It is possible you’re gripping too hard. It takes a fair amount of concentration and work to not play, pick, or grip things harder than is necessary.
I do play fiddle and have that “space” you mention. It comes from making a 'V" with your thumb & first finger and setting the neck in the V.
The “meat” is very thin around the knuckle area, and I can see that being a possible problem.
That could be the answer, too. Maybe I need to readjust my hand position so that the meaty part between the knuckles is making the contact. That almost seems like the more logical explanation. I say this, because I didn’t have this problem a few months ago, until I started playing much more on a daily basis. I actually think I caused it myself. I will try making contact on the meaty part and see if it helps. Unlearning bad habits…ugh.
I understand…ughhh
Best to catch these things before you ruin yourself somehow though.
You might try experimenting on how lightly you can finger things to get a clean sound also.
The combination of less finger pressure and the thumb taking on more of that pressure with an adjusted left hand position might just do the trick, if you haven’t permanently damaged anything yet.
I will try the lighter pressure, and involving the thumb more, and hope the damage isn’t permanent like you say.
Glad I jumped on here and asked for other people’s input. Thanks again.
JIm,
You’re Welcome!
Hope it gets better without any pesky Dr. bills.
Have a great holiday season, and I’ll see you around the forum.
Dave
Hi Jim
At 72 I feel your pain. Take a break for a few days buddy and let your hand rest. It could just be a callous growing, (hard skin pad on the tip of your finger) If your concerned go see your Doctor.
Hey Jim,
Most musicians travel down this road at some time or another. A good stretching routine has helped me more than anything, and the pain improves in less than a week, (At least in my case), when I do this stretching routine.
Worth a shot…It’s free!
Lots of good advice on this forum! It would really help if you could post a pic of your left hand’s contact with the neck…maybe we could spot an issue? I’m sorry to hear about this! I’ve had things like this in the past and needed some time off from time to time.
I have the same exact thing. Diagnosis: tendonitis. Treatment: Advil and acupuncture. Slowly getting better. Hope this helps.
An accomplished chiropractor may be able to help, too. A couple of years ago my left shoulder would start burning after about 5 minutes of playing. Turns out I had some muscles around that area “turned off” from some old injury and my body just wasn’t compensating as well as it used to. The adjustments set things right and the burning went away.
I never thought about a chiropractor. My hands and arms go to sleep and burn pretty bad sometimes when playing from a seated position. Using a strap while standing helps a lot for me.
The right chiropractor can work miracles. Last Thursday I noticed my 3 year old son couldn’t hear very well at all. We play a little music machine for him for 30 minutes when he goes to bed. Even though it was on the shelf right by his head, he said he couldn’t hear it, so I whispered when he couldn’t see me and he didn’t hear me. The next day we took him to the doctor and he had a double ear infection. I felt horrible.
The weekend came and went, but the antibiotics weren’t helping his hearing, so I took him to the chiropractor. I knew that if she could give him the adjustments he needed, it’d help the fluid drain out of his ears and help him hear better, plus help speed recovery.
I kid you not… we got in the car after his adjustment and he grabbed his little device to play one of his movies and he said “That’s too loud.” He turned it down to where I could barely hear it, but he was still singing along with the songs.
I’m all about good chiropractors. It’s tough to find a good one, though.
@Mark_Rocka Same thing with my 4 year old granddaughter. She was getting ear infections one after other. A three minute visit to the chiropractor every two weeks and no ear infections.
I can’t argue with that…I’ve never been to one but my Grandfather used to swear by them for his back pain. I think your probably right about finding a good one. I’ve heard about as many bad stories as I have success stories.
So you need a chiropractor now?? 
j/k Glad your son is ok! But I never knew a connection between ear infection and chiropractic.
You should probably try this… Aachi brand Chukku Malli Coffee. Dry ginger based coffee. You should find it in nearby Indian store for $3.00 or around that price. Works wonders, helps with congestion, cold etc. You can drink even otherwise.
All natural ingredients and definitely would not hurt.
https://www.aachifoods.com/Chukku-malli-powder
Oh yeah. If the bones around the ear canal are out of alignment, it can prevent fluids behind the ear drum from draining properly. I believe that’s what happened during the adjustment. Everything lined up and that fluid drained off.
Chiropractic is good for all kinds of things. I remember watching the movie Miracles From Heaven where the little girl’s digestive tract wasn’t working. No medical doctor could figure it out and they all said she was going to die. Then she fell out of a tree and was miraculously healed. I thought “Well dang! All she needed was a chiropractic adjustment!”
Thanks for the tip on the tea. We have an Indian store nearby. I’ll check them out to see if they have it.
I understand what you are saying. When I can squeeze my head from the sides using two hands, I can see the hearing improves. For older people like us, I think the face shape changes (or due to food habit??) a little bit and makes the bones out of whack that I think impairs hearing somewhat.
The dry ginger tea you can drink once a month on regular basis or more often when you have cold symptoms.
An Occupational therapist would also be able to help hand and arm problems with specific stretxhes, exercises and whatever else they have up there sleeve.
You may or may not need a referral. But would check wth a healthcare provider.
Jack this is so true. I’m a believer because I have first hand experience in the hand pain / tendonitis area. I NEVER practice without the warmup stretches and also do the tendonitis routine in the video (attached). At one point, I feared the worst, but now I can practice literally all day, all week without discomfort. Picking is an athletic event for the fingers, hands & arms and deserve to be treated well! Happy Picking!
I do the tendentious self help thing two or three times a week. I’ve been doing it since it was posted. It has decreased my problems in the picking hand. I picked up some Pain Salve at the natural health store. I’m not sure what’s in it but think it helps.