I put off this surgery for years... had SEVEN carpal tunnel steroid injections. The nerve pain got so bad I couldn't sleep. Finally had the surgery 3 days ago and it was virtually painless, was playing simple classical pieces the next day, less than 24 hrs after surgery! It was a mini-open with a 3/4" incision. As a classical guitar professor of 33 years, i was really reluctant, but glad I had it done. Easy peasy. Problem fixed. Just choose your surgeon wisely. Nothing to fear from this.
@SonnyAngelucci
2 жыл бұрын
I am scheduled for late January surgery just on my left hand. Total numbness in index and thumb for last 3 months. Now i am starting to get pain at top of palm between the ring and middle finger. Did yu experience alot of numbness before surgery and did surgery resolve it?
@williamyelverton-music7072
2 жыл бұрын
@@SonnyAngelucci Surgery for me was easy. Not only did I have numbness, I had nerve pain at night where I couldn't sleep. The surgery completely fixed that. Still have a little lingering numbness but that will go away in a few months. I was literally playing simple pieces on the guitar the day after surgery. It's been 4 weeks and I can even do a few pullups and pushups. Very happy I had it done.
@SonnyAngelucci
2 жыл бұрын
@@williamyelverton-music7072 thanks for the reply!!!! I’m having it done in a few weeks and am both very nervous and hopeful. The numbness has really interfered with my playing
@zerosoma33
2 жыл бұрын
Mini open here too. Played guitar on day 3 but kept it short, and today (day 7) I played for 30 minutes, so I’m improving! Stitches get taken out in 5 days.
@officewilkonson6323
Жыл бұрын
Thank you for you input and information. I had a question though. What exactly do you mean when you say "choose your surgeon wisely." ? Thanks
@gerrywagner3693
Жыл бұрын
I'm looking at carpal tunnel surgery in both hands, I only have numbness while I'm sleeping. So I'm a bit worried and I really appreciate these videos!
@jimc91
3 жыл бұрын
Thank you for sharing this. I have been playing guitar since 1966 and in 4 days I go in for this surgery on my left hand. I had this on my right hand three years ago and it went pretty well. Obviously I am more concerned about my left hand. Hope I don't lose any of my muscle memory. Thanks again, you have a really nice touch.
@elenabortuzzo1638
3 жыл бұрын
Thank you so much for these 3 videos...you are my beam of light in a dark tunnel...am scheduled for CT surgery in 2 days in left hand (in a few months right hand). I play guitar and uke (amateur) and this is the main reason I am so sad about getting this surgery..no playing for 2 months but seeing your videos gave me hope... thank you so much again, your videos have meant SO much to me!
@AndrewsGuitarChannel
2 жыл бұрын
Thank you for this series. Very helpful in helping me to decide if I want to get the surgery. I got a cortisone shot in March that worked wonders, but now 7 months later it is no longer helping. I am going to give it one last try with heavy duty stretching and heat therapy and if that doesn't work ...under the knife I go.
@deepwaters4238
5 ай бұрын
That was what happened to me i am scheduled for surgery in May want it tomorrow so i dont over think it
@AndrewsGuitarChannel
5 ай бұрын
@@deepwaters4238 Had my surgery a couple years ago, wish I had got it done sooner. It has worked miracles for me. I was scared as hell before the operation, but they knocked me out for the surgery. Now I can play guitar and violin till the cows come home and no numbness.
@cegsway5221
5 жыл бұрын
Thanks, I'm scheduled to have the surgery in a couple weeks..Been putting it off a while but because of the pain and numbness, I've been playing less and less anyway ,so I guess it's time.. Thanks for your insight!
@PDXguitarfreak
5 жыл бұрын
Cut here ... LOL
@jeffmoore9487
5 жыл бұрын
I'm a guitarist only anticipating surgery. Searched for vids and really appreciated yours. I see you haven't added any for months. Why not?
