name and when a pickers hand didn't "work" no more they after much angst would make the decision to either give up the instrument or move on to a different instrument - one that didn't cause the dystonia to "kick in". There is no cure at this point, but some of my dystonia friends have found help with BOTOX injections - this is not anything to be afriad of if you should want to try it - it's not deadly except to your wallet unless your health plan can cover it. then if it works for you it must be repeated every 4 months as the BOTOX wears off. The BOTOX works by creating a barier between the neurons which decreases the amount of the chemicals coming through, this causes less of the "pull" that is keeping the finger from working correctly. It is injected into the forearm during an electronic current test to see which muscles work which fingers - they try to hit the right spot with the right dose - too much and the finger may go numb for a few days, not enough or the wrong spot and it might not work very well at all. There are other thoughts on what might help and experiments ongoing with research. Some pickers have tried to change they way they play even going to left handed - it's a tough road ahead if it is indeed dystonia if one is a banjo picker. You can contact me at declan429@aol.com if I can be of any more help or you have questions - it will be import to see the "right" kind of Neurologist is you want to persue a diagnosis and treatment - all the Best to you and hopefully it's not Dystonia.
Sue Galbraith

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Thanks Sue, you've been very informative. I believe my ring finger is the culprit. If I take my picks off, there is no problem. The second I put them back on, something changes. I first started noticing a year ago when I would miss strings as well. My middle finger seems to "flail". And yes my hand tenses up. I'm seeing a chiropractor, I've seen a "Rolfer". My family doctor (sports medicine) hasn't really chimned in yet about what it could be, but I expect the next step is an EMG. I'm hoping for carpal tunnel, radial tunnel, or something like that, as those are treatable.

Do you still play? Different instrument? I'm really getting depressed at the thought of having to quit playing banjo. Can FD spread to other fingers? Right now I can pick if I tuck my ring finger and pinky up under my hand and free-float my hand. I could learn to do this, but if it spreads to other fingers, then I'm toast.

declan - Posted - 10/23/2008:  12:57:08

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Hi Kent,
After a year I would think that it is what it is going to be and should not spread to any other fingers of that hand. An EMG is the test that they use for the Botox injections - an interesting test however it will not show anything relating to what is happening with your finger - all will be "normal" - that's how mine was - remember dystonia will only "kick in" when certain conditions are in place and it does't relate to the EMG test. You need to see a Neurologist who specializes in movement disorders and preferably works with musicians (not sports). If you go to the Dystonia web site they sould have a directory of where such Doctors can be found - once you are diagnosed they can present you with what ever options might be of use. Don't give up yet - I know what you are going through emotionally and mentally - keep in touch. I have been playing guitar for a few years now and enjoy it a lot, but I still consider myself a banjo picker - email me and I can send you my # if you want to talk some more about it, I can tell you about the limb immobilization study I was part of - it seemed to help, but I still have not resumed playing banjo "out"
Sue

declan - Posted - 10/23/2008:  13:08:06

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Hey,
I am not trying to funny here but what if you made a "tool" if you will in the shape of "T" that you could hold with your ring and pinky finger tucked in ( the "l" part coming out between them ) to steady you hand on the head? it would have to be of something that would be non slip on the head contact. Hand position is one of the "triggers" that is in place when it kicks in - possibly if you can change that - you could still make use of the TH,I,M - give it some thought and I'd like to be cut in on the patent if it works :o) " a banjo pickers prosthesis if you will - who knows - it might help.......

ban-joe - Posted - 10/23/2008:  15:12:09

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I tried everything I could think of to overcome this condition- I finally switched to playing lefty. Not very speedy yet but it's coming along OK.

