well.. off to carpal tunnel surgery tomorrow :(

[MRscratch]

im a little freaked out, never had surgery before, and its killing me to think of them poking around my hands like that. hope i have a speedy recovery, and my collection doesnt turn into a doorstop collection of amps and guitars for too long!:hide2

[BuckeyeBrown]

Dibbs...

Just kidding. I hope it goes well. I was freaked out for about 6-8 weeks with my wrist really just being sore all of the time. I mead I could throw a balloon and get a sharp pain. It's gone away over the last few weeks but it was weird and I'm a little worried if the feeling comes back I'm going to have to get it checked out.

Good luck man!

[Craig Walker]

Wife just had it 4 weeks ago. Gets her cast off tomorrow.

[MRscratch]

Wife just had it 4 weeks ago. Gets her cast off tomorrow. 4 weeks???????? what??? you serious? i didnt know that it was a cast, i thought just bandages and a splint! did it help? does she feel the difference yet?

[Craig Walker]

Different Docs may do different things, she said. Her doc prefers it.

She had first cast on two weeks. Stiches out. Then they put a lighter version cast on. She also had a tennis elbow procedure, so I don't know if that lengthened time.

I'll type what she has to say: "Fingers and arm are still sore, so it hasn't healed enough to give a verdict yet. Make sure you keep splint on [if that's what they do] because I would have taken it off if I had the choice. The cast is a good thing, so I couldn't use it, or bend it while it was healing".

She was nervous about it too. She says "that's what the meds are for" :)

Good luck. Hope all goes well.

[MRscratch]

Different Docs may do different things, she said. Her doc prefers it.

She had first cast on two weeks. Stiches out. Then they put a lighter version cast on. She also had a tennis elbow procedure, so I don't know if that lengthened time.

I'll type what she has to say: "Fingers and arm are still sore, so it hasn't healed enough to give a verdict yet. Make sure you keep splint on [if that's what they do] because I would have taken it off if I had the choice. The cast is a good thing, so I couldn't use it, or bend it while it was healing".

She was nervous about it too. She says "that's what the meds are for" :)

Good luck. Hope all goes well.thanks. im getting both done. im starting to worry about .....you know.... #2 !!!!!!!! paper work???
im a foreman at work so i can just read blueprints, but still im pretty scared .

[Craig Walker]

Wife asked "at the same time?"

She hasn't heard of anyone doing that. She's had a big adjustment just having one done.

[DaveG]

I had both hands done separately a number of years ago... both times, I played light gigs about a week later. The surgeon went in through the lower part of my palms rather than cut directly into my wrists, he said recovery was much quicker and he was right. No splints or casts, and was able to gently start flexing my hands the next day.

Btw, I hope your surgery goes well, MRscratch, and you recover quickly! :aok

[MRscratch]

Wife asked "at the same time?"

She hasn't heard of anyone doing that. She's had a big adjustment just having one done.yes, both at the same time! i just cant do it twice, ill do it once and suffer half the time twice as much!

[MRscratch]

I had both hands done separately a number of years ago... both times, I played light gigs about a week later. The surgeon went in through the lower part of my palms rather than cut directly into my wrists, he said recovery was much quicker and he was right. No splints or casts, and was able to gently start flexing my hands the next day.dave , was this "endoscopic"? or "open"?

[DaveG]

dave , was this "endoscopic"? or "open"?

Endoscopic... just a 2-inch long incision in each palm.

I thought about getting both hands done at the same time, and the doc said he recommended against it, in case soreness made "bathroom stuff" difficult. I asked my wife, and she said, "Don't even think about it... I don't love you THAT much." :D As it turned out, I could've gotten them both done at the same time, and it would've been fine, but maybe would've taken a little longer to get back to playing guitar.

[Craig Walker]

Got ya. She feels the elbow probably made her heal time longer, so maybe you'll do more along the lines that DaveG shared.

Good luck!

[Craig Walker]

My wife's was done thru the palms also, btw

[Mike9]

Or you can cancel your surgery and suffer till you can't use your hand at all . . . not a hard choice. Really - you gotta man up and take your medicine. The payoff will be worth it.

