Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I crushed my left finger in an accident at work.
I Don't know how long it will be untill I can use my finger (I tried a three finger deal on bass but it didn't work) and within the accident I pulled tendons/muscles way out of whack within my left hand alltogether.Ouch Is an understatement.This happened about two weeks ago and I'm guessing it will take another month to get back to normal.II have been told by my Doctor to leave the splint on(I tried to play again) but I was wondering ;Any advice?
Has anyone broke, or in my case crushed a finger and in some way recovered? I think it's the tip but it was kinda broke in many places. Yeah, it hurts.Any Suggestions as to what would help the bone(s) heal? Thanks.
Bill
P.S.
I'd post pics but I can't seem to get my camera and linux to cooperate.

OW! I never did something that bad but I sliced my left index finger open once and messed up a nerve. It healed in a few weeks but when I played and did the frist fret on the G (G#) I had a sharp pain going up my hand. Not as bad as cruching your finger but still. I wanted to tell that story.

Do as your doctor says Bill. Leave the splint on and if need be, ask what you can and cannot feasibly do.

Agree with Andrew....

I had a bad summer about 10 years ago, where I screwed up a tendon in my left pinkee and broke the middle finger tip of my right hand badly.

The left hand injury impeded my piano playing for over a year-I could not comfortable play an octave with my LH. The broken finger tip didn't affect the piano at all-the tip was numb for a couple of months. But it did affect playing bass (hurt like Hell) and strumming a guitar (the numb finger tip would rub on the strings as I strummed and get VERY irritated)

I was concerned about playing bass with my fingers even after the feeling came back, as the finger tip as still very sore, so I got some big felt picks and tried playing with a pick for about 6 months. Eventually I tried to finger pick the bass again and I was OK.

Bill, unfortunately it sounds like your best bet is to be patient, and let you finger heal naturally. I'm not sure if there's much you can do except NOT use it, keep it in a splint.

Maybe increasing your calcium intake would help-but we get most of our calcium that the body actually can use from vegetables like spinach and broccoli...drinking lots of milk will only increase the level of calcium in your urine. (Yukk...sorry if I offend).

Good luck. You'll get playing again, just might be more than a month before you can do it comfortably. But bones heal given enough time and rest. Maybe a small consolation, but the year I was screwed up with my LH on the piano I developed some better technical styles to play fugues and counterpoint...maybe by the time you can play again you'll unlearn some bad habits...

I cut the end off of my left index finger a few of years ago. I was unable to play for 3 or 4 months. It was very sensitive for about a year. It is still more sensitive than before but I am able to play.

As far as the tendons they may take even longer to heal. IMO the best thing to do for that is to get physical therapy. This will cut the healing time down considerably. I am speaking from my experience only.

Physical therapy is a must once the injury has moved out of the acute stage. In this case, with finger dexterity involved, the healing process will be greatly advanced with the specific exercises. If you take your playing seriously Bill make sure you go to P.T.

Yes take your doctors advice, he will probably recommend a PT, you might even want to look for a specialist, maybe even sports medicine could help as they ease athletes back into their sports and know when it is time.
I crunched my left index finger between a hole hawg drill case and a wall once when it got jammed. I never went to a doctor but think I got a hairline fracture in my knuckle near the tip. I continued to play and it didn't really heal for a couple of years, I couldn't bend it all the way like to play a chord and it hurt when I tried.

of course, if you have to wear a splint you could try slide guitar. I am somewhat serious, as it might be a good time to try it out.

BooBoo! I thought this was a post about Yogi Bear. I'll be keeping a good thought for your finger. What do you do for a living?

Oh BTW doing nothing lets them heal the best, everytime a partially healed bone gets disturbed it builds up tissue and can get deformed. Following your doctors advice is the best thing. Mine took so long to heal because I kept using it. When I was a kid I broke a finger and kept taking the splint off and I had to have it rebroken because it healed wrong because of my taking the splint off and moving it around.

Bill, definitely follow your doctors' advice.

If you want to stay musical, you could try playing bass parts on a keyboard with your good hand. That would keep the musical experience happening without injuring your hurt hand. Who knows... you might write the next masterpiece.... just a thought. Best wishes, and get well soon!

Definitely follow Bob Young's advice. Anyone who has used their index fingers to type 4439 posts and can still function has to know what they are doing.

Bill ,don't get to anxious as i did when i broke my pinky on my right hand and they put a cast on past my elbow , i sawed it off so i could play it had to be re-broken and set again ,very painful.

I broke the tip of my right middle finger about 30 years ago and it's still numb. I developed an interesting fingernail on that finger that's perfect for guitar fingerpicking.

How did you know I was a two finger typist Peter? Some long forgotten post? I do well unitl I get them out of synch (which is quite often)