Lots of Practice=Shoulder Pain????

uatinde · Post by **uatinde** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 12:23 pm

Hey guys... I have a college audition
coming up and have been practicing a lot.... My right shoulder is so sore that I
can hardly move my right arms without soreness.... is my practicing causeing
that or am I just stressed... Has anyone else ever experienced anything like
this before?????[:blackeye:]

Flute_Girl_03 · Post by **Flute_Girl_03** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 3:57 pm

Lol, you can hardly move your right
"arms"? Just how many right arms do you have? Just kidding. My left shoulder is
killin me right now cuz I've been playing a lot lately. I sure hope it stops
soon so i can practice more. I'll pray that your shoulder stops hurting so much
and I'm sure you'll do fine for your audition. So in answer to your question,
yes, i experience the same thing.

flutietootie4lyfe · Post by **flutietootie4lyfe** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 6:12 pm

I get the same exact thing.
Ezpeccially at semsba when we played two 9 hour days in a row with only short
breaks. The trumpets had to take a break because of their "chops" but nobody
ever gives the flutes a break because our embrochures seldome wear out!(THOUGH
THEY DO SOMETIMES!) And even though we have one of the lightest instruments we
hold in it a very straining position especially in a more crowded room, so this
is normal. What I recomend for a long day or camp is light clothing but if you
must wear a sweatshirt or something than you might want to cut the sleeves off
it has really helped me.(Though it is more of a teenager/child look so adults
may not want to wear this) thanks for letting me vent LOL

AG950Flute · Post by **AG950Flute** » Tue Jan 06, 2004 9:33 pm

you should look into the alexander
technique. if you go online you can find out a lot of information. last quarter
i took a class on it and it was great. to sum it up, it pretty much just builds
your kinesthetic sense and teaches you to be aware of your body and how you
move. a lot of the time, us flutists put ourselves into really funny positions
when we play. watch yourself in a mirror and see if you're raising your right
shoulder higher than your left. or see if you're bringing it forward more or
curling it in some sort of way. make sure also that you bring the flute to you
and not your head to the flute. anyway...i hope that kinda helps. also, i agree
with the playing while laying down. sometimes that helps. also try playing while
walking backwards (that helps you build your sense of awareness and it helps
your body be in a better balanced position.) good luck!

uatinde · Post by **uatinde** » Wed Jan 07, 2004 10:03 am

I never thought of playin while
lying down... I will try that tonight

and looking in the mirror to see if i
am doing anything weird.... thanks guys!! i was starting to wonder if I was all
alone in this issue.... [:0]

Amber · Post by **Amber** » Fri Feb 06, 2004 7:03 am

I have the same problem with pain in
my left shoulder...and I was told it was from bad positioning of the flute from
playing with the traditional straight forward "marching band look" most
directors want to see even in concert band. To fix this I was told to angle my
head more to the left toward my body at a 20 degree angle to the shoulder, and
keep your feet and 11 and 2 oclock....I have been working on this and the
problem seems to be getting better. If it continues I will need to have it
checked out since I have also heard it could someday need surgery if its not
fixed....yikes...

Nadya · Post by **Nadya** » Sat Jul 10, 2004 3:59 pm

i have a lot of pain in my right shoulder when i play as well. i went to the physiotherapist originally because my hand would swell up and start burning, then it progressed to my shoulder. i was diagnosed with Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. it occurs when the thoracic nerve running across your upper torso gets cut off. it can also be caused by an extra rib, which some people have. i would suggest you check it out. my physiotherapist gave me a bunch of exercises to do, and he corrected my posture. it helped me a lot

good luck!!

OrangeGal4 · Post by **OrangeGal4** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 3:14 pm

:mrgreen: Yes, I have expreiced this before. Just put ice on it and it helps! (ALOT!)

jessclark · Post by **jessclark** » Wed Aug 04, 2004 8:02 pm

I am a college student and I had sorta the same problem. After having wrist pains for a few months I did some research and saw a doctor. I had a research class so I wrote my paper on that. I have published it online at:

http://www.fluteinfo.com/Health/ArmPain/index.html

Note that your shoulder pain may also be cause by other factors such as how you stand or sit when you play. You may be off balanced.

"What every musician should know about the body":
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/de ... essclark00
is a very helpful book and it helped me in my research and solution to my pain.

What you should do is see a medical professional. My college professor aid I had perfect posture (and I did) but the medical professional showed me where my problem was.

If you have any questions send me an e-mail.

Jesse Clark
http://www.FluteInfo.com
A Resource for all kinds of Flutists.

Nadya · Post by **Nadya** » Fri Aug 06, 2004 4:30 pm

you might want to look into the Alexander Technique. it helped me a lot

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