[MRscratch]

Or you can cancel your surgery and suffer till you can't use your hand at all . . . not a hard choice. Really - you gotta man up and take your medicine. The payoff will be worth it.
ive waited a year. im not canceling. im just a ***** really, i hate pain and scalpels :(

[Craig Walker]

You'll be fine. You'll be glad you did it. :aok

[Hacksaw]

I did one hand at a time and it was well worth it. These guys got it down so good these days, it’s a breeze. My Neurosurgeon was singing a tune and my drummer at the time "the anesthesiologist" was making jokes. Took an hour and I got to watch.

Both hands is just wild and crazy! My doc said no to that.

[MRscratch]

You'll be fine. You'll be glad you did it. :aokcool thanks! im 42 years old, my worse injury was a root canal!
LOL

[MRscratch]

I did one hand at a time and it was well worth it. These guys got it down so good these days, it’s a breeze. My Neurosurgeon was singing a tune and my drummer at the time "the anesthesiologist" was making jokes. Took an hour and I got to watch.

Both hands is just wild and crazy! My doc said no to that. yeah, im second guessing my choice here, but i can push paper at work for a while so im ok!

[frankencat]

Had it done about ten years ago. It saved my career.

[jazzrat]

Had both done 4 years apart. Piece '0 cake both times. One small cut in the wrist and
another in the palm. No Cast, just splint and wraps with a drain bottle.
I was playing guitar in about two weeks.

[Tonekat]

I've seen that they can paint some solution on the nerves to make them easier to slip back and forth in the fascia.

[RnB]

Had mine done about 5 years ago. No big deal! I was afraid for years to have it done due to all the horror stories I had heard about failed operations. I finally couldn't take the pain & numbness any longer & lined-up a good Doctor. Turned out, he did a lot of cosmetic surgery on hands, so that was his specialty. I was a painting contractor for 40 years & an avid bicyclist for 25, so all that punishment it took it's toll on my hands.

He was in & out in less than an hour & the recovery was very quick. I didn't even have any after-pain & I didn't even bother going to PT afterwards. I just squeezed a rubber ball to regain strength. He went in through my wrist & left the smallest of scars (about 1/2"). Even got to watch the procedure on a monitor. He said my hand would be stronger that before & he was right. No problems since!

So good luck & no worries...

[big mike]

im a little freaked out, never had surgery before, and its killing me to think of them poking around my hands like that. hope i have a speedy recovery, and my collection doesnt turn into a doorstop collection of amps and guitars for too long!:hide2

Dude, I had both done. I'm a better player now than before.
Do what you're supposed to, you'll be fine. Take recovery slow, don't push it.

Positive benefit for me!

[big mike]

yes, both at the same time! i just cant do it twice, ill do it once and suffer half the time twice as much!


Okay now THAT'S nuts!

Seriously man...you're going to have to wrap a sawhorse in some lambswool to get clean.

[hank57]

I had the same doc fix my wrist, that repaired my hand hand when I cut myself with a chop saw. He is a god. Here you can see the scar and I think all the lines across the palm are supposed to match up. I play better now than I did for the two or so years leading up to the surgery. Pain free for two or three years now.


http://i255.photobucket.com/albums/hh122/bonjoyhank/tables/0319081306.jpg

[hank57]

Bidet? Okay now THAT'S nuts!

Seriously man...you're going to have to wrap a sawhorse in some lambswool to get clean.

[Mike9]

ive waited a year. im not canceling. im just a ***** really, i hate pain and scalpels :(

You'll most likely be out for the count and not remember the procedure. Don't worry just follow post op instructions and PT. BTW - was this work related?

[MRscratch]

Okay now THAT'S nuts!

Seriously man...you're going to have to wrap a sawhorse in some lambswool to get clean.
LOL thats what my main concern is! maybe i will just eat a block of cheese with every meal, just to slow things down a bit!

[frankencat]

So is today the big day?

You'll be fine. :D

[MRscratch]

So is today the big day?

You'll be fine. :Dyes it is, its 8 am here, i have to be there at 10am, and surgery is at 12. high noon! now im all freaked out because i dont know if its "open" or "endoscopic" surgery, and i know its going to be a pain in the butt to do anything for a while, i read that endoscopic is easier so i want that, but beign that canada is a third world country and so backwards sometimes, i think its going to be just a old rusty razor, and fishing wire for stitches.
duct tape for casts.
also, im scared of "flesh eating desease" that freaks me out the most.:hide2

[frankencat]

I had the palm thing. The worst thing is when they do the "nerve block" which is just local anesthetic. It's a bit uncomfortable but after that it's smooth sailing. Took me about 3-weeks before I was back playing guitar. I am contemplating doing my left hand lately.

