Grangur Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 (edited) I bought a Warwick Corvette some time back and found after a while I was getting back strain. It's not a heavy bass, but it didn't agree with me. Recently I was playing on a nice fretless, flat body bass - again after a couple of hours of playing I've now got another strain in my back and arm. Am I strange? (OK, yes, I know) Am I the only person who has problems like this? Should I give us bass? Does anyone have some ideas as to what I'm doing wrong? BTW, I have no problems if the body of the bass is shaped, but if it's flat I'm in trouble. Edited February 18, 2014 by Grangur Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Cloud Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1392730990' post='2372036'] Am I strange? (OK, yes, I know) Am I the only person who has problems like this? Should I give us bass? Does anyone have some ideas as to what I'm doing wrong [/quote] Sorry to read about this. A. No, you are not strange...but you are unique, as are we all. B. Giving up bass would be a permanent solution to a temporary problem. C. You might have aggravated a nerve/muscle.tendon...I caused my self a similar injury last May playing a Gibson Thunderbird (long neck/required arm stretch...ouch!). Let it settle down and see your Osteo. Everything will be okay in the end dude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBus Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 Oh! Never give up bass. [size=4] [/size] [size=4]If you are going to the osteopath why not take your bass with you. He/she might be able to look at your playing style and advise you from there. [/size] [size=4]How high/low do you have your bass? How do you pick it? Just a couple of things to look at.[/size] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 Richard, sorry to hear this. Hope you get sorted pronto. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_Stu Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1392730990' post='2372036'] I bought a Warwick Corvette some time back .......... but it didn't agree with me.[/quote] [quote name='Your Warwick bass' timestamp='1392730990' post='2372036']Oh yes I did!!! [/quote] Seriously glad you're going down the osteopath route rather than popping pills off a GP or looking at ops. Hope you get fixed up quick. Mine has never failed yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sblueplanet Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 (edited) Try playing seated for a while to take the strain from your back and arm. If problem persists it might need a break from the bass till you recover like any injury. Good luck getting back to playing fitness! Edited February 18, 2014 by sblueplanet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 hmmm I'd get someone to look at the mechanics of your back with you hold the bass... I think a good physio would be best...but someone you have talked to over the phone and explained the problem. My physio always checks out my stance and posture and can see something in the way I stand, walk or balance that points to an inherrent change ...that is too subtle for me to notice. The body will always try and compensate, IMO, so this may have been developing over q period of time. You need an expert.....to understand and correct this. Pain is the symptom.... and you shouldn't ignore it.... When you make an appointment, tell the person what you want to achieve with the treatment sessions.... and if they don't make sense or convince you on the phone...keep looking IME. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coilte Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 Hi, Sorry to hear of your problem. You are certainly taking the right course of action by seeing an osteopath. No, dont give up the bass, but rest up for a while. When you get the OK to play again, you could consider some of these possible reasons for your problem. The height you wear the bass. Experiment with different heights and see if it makes a difference. Tensing up without realising it. Sometimes we are concentrating so much on playing that we tense up. Try to be aware of this. Playing in front of a mirror and observing your stance might help. Play for short periods of time then take a ten minute break and do some stretches (see link below). If you are sitting, make sure to do so on a chair with a back to it, rather than on a soft couch or the side of the bed. Wear the strap while sitting, and ideally the strap should be a minimum of 3 wide. Your osteopath might give you some exercises to do. You could also try doing some yoga stretches before and after a practice session. Make sure you are recovered before trying these, as otherwise they could make things worse. [url="http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=yoga+for+back+pain&sm=1"]http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=yoga+for+back+pain&sm=1[/url] Hope you are back playing soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted February 18, 2014 Author Share Posted February 18, 2014 Thanks for all the comments and good wishes guys. Well, she says I'm lop-sided!! Can you imagine?! The nerve of the woman! Well, I got poked and prodded and pushed about and I do feel a bit better. No more bass for me for a few days at least. I did take the offending bass with me, but we didn't get that far this time. But I do, have exercises to do and can keep popping the Neuophen. At least there IS the prospect of getting better, so it's not all bad for me luckily. Besides, I am only 54. I've got years in front of me yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rogerstodge Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 (edited) [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1392746813' post='2372289'] Thanks for all the comments and good wishes guys. Well, she says I'm lop-sided!! Can you imagine?! The nerve of the woman! Well, I got poked and prodded and pushed about and I do feel a bit better. No more bass for me for a few days at least. I did take the offending bass with me, but we didn't get that far this time. But I do, have exercises to do and can keep popping the Neuophen. At least there IS the prospect of getting better, so it's not all bad for me luckily. Besides, I am only 54. I've got years in front of me yet. [/quote]when you say lop sided do you mean one shoulder higher than the other? , my left shoulder is 2" lower than t'other , ive never noticed it til osteo pointed it out. Edited February 18, 2014 by rogerstodge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