Best of luck,
Joe

HogWild - Posted - 10/23/2008:  15:15:04

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quote:

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Originally posted by declan

Hi Kent,
Sorry to hear about your recent hand problem - I have focal dystonia - after playing for 22 yrs it affected my right index finger - It is quite possible that that is not your problem but here are some of the things that are common with FD, it does not just start and then it's there, there is a time span of several months that it comes on. the thing that I noticed pretty early was that my finger (index in my case) seemed to start missing the string strike like it wasn't reaching out far enough leaving alot of missing notes in my rolls, the forward roll became very difficult to execute and even keep even at a slow pace, there was no pain associated with it but in trying harder to make my hand and finger's work as they had before I was overplaying and tensing up the hand ( the index would pull toward my palm) and I did get a very tight feeling across the back of my wrist and in the lower forearm, rolls and tunes can be played at a slow pace but as soon as the speed was applied, the finger pulled more into the palm of my hand and was unresponsive to my wishes for it to work at all, you might notice at first that you can play more like you used to if you remove the finger picks - it seems to "work better", in time this will not make much difference but at first it is very noticable. A few things about Focal Dystonia: though it effects our fingers, what is happening is not "in" our fingers - it all happens in the part of our brain that controls muscle movement, a chemical imbalance is now occurring. There are 3 chemicals that are released that cause the neurons to fire and cause a muscle to move, suddenly one of those chemicals is released in a higher than normal dose which is causing a continual contraction of the set of muscles that pull the finger inward and not enough is being released on the other set which would cause the extension of the finger, this happens at lightning speed - the faster and harder we try to play the rolls the more chemicals are released - this is usually accompanied by a heightened sense of anxiety as well, which releases even more of the imbalanced chemicals - it is simply a maddening cycle. Focal Dystona they say is "sensosomatic" meaning that a certain set of conditions must be in place for the Dystonia to "kick in" it is "task specific" meaning it will only effect that finger when you are doing that fine motor skill - "a banjo roll", it is dependent on how the hand is held, wearing the picks or not (only at first), and the speed at which you try to execute the skill. It has been theorized that it is most common in people who are performing a fine motor skill, are 38 to 50yrs of age, usually at the height of their playing ability and that they are genetically predisposed to have it - if we weren't banjo pickers and it never showed it's self in anything else we did we might never get it. I suspect that in this information age since people can talk to everybody through a keyboard from everywhere that it seems like a new "thing" these past few yrs - you will find that most Doctors are unaware of ithe condition at all and the neurologists have only begun focusing on musicians in the last decade because they are coming for help - in the past I think that FD was just as previlent, but it didn't have a name and when a pickers hand didn't "work" no more they after much angst would make the decision to either give up the instrument or move on to a different instrument - one that didn't cause the dystonia to "kick in". There is no cure at this point, but some of my dystonia friends have found help with BOTOX injections - this is not anything to be afriad of if you should want to try it - it's not deadly except to your wallet unless your health plan can cover it. then if it works for you it must be repeated every 4 months as the BOTOX wears off. The BOTOX works by creating a barier between the neurons which decreases the amount of the chemicals coming through, this causes less of the "pull" that is keeping the finger from working correctly. It is injected into the forearm during an electronic current test to see which muscles work which fingers - they try to hit the right spot with the right dose - too much and the finger may go numb for a few days, not enough or the wrong spot and it might not work very well at all. There are other thoughts on what might help and experiments ongoing with research. Some pickers have tried to change they way they play even going to left handed - it's a tough road ahead if it is indeed dystonia if one is a banjo picker. You can contact me at declan429@aol.com if I can be of any more help or you have questions - it will be import to see the "right" kind of Neurologist is you want to persue a diagnosis and treatment - all the Best to you and hopefully it's not Dystonia.
Sue Galbraith

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I experienced almost the exact same thing. Fought it for almost 3 years and then decided to switch to lefty - havent looked back since.

Kent - It's possible that you have focal dystonia. - especially since you say you are able to pick fine without your picks. focal dystonia is often extremely sensitive to sensory input: a pianist may experience symptoms while playing on ivory keys but not while playing on plastic keys, for instance.