[DaveG]

I was knocked out for both of my CT surgeries, which I really appreciated. No stress, no pain... woke up feeling good & ready to get some lunch. :)

Hang in there, MRscratch... you're going to do great today! :aok

[MRscratch]

well,im back.they only did the left. doing right in a month. the doc talked me out of it. so far im ok. avadan, demero codein....yuk.
its pretty tender but i bet im playing tomorrow! thanks for the well wishes folks

[hank57]

Don't play till they tell you you can play! Geesh I know ya wanna but don't do it. Maybe attach a slide somewhere like a wall and play.

Haven't you wanted to learn harmonica? Now is the time.

[wsaraceni]

good luck. i remember being scared sh*tless that i might have carpal tunnel a few years back. unfortunately i was misdiagnosed. i had something much worse!!!

[MRscratch]

yeah, now it hurts!:D but i can tolerate it.

[MRscratch]

good luck. i remember being scared sh*tless that i might have carpal tunnel a few years back. unfortunately i was misdiagnosed. i had something much worse!!!
but you are ok now? god getting old is a pain it the (insert any body part here)

[Go Cat Go!!]

Good luck and hope you have a speedy recovery.

Would you be able to play slide?

[frankencat]

Yep, getting old ain't for sissies. :D

Hope you are back playing soon...but take a week off just the same.

[strat6866]

Wow, my left wrist (fretting hand) has been REALLY bothering me for a few weeks now to the point i can hardly play. It sucks because i have purchased a few new guitars here in the last week and I cant spend alot of time with them. Plus have to take it easy so I am not in too much pain for upcoming gigs.

I may need to see my doc and fear it is carpal tunnel. Hopefully just tendonitis that will subside soon.

Best of luck for a quick recovery!

[Hacksaw]

yeah, now it hurts!:D but i can tolerate it.


more medicine,please!! :D

Glad ya got through it and one hand. now ya can do paperwork properly and shower easier hehe..

Now for speedy healing.

Did the doc mention vegetable oil on the wound site for nice faster healing?

[MRscratch]

more medicine,please!! :D

Glad ya got through it and one hand. now ya can do paperwork properly and shower easier hehe..

Now for speedy healing.

Did the doc mention vegetable oil on the wound site for nice faster healing?nah, stitches out on tuesday.
second hand on dec 14. girlfriends b day! happy b day hun! now feed the gimp!

[Hacksaw]

Hows it doing!! Update?!

[Rattles]

I've had the surgery on both hands a few years apart. Same surgeon for both. Didn't have a cast either time. Great surgery, huge difference. Getting the stitches out was the most painful part of the whole deal.

Hope everything is going great!

[MRscratch]

hey, doing ok stitches out on tuesday, im sure that will be just great!
im doing a little playing already,just easy noodling. i dropped my gauge to 9's from 11, so i can bend them. still cant put much pressure on my thumb. it feels ok now though, just need to take it real easy.
man, now i got to go throught it all again, just days before xmas. bummer!

[wsaraceni]

but you are ok now? god getting old is a pain it the (insert any body part here)

i have PVNS. is a benign tumor that grows on/near the tendon and will probably come back for the rest of my life.

[MRscratch]

wel, just back from round two. just had my right hand done. That was so much fun. i played guitar after my left three days later. just easy closed position stuff.
now its my right ,no palm muting for while.
any to those of you that need this done, its not too bad. a little long in full recovery.
anyhoo, got to sleep off the ativan! weeeee!

[Craig Walker]

Glad to hear it's going well for you.

[MRscratch]

thanks!

[scottlr]

I just had my 3rd surgery on my right eye. I was REAL freaked out for the first two (also having never had any surgery before), but this one I didn't even get nervous over. They even offered me a nice sedative, and I declined. Of course it WAS an easier surgery, but I have been able to focus with my right eye since Friday, after 2 years of having it look like I had a magnifying glass instead of a right eye.

Glad to hear yours is going well for you.