@GASTV
5 жыл бұрын
I have been on a long break not because of anything to do with my hand or surgery, all is well there. I have a family member dealing with a terminal illness and have decided to take the time off to spend more time with family for a while. Running this channel is really time consuming. Am planning a comeback soon though... thanks for watching and glad I could be of some help.
@jeffmoore9487
5 жыл бұрын
@@GASTV I'm flattered you got back to me. There's not much direct experience with CT surgery vs guitar I can find, so your vids and one other fellows are like prime sources so far and very helpful. You both personalize a slow but steady recovery - very helpful and encouraging. The idea that completely and simply severing a tendon virtually " cures" a problem seems so counter-intuitive!
@GASTV
5 жыл бұрын
@@jeffmoore9487 I was looking for guitarist related info myself when going through this and didn't find any then thought someone should do some videos... then thought "Wait... I have a KZitem channel....". 😁
@jamiekim6926
4 жыл бұрын
Hi interesting video thanks for sharing your experiences it's hard to find good info on guitarists who had this done. Did you ever get back to full playing ability? I play shredding style fusion, metal, blues that kind of thing but carpal tunnel is an issue for me and it's hard to maintain a good practice regime now. I'm worried if I get the surgery I might never play fast stuff again. Who knows...
@GASTV
4 жыл бұрын
Jamie Kim my hand is healed 100% now. Back to full playing capacity... which is admittedly a low bar :P Everything has it risks but it sounds like you’re not at full playing capacity now and if you don’t do something about it, it may get worse. In hindsight, the surgery was quite superficial compared to other surgeries. Just cutting the tendon which is just under the skin. I had a longer healing period because of the size of the incision to guarantee it was fully severed and it was inconvenient and uncomfortable as you can see from the videos. However, despite abusing my hand after surgery (playing for hours on NYE) it appeared there was little I could do to cause any more damage to my hand as long as I wasn’t incredibly stupid. Best to speak to your doctor and find a good hand specialist. All the best and let me know how you go.
@jamiekim6926
4 жыл бұрын
@@GASTV Great to hear you are doing well now! I'm definitely going to look at the surgery route again. I've not much to lose really as you're right I'm not at full capacity now. I'll probably have to wait till after the pandemic unfortunately as non-urgent surgery is cancelled here. I'll keep staving it off with splints and other things, that do help.Good to hear about results though as stories about CTS and guitar are hard to find.
@jamiekim6926
4 жыл бұрын
oh and interestingly I just read that Jimmy Bruno had the surgery many years ago. Certainly hasn't affected him at all. I feel positive about the option.
@DonDon-eo5nv
3 жыл бұрын
GAS TV what about ur strength?? not 100% right???
@jamiekim6926
3 жыл бұрын
@@GASTV I just went with wrist splinting at night in the end and wore the splint while playing for a couple of months, changing my technique a bit. It's made a big difference to me and I don't have any problems at the moment. Let's see how it goes in the future.
@marclevant6639
Жыл бұрын
How are you doing now?
@CosgroveGuitarStudio
4 жыл бұрын
I will be scheduling my CT surgery sometime this week. I was leaning to having laparoscopic surgery for the quicker recovery time. However, I would not want to do it again if they don't get the entire tendon severed. I know you needed to do the open surgery to 100% eliminate the possibility that any numbness in your hand is caused by CT because of your slipped disc. If CT is was your only issue, would you try to do laparoscopic? I am a classical guitarist feeling pins and needles in both hands. :)
@GASTV
4 жыл бұрын
Matt Cosgrove - Guitar To be honest, given my slipped disc issue I never really thought about laproscopic surgery much (or is it endoscopic? Whatever :)). The decision was pretty much made by my surgeon and I went with it. This is a tough one, please take what I say with a huge grain of salt and consult your doctors. From what I hear though, laproscopic surgery recovery is about 2 weeks (please check with your surgeon) vs the 6-8 weeks that I had. Health care is covered in Australia so cost isn’t really an issue and you would do one hand at a time, not both (for practical reasons). So I might have been tempted to try laproscopic surgery on one hand first, see how it went. If it worked, all well and good, if it didn’t then I’d take the trouble to go back under the knife. Much of he extra recovery period for open surgery appears to be the open wound rather than the tendon being severed, and I was already pushing myself to play after a week. I ‘d imagine laproscopic surgery would be a breeze compared to what I went through. Our hands are our livelihoods and I would have taken it slowly in steps if I could, even if it cost more money and time. I hope that helps somewhat.