The only specialist I have found who has actually successfully treated cases of dystonia is Nancy Byl at the University of San Francisco. But this involved working with the subject for hours every day; even then it took months for any progress to develop.
I ordered a book that she wrote on the subject. It is kind of a guide to retraining your brain, but it is very complicated stuff. She told me that her book cannot replace having a physician work with you everyday. I tried to utilized some of the principles i learned from the book to retrain my brain, but in the end i simply did not have any confidence that what i was doing was helping. for this reason i finally chose to switch to playing lefty.

good luck with your picking.

matt

Kent - Posted - 10/24/2008:  13:04:19

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Hogwild and dclan....did your symptoms come and go. Sometimes my hand feels ok, but mostly not. Did you experience the same, or was it just down hill from the start?

declan - Posted - 10/25/2008:  03:35:12

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Hi Kent,
At first it seemed to take a while to "warm up", more than I ever needed - I would miss that index note a few times but it seemed to work it's self through at first - still not realizing that there was a real problem developing, but it seemed that I could play after I was warmed up - also - It seemed "easier" to play when I was playing in a situation where I was playing along with my group, a guitar player or a recording - like it had the ablity to "pull" my picking "together" and I could keep a more even drive going. If I was left to myself - it was like my fingers had more of a meandoring timing and it was like I was "forgeting" stuff in my head - it wasn't automatic like it always had been. I remember a sense of just not being "into" picking in my head and heart kinda like they knew before I did something was really happening. It started in July of 98 and by that winter I was getting seriously depressed - and received absolutly NO SUPPORT from my band mates who treated it like I was slacking - "you're getting older" they said - "you need to practice more to keep this all up". They would just give me this look when one of my banjo tunes came up for the set list and I said no I can't.... we all didn't understand what was happening but the indifference I received cut me deeply once I really came to the conclusion that it wasn't anything I had control over and I still remember all that when I am around these folks even now. I was in and ran the group from 82 till I shut it down in 98. I just couldn't stand being there in front of a microphone and totally sucking at what I was trying to pick - it was just too embarrassing after 22 yrs of having a really good time with it all.
Sue

mosco - Posted - 10/25/2008:  07:39:31

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Regarding the T-shaped "appliance", I had a student who had lost his first two fingers, and had learned to play with thumb, ring, and little fingers, but struggled with accuracy, so we came up with the idea of a "handrest", shaped a bit like a "T" which fastened to the existing armrest and extended out over the strings. His right palm rested on the handrest as he played, positioning the hand as accurately as posting fingers on the head. It allowed him to play far more easily and accurately, and, al though you are dealing with a different issue, it might work for you. You have received a lot of good information here from Sue and Matt to help you figure out what you might be dealing with, but it does not sound like any typical carpal tunnel or tennis elbow related problem. They both generally begin with numbness, with the thumb and first two fingers primarily from carpal tunnel, and third and fourth from the ulnar nerve. Eventually, they can cause muscular deterioration, but both can be successfully treated with minor (relatively) surgery. A well-respected surgeon suggested the arthroscopic surgery be avoided for carpal tunnel for the time being, as it is a relatively new procedure, and there have been some occasional problems that might be detrimental for a banjo player.

Kent - Posted - 10/25/2008:  09:15:32

---

quote:

---

Originally posted by declan

Hi Kent,
At first it seemed to take a while to "warm up", more than I ever needed - I would miss that index note a few times but it seemed to work it's self through at first - still not realizing that there was a real problem developing, but it seemed that I could play after I was warmed up - also - It seemed "easier" to play when I was playing in a situation where I was playing along with my group, a guitar player or a recording - like it had the ablity to "pull" my picking "together" and I could keep a more even drive going. If I was left to myself - it was like my fingers had more of a meandoring timing and it was like I was "forgeting" stuff in my head - it wasn't automatic like it always had been. I remember a sense of just not being "into" picking in my head and heart kinda like they knew before I did something was really happening. It started in July of 98 and by that winter I was getting seriously depressed - and received absolutly NO SUPPORT from my band mates who treated it like I was slacking - "you're getting older" they said - "you need to practice more to keep this all up". They would just give me this look when one of my banjo tunes came up for the set list and I said no I can't.... we all didn't understand what was happening but the indifference I received cut me deeply once I really came to the conclusion that it wasn't anything I had control over and I still remember all that when I am around these folks even now. I was in and ran the group from 82 till I shut it down in 98. I just couldn't stand being there in front of a microphone and totally sucking at what I was trying to pick - it was just too embarrassing after 22 yrs of having a really good time with it all.
Sue

