I don’t want to stop playing the violin

BennyMonkey

hi I’ve just been told I’ve got OA ( am 52 and have some herbedens nodes on my two left hand fingers and starting on my right also) I have been learning to play the violin for about three years and I love it ( though I’m not very good) - I really do nt want to stop playing (it’s been good for my mental health) but am worried I’m doing more damage to my hands- my GP said they was no evidence either way and I’ve tried to find some answers online but haven’t. Is there anyone here who plays strings with OA in their hands, did it make it worse or do you find it helps please?

Anna

Hi @BennyMonkey and welcome to the online community,

Several members of our community are musicians so hopefully someone will come along to share their experiences. We have a couple of guitarists who post regularly and I know that but they both find that despite the challenges, music really does help them in all sorts of ways. I don’t know of anyone who plays violin, but someone may pop up.

Meanwhile, here’s the story of one of our members ( another guitarist) that you might find helpful:

https://versusarthritis.org/news/2021/october/im-a-musician-with-psoriatic-arthritis-heres-what-i-ve-learnt/

Good luck - I hope you find that the benefits of continuing your violin playing outweigh the challenges.

Anna ( Moderator)