Thursday, March 13th, 2008

My elbow hurts

I don’t know what is causing it, but my right elbow has hurt for days, and this morning, it was rather extreme and physically limiting. I don’t know if it’s the guitar playing, if it’s the lace knitting… I know that something (I can’t remember what) was aching while I was knitting recently, and I ignored it.

So, in looking online, it seems that it might be Tennis elbow or Lateral epicondyle. Though, it hurts more when I make a fist than when I open my fingers up, which sounds more like Golfer’s Elbow, or Medial epicondyle. Either way, it sucks. And what sucks the most is that aside from possibly having to go to the doctor, I have to stop the activity that caused it. Not knowing if it’s guitar or knitting, I should probably quit both, which I REALLY don’t want to do. I’m supposed to quit for weeks.

This is so unfair.

And it hurts so much that I can’t just do something else, like clean out the garage, which I’ve wanted to get done. And I’d imagine that I shouldn’t do it anyway.

So what do I DO for 3 weeks? Assuming that I’m going to rest it like I’m probably supposed to.

I absolutely loathe being unproductive. I hate feeling like I’m wasting time. That’s why I knit. I learn. I create. I make things.

Ooooooh. Wait a minute.

I’ve been wanting to do some serious catch-up in the family scrapbook/photo albums. (Yeah, I’m YEARS behind). I suppose I could do that for a few weeks. I could possibly spin, too. Fortunately, I’m ahead of the game with my deadline knits. The only problem is that I’m in guitar lessons, and I can’t exactly go to lessons if I’m not playing. And I REALLY don’t want to stop playing! I enjoy it so much, and I’m making such good progress…

Dangit, dangit, dangit.

So, my brother has lent me his new guitar to play around with.

samsguitar.gif

It’s an auditorium, or concert bodied guitar, meaning it’s smaller than the standard dreadnaught I’ve been playing which is my mom’s guitar, also on loan. I think a concert body will help my elbow, if my injury is guitar related, because having as much in front as I do, and with my freaky small shoulders and such, sometimes it’s difficult to get around the guitar to play it.

Ooh, ooh, and check out this incredibly cool guitar strap I found.

guitarstrap.gif

It’s a velvety corduroy pink/brown paisley and I love it.

So, I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’ll take a couple days off of knitting and guitar (pout), ice it, Advil, rub eucalyptus oil into it to increase blood circulation, do some stretches I found online, and we’ll see what happens.

This is SO lame.

Continuing thoughts that were added later-

Maybe it’s my weight lifting? It really hurt the last couple times I did my biceps. I could go 3 weeks without weight lifting.