@CosgroveGuitarStudio
4 жыл бұрын
@@GASTV Thanks for the detailed reply. It probably is endoscopic lol. I am definitely going to find out what the difference would be between open and endoscopic. Again thanks for the generous reply and posting these series of videos. It gives a good idea what to expect after the procedure. And congrats on the successful recovery!
@GASTV
4 жыл бұрын
Matt Cosgrove - Guitar My pleasure. I was freaking out about my hand when going in for mine and no one else had info on it, so my main motivation was to share my experience to try and help others going through the same thing. It’s scary when you are going to cut up the soft bits that make up your livelihood! Good luck and let me know what you decided to do. You sharing here might help someone else too :)
@SonnyAngelucci
2 жыл бұрын
Thank you so much for sharing. I am scheduled for late January surgery just on my left hand. Total numbness in index and thumb for last 3 months. Now i am starting to get pain at top of palm between the ring and middle finger. Did yu experience alot of numbness before surgery and did surgery resolve it?
@kenschwartz8140
2 жыл бұрын
How is your hand currently? I am on the verge of getting carpal tunnel surgery due to my left hand weakening as well as dexterity problems with my ring and little finger. I am a steady gigging acoustic and electric guitar player and play 8-10 solo and group gigs a month. I have had to cancel the next four weeks because I can’t play at the level I have been playing at for the last 35+ years. I’m really hoping I can get my left hand strength and coordination back.
@GASTV
2 жыл бұрын
My hand is fully healed and back to normal... other than old age generally starting to affect me. You sound like you have it way worse than I did when I decided to get mine fixed. I wouldn't put it off, I decided to get it done when I had a mild case as there is risk of long term nerve damage if left untreated. The nerves in your hand can get damaged from the constriction of the carpal tunnel and there's not easy to fix and can be permanent in some cases. In some cases, patients apparently can get atrophy in the hand muscles as the damaged nerves result in reduced use and movement of the hand. Perhaps best to see a medical specialist and see what can be done for you at this stage.
@marclevant6639
Жыл бұрын
Do you think endoscopic surgery would work?
@GASTV
Жыл бұрын
I am perfectly fine now. Was pretty much 100% after the general period of recovery after the surgery. Endoscopic surgery would have probably worked just as well and definitely would have been less intrusive and healed quicker, but in my case given I had slipped discs contributing to my hand numbness and potentially complicating the diagnosis, my surgeon recommended we go open surgery to be absolutely sure he cut it cleanly. That way whatever numbness I still had post-op would definitely not be related to my carpal tunnel.
@marclevant6639
Жыл бұрын
@@GASTV Thank you for getting back to me. I am happily you are doing well. I fear the surgery but will probably have to get it done. It’s impacting my desire to practice and I don’t play as well. Thanks for your insight!!!!
@kenysmith4529
4 жыл бұрын
I'm probably going to need surgery in both hands sooner than later...after a year, is your dexterity back to normal?
@GASTV
4 жыл бұрын
My experience has been excellent. No problems with my hand here other than the ugly scar. There was no real loss of dexterity... lack of skill certainly but dexterity was as it was before pretty much as soon as the swelling went down. If you have severe carpal tunnel syndrome, I suspect your dexterity is supposed to improve. As you can see from the video, I was already playing before the cast was off.
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