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This sounds like me. I'm getting to a point where I'm afraid to perform for fear of sounding awful. The band sometimes wants to launch into Shenandoah Breakdown as the first tune of the night, and I cringe just thinking about it. Thanks for sharing. I'm hoping that I can continue playing by tucking my ring finger and pinky up under my hand. Do you know who Nick Hornbuckle is? I believe that he may suffer from FD. He plays with John Reischmann. He lost control of one of his fingers on his right hand and now plays using two fingers. He's pretty good at it.

Kent - Posted - 10/25/2008:  09:19:31

---

quote:

---

Originally posted by mosco

Regarding the T-shaped "appliance", I had a student who had lost his first two fingers, and had learned to play with thumb, ring, and little fingers, but struggled with accuracy, so we came up with the idea of a "handrest", shaped a bit like a "T" which fastened to the existing armrest and extended out over the strings. His right palm rested on the handrest as he played, positioning the hand as accurately as posting fingers on the head. It allowed him to play far more easily and accurately, and, al though you are dealing with a different issue, it might work for you. You have received a lot of good information here from Sue and Matt to help you figure out what you might be dealing with, but it does not sound like any typical carpal tunnel or tennis elbow related problem. They both generally begin with numbness, with the thumb and first two fingers primarily from carpal tunnel, and third and fourth from the ulnar nerve. Eventually, they can cause muscular deterioration, but both can be successfully treated with minor (relatively) surgery. A well-respected surgeon suggested the arthroscopic surgery be avoided for carpal tunnel for the time being, as it is a relatively new procedure, and there have been some occasional problems that might be detrimental for a banjo player.

---

Have any pictures of the appliance? How was it made?

HogWild - Posted - 10/27/2008:  01:20:38

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quote:

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Originally posted by Kent

Hogwild and dclan....did your symptoms come and go. Sometimes my hand feels ok, but mostly not. Did you experience the same, or was it just down hill from the start?

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Kent, It was very gradual. At first it started taking me much longer than normal to warm up. I thought it was just a phase i was going through. Then one night i remember playing through a song, and at one specific spot - my index would totally miss the string. Played it over and over and every time was the same. couldn't figure out what was going on.
Then over the next few weeks it just got worse. I could still pick some but my fingers became increasingly clumsy until i could no longer play a simple roll - even at a slow tempo.
Some days were definitely better than others, and sometimes it would help if i played without picks. After nearly 3 years i finally lost hope that i would ever gain back my coordination and made the switch.

kallekockum - Posted - 10/27/2008:  01:42:31

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quote:

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Originally posted by ban-joe

I tried everything I could think of to overcome this condition- I finally switched to playing lefty. Not very speedy yet but it's coming along OK.

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Wow, talk about committment! Impressive. Good luck!

Kalle Kockum, Sweden
I wish I was as cool as Levon Helm...

plharrison - Posted - 02/01/2009:  06:18:04

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Kent,
From everything I have read, it sounds like you have focal dystonia. It took me about 5 years of agony trying to figure out why I couldn't play any more. My symptoms were very similar, only my main problem was in my middle finger. At 51 years of age, I sent my banjo back to Gibson and had them put on a left-handed neck. Although I'm not yet back to where I once was yet, I'm getting closer and I am enjoying being able to play again. This is just my opinion, but I've read everything I could about the problem, and you won't cure it. I highly recommend switching. Feel free to email me if you have any questions. The best email for me is pharrison55@bellsouth.net.
Paul