essexbasscat Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 Also have a think about the neck and how far it extends to the left of your trunk. The necks on some Warwicks (and Westones i.e. the old Thunder III) can extend further to the left than other instruments, such as a Fender P. The consequence is increased reach (and length of lever) for the fretting arm / hand. Just something to consider. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted February 18, 2014 Author Share Posted February 18, 2014 [quote name='essexbasscat' timestamp='1392749536' post='2372331'] Also have a think about the neck and how far it extends to the left of your trunk. The necks on some Warwicks (and Westones i.e. the old Thunder III) can extend further to the left than other instruments, such as a Fender P. The consequence is increased reach (and length of lever) for the fretting arm / hand. Just something to consider. [/quote] You've a fair point there. The Warwick Streamer is ok for me. But it's possible that without the shaping of the body on the back, maybe I hang the the bass too far to the left of me, somehow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted February 18, 2014 Author Share Posted February 18, 2014 Ok, I've just done a full check through for differences in the playing position for all my basses. For this I donned the bass and swung my left hand up to it's natural position where it swings straight up to the neck with no movement to my left at all. Furthest to the left is the Warwick - 15th fret. Squier P - 12th fret LTD ESP - 12th fret Wishbass - 10th fret However it's the Wishbass that was the bad boy. That was the one that caused most strain in the arm to play. The difference is all the others have narrower straps that I've adjusted for me. The Wishbass has the wider, leather strap it came with, adjusted for the other guy I bought it from and it sits about 2" higher on my chest. I've now adjusted the strap and it feels better. (Note the sneaky way I got to have an excuse to play a few bars there in the name of medical research. ) [size=4][quote name='White Cloud' timestamp='1392733197' post='2372091'][/size] Sorry to read about this. A. No, you are not strange...but you are unique, as are we all.... Everything will be okay in the end dude. [/quote] So right there dude! I'm different to the guy I bought it from. Problem found and solved. Now I just need to solve the other problem of the arm etc. Its a pain how it makes you tired.... off to bed now to rest again with only Mrs G for company.... It's a tough life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Cloud Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1392752775' post='2372391'] Problem found and solved. Now I just need to solve the other problem of the arm etc. Its a pain how it makes you tired.... off to bed now to rest again with only Mrs G for company.... [/quote] That is progress. An alternative way of looking at this is that the pain that you are feeling is actually the signal that [i]your body[/i] is sending you as[i] it carries out the healing process[/i]. A marvelous piece of biological design is the human body! [i]Sleep[/i] is often the[i] best form of medicine............ [/i] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skinnyman Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 I had a similar problem, wouldn't go away and the more I played, the more I aggravated it. Ended up with a cortizone injection in the shoulder - sorted! That and a Pro-Series Strapp (sic) from Bass Direct - seems to halve the weight of my bass. Best thing I ever bought (well, aside from the latex catsuit for the missus)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
odysseus Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 Osteo is a good idea, but also consider a physiotherapist/sports massage. I was a regular user of the osteopath due to weights/surfing/cycling, and I have an imbalance in the muscles in my back - the right side is stronger and tighter than the left, mainly due to an old injury. It got to the point where the osteopath would correct the spine's alignment, but within a week the muscles would pull it back out again. A friend recommended a local physio/sports massage guy - he loosened off the knotted muscle and stopped the muscles from pulling the spine back out of line and advised me on extra stretches and exercise to keep supple. I still need osteo occasionally, but nothing like as much as I used to. I see the physio dude about once every two months just to get any potential problems addressed. Working out fine now and pretty much pain free most of the time. (The guys's dad is a bass-player too, so he knows what can happen after a few close gigs.) So... osteopath is good, but do consider a physio as a possible extra. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted February 20, 2014 Author Share Posted February 20, 2014 [quote name='Skinnyman' timestamp='1392760981' post='2372554'] I had a similar problem, wouldn't go away and the more I played, the more I aggravated it. Ended up with a cortizone injection in the shoulder - sorted! That and a Pro-Series Strapp (sic) from Bass Direct - seems to halve the weight of my bass. Best thing I ever bought (well, aside from the latex catsuit for the missus)... [/quote] Sounds like a good, sound recommendation. Please do post links and pics... of the latex suit, of course! @Odysseus ; Many thanks. I'll bear that in mind. The Osteo practitioner I go to is a physio as well, so hopefully she keeps all of it in mind. 2nd session tomorrow! Right now I can't wait for my forearm to stop aching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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