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Rotator cuff issues
Went to a doctor today for rotator cuff pain. He said to get a guitar that is thin (ie shallow depth) and to listen to the guitar community when it comes to buying a guitar that is good for people suffering with shoulder pain. I am open to all suggestions and ideas (such as a guitar with a bevel). I tried the Martin Junior dreadnought and I love it, but it seems to cause me should issues. (I am starting another round of Physical therapy Friday, hopefully this will help.) Doctor says the shoulder should not need surgery at this point, after looking at an MRI and doing strength tests on my right shoulder.
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12 Replies
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Glad to hear you don’t need surgery @Dirk_R ! That’s a tough recovery (I had surgery years ago). I think physical therapy is a great idea. You may need to temporarily change your practice and play in shorter sessions to give the shoulder time to heal.
As for a guitar, you might want to use a smaller bodied guitar instead of a dreadnought, I still like the Taylor GS Mini. It’s a very comfortable guitar and smaller bodied with a very comfortable neck,
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Hi @Dirk_R , I have a single O slope shoulder and a double O slope shoulder both 12 fret guitars. Great guitars for easing up on the shoulder. My shoulder problems were with my left (fretting) hand. Sounds like yours is the Right? Many of my problems where associated with the supraspinatis muscle. It is one of those muscles that connects to the rotator cuff. Simple stretches targeting this are part of my routine now. Talk to your PT and see if that would be helpful for you.
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I am also in treatment for my right rotor cuff. My upper arm hurts terribly when I play. After months off, I said to heck with it and started playing again anyway, because time’s a’wastin. 10 or 20 minutes a day isn’t impossible, and I’m encouraged by finally getting an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan.
Good luck!
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You may have tried this already, but give the shoulder a different ‘look’ by playing classical style – with the guitar resting on your left leg rather than the right. Might even try standing and playing, and set the strap at different heights to see what feels best.
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Another strategy is to put most of your practice time on a shoulder friendly guitar – check out the Fender Telecaster Player Acoustasonic. Thin body, contours that are right shoulder friendly and the tone is very acoustic sounding. For performing you can take out your Martin D-45. 😉
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I went looking for my Martin D 45 and I could not find it.
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So here’s the problem with guitar suggestions from the community @Dirk_R , there are a ton of guitars out there and we all have different preferences. Get a thinner, and/or smaller bodied guitar.
If the guitar is thin enough, like an Epiphone Casino, it can be a full sized body. The Casino is the same body as your ES-335 semi-hollow, but it’s fully hollow. There are some acoustic guitars that come close to being that thin. Takamine makes a “thinline” series. They are expensive, like Taylors and Martins, $2000+. I have an Ibanez thinline but it’s nylon. I love it. It’s the GA34STCE. I think they have some others; I think the AEG series is a thinner guitar.
So then, you have smaller bodies. That’s where you get into the area of many choices and you’ll have to try them. If the body is just a little smaller and a little thinner, it might not be obvious from the specs that it would work for you. The Taylor GS Mini doesn’t seem that much smaller just looking at the numbers, but many people find it to be easier to play. So if you’re ok with “parlors”, you have many options and they are almost always easier on the shoulder. Woah, what does “almost” mean? Parlor is a very broad, general term and so the specs can vary widely depending on the company. Many times, parlors are 12 fret guitars, but not always. There are many different designations among guitar companies. Martin uses the terms single O, double O and triple O. I can never seem to remember which is the smallest, it think it’s the single O. I would recommend one of the 2 smallest (the single or double if I’m remembering correctly that the Triple is the biggest).
Anyway, there you have it. I hope you have succes.
MG 😀
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Hi @Dirk_R I, too, have shoulder problems. Instead of surgeries, I opted for physical therapy. It helps. Not only rotator cuff issues for me, but also a ruptured biceps tendon on my fretting arm (surgery no longer an option for me). I struggle at times with my Taylor dreadnought, because of it’s size and weight, but I still manage to play. I recently bought a Martin D-Jr, primarily as a travel guitar. It’s lighter, comfortable, and fun to play. It’s 4/5 the size of a full size dreadnought, so it’s a little bit bigger than the Taylor GS mini. I like that! Additionally, it has a 1 3/4” nut, which is the same as my Taylor dreadnought. The GS mini has a smaller nut. I prefer a wider neck. You may need to shop around, spend some time visiting different music stores, play a few different models, and figure out what’s the best fit for you. I hope you’ll share your choice of instrument. Best wishes to you, and good luck. 🙂
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Yes I have purchased the Dreadnought Jr. Really like it but it may be too deep at 4 inches
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My whole right pectoralis muscle (I believe) tightens up due to playing so much. I am happy to play until the pain gets to me. Found an interesting article:
https://acousticguitar.com/a-guitarists-guide-to-managing-aging-and-overuse-injuries/
Will take some of the suggestions very seriously since PT has been a wonder for me over the years. Thanks again for your solutions, folks.
CamCan
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Not sure if anyone’s mentioned it but Gibson makes a J 45 studio that’s cheaper and less deep than the regular J 45
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4 inches to deep and that is the depth of the 45
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