On Jun 1, 2010, at 8:05 AM, Michael Magness wrote: > When I get out of the shower in the AM I roll my towel up, place it > under my armpit and GENTLY pull my elbow into my ribs, stretching my > shoulder muscles & tendons out while they are still warm from the > shower. Yes, I think the key in most cases to avoiding the various muscular problems that we face is stretching our muscles - consistently, daily as we get older. I have kept problems at bay by a regimen of all sorts of stretches. Another key is simply being aware of posture when working, feeling the effect on the muscles, and correcting to find postures and techniques that are as relaxed and pain free as possible. And one other thing that needs to be emphasized is that repetitive stress needs to be avoided - which means limiting the amount of any given activity, like tuning. I have found that three a day is sustainable. I did four for years, and it was problematic. Five I still do occasionally when I have to, but it takes too high a toll. Same with voicing. Bottom line, we create our own problems by the way we use our bodies. We need to take responsibility and look at what we do and how we do it, so as to remain healthy and reasonably pain free. It is certainly true that an MD can't address all the problems we cause ourselves, or can only do so in a limited way (pain pills can be helpful temporarily, but are hardly something to depend on unless absolutely necessary). We generally create those swellings that cause nerve pain (like carpal tunnel) by inappropriate use of our bodies, and the surgical solution is not a very good "cure" - prevention is far better. Regards, Fred Sturm fssturm at unm.edu "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." Twain
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