Violin?

I'm almost a month past surgery and I'm looking at picking my violin back up again.

The thing is, the shoulder rest is going to sit very close to, if not right on top of, where my PM is. (I haven't actually tried it yet, I'm not quite past the 30 days so I'm nervous to go mucking about around that area at all right now).

But regardless of whether I start playing again now or wait a week and start playing then, I know we're supposed to avoid messing with the device because it can cause it to shift. And when I play my violin I play it on a fairly regular basis so this is a concern for me.

I also can't imagine pinning something between my chin and PM is going to be all that comfortable going by what a seat belt has felt like. Although that may be something that simply gets better with time.

Does anyone else play the violin (or viola or similar instrument)? Does the shoulