Thesteelydane.com » Performance injury

Protected: Notes from injury prevention talk at DKDM Oct.1 09

Nicolaj — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 21:46:13 +0000

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

On Cortisone and recovery

Nicolaj — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:52:52 +0000

Many people ask me about cortisone and the role it played in my recovery, so I thought I’d write a little note on it. When I first had cortisone injections, it was administered by a regular doctor who just wanted to help. This was months before I finally got the correct diagnosis (a massive shoulder blade dysfunction) – and it did help, or rather so I thought. The pain disappeared, only to come back 2 months later with a vengeance, when the effect of the cortisone wore off. In other words, I returned to playing way too soon, and only made things worse by playing with a serious dysfunction. I just couldn’t feel the pain.

After I finally got the correct diagnosis from a orthopedic surgeon, and started my rehab…

A new type of shoulder pad: A review

Nicolaj — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 14:44:25 +0000

I recently saw an article in The Strad that immediately caught my attention. A guy in Japan had invented a shoulder pad (yes, a pad – not a rest) that attached to you instead of the violin. This – at least in in theory – should make it easier to move the violin around and change your playing position, which from a physical therapy point of view is a good thing. I contacted the guy and he kindly send me a test sample. It is very well made of non-slip neoprene and utilizes strong magnets inside the pad to hold it in place. As a player who usually tugs a thick wash cloth under my shirt, the concept isn’t new to me, but I’ve never seen it implemented in such…

Back in business

Nicolaj — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 12:00:31 +0000

My wrist is fine again, and I’m playing full time. It took about a month, and according to medical science I should count myself lucky, as it can take up to 3 months for the overstretched ligaments to heal and fully contract. I have been busy freelancing a lot with the Malmö Symphony Orchestra in Sweden and practicing for upcoming auditions. I have also been preparing a few pieces to record for this website and expect to upload material within a week.

In other news, the article about my story in “Musikeren” (”The Musician”) is coming out in a few days. Stay tuned for more….

Downloads

Nicolaj — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 13:37:47 +0000

A comprehensive literature list

When I was down and out with my shoulder injury, I desperately sought out any information I could find on shoulder injuries and especially if any other violinists/violists had any experience that could help me. Imagine my joy, when someday I stumbled upon this treatise by an American viola player, Michelle Rush, that had not only suffered the exact same injury that I had, but also read every single book and article on the subject, and then compiled a review of it all in a single treatise! This quickly turned into my most valuable resource in my quest for knowledge about my condition. I recently managed to track down Michelle and asked her if she would be ok with her treatise being posted here – she said…

Wrist sprain

Nicolaj — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 03:08:16 +0000

Given my recent close encounter with the subject, I decided to write a little about what it actually is, why it hurts so much and takes so long to heal. In your forearm you have 2 bones that rotate around each other. These are joined to the 8 small carpal bones that form your wrist and fit together like pieces in a jigsaw puzzle. They are aligned in 2 rows of 4 and the whole thing is held together by a complex web of ligaments. Ligaments connect bones to each other and helps to stabilize the joint. They are also used by the brain as a sort of joint sensors that helps the nervous system to control the muscles – they are thus full of nerve endings! It is these…

The full story

Nicolaj — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 01:31:56 +0000

This is the full account of my injury survival story:

I am one of the lucky few that has made a full recovery from a near career ending shoulder injury. It took 2 years of intense, daily physiotherapy, economic hardship, depression, loss of work and a whole lot of pain, but I made it. I also learned a lot in the process and I am now determined to help others avoid the problems that I’ve had. Here is my story:

In the fall of 2005 I was living in Sweden and working full time in the Malmö Opera Orchestra, when I started experiencing a slight, but relentless pain on the front of my left shoulder when playing. I brushed it of as a result of practicing a lot, and not having a proper…

Speaking

Nicolaj — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 00:57:50 +0000

“Anatomy and Injury Prevention for Musicians”

Intended for professional orchestras and university level music schools and academies, “Anatomy and Injury Prevention for Musicians” is the presentation I gave at Banff Centre in Canada in 2008 in an attempt to share the knowledge I gained in dealing with my own injury. Throughout my career I have had various teachers and colleagues tell me that I should be careful with my posture – but no one told why it was important or just how spectacularly bad things could go. Had someone sat me down with an anatomy book and explained to me how the body works and why good posture and strength is important, I would probably have been much more vigilant about these things. This is exactly the kind of information I…