You Don't Have To Play The Blues

As much as I love blues music, being a musician and playing music doesn't have to hurt. 

Studies have shown musicians experience musculoskeletal pain at a higher rate than non-musicians, but this does not mean playing a musical instrument is bad for the body. Your body is designed to play a guitar, violin, saxophone, piano, or the drums pain free. Playing an instrument can be thought about the same way as playing a sport - each instrument, just like each sport, places specific repeated stresses on the body. With repeated playing the body will adapt to the demands placed upon it and adjust. These adjustments can be adaptations in muscles, bones, connective tissues, blood vessels, nerves, etc. 

The body is such an amazing stimulus response organism and it will adapt to what you ask it to do.
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Repeatedly throwing a baseball will strengthen the muscles involved in the throwing motion and increase the range of motion of the shoulder joint. This is a normal and natural response of the body to movement/demand. But when a person throws hundreds of baseballs daily with one arm and not the other, the body starts to become imbalanced. Now not only is one arm stronger and exhibits a larger range of motion than the other arm, the rest of the body starts to compensate for this imbalance. The dominate shoulder might drop down and forward which rotates the same side hip forward and twists the knees and feet out of balance. This is a recipe for pain and injury up and down the body. 

The same imbalance patterns happen when someone plays an instrument repeatedly. Playing a guitar right handed will lead to the right shoulder rotating forward and up and will cause internal rotation of the right arm. The left shoulder will drop back and down. The right scapula will abduct (protract) as the left scapula adducts (retracts). 

Playing a violin will lead to many of the same imbalances as playing a guitar. The woman below will end up with imbalances in her neck, shoulder, and back muscles from the repeated demands of playing the violin. These imbalances can lead to neck, back, shoulder, elbow, wrist, or hand pain and injury. 

Being a drummer can also lead to postural imbalances and eventual pain or injury. Common imbalances created by drumming are forward head posture, thoracic flexion, lumbar flexion, and rounded shoulders. 

Whether you play baseball or guitar the key to becoming pain free is the same: balance the body. Restoring postural alignment and balance will both relieve pain and future prevent injuries. The first thing you need to do is identify your postural imbalances and then figure out what specific exercises/stretches will restore proper strength, flexibility, stability, and position to the muscles and joints. As function is restored, your posture will return to balance, and allow you to play pain free. 

If you would like a free postural evaluation contact me today. I will help you understand the relationship between your dysfunctions (what's not working), compensations (what's taken over instead), and your pain (the resultant symptoms). Then we can formulate a plan to get your postural alignment restored and you can return to playing pain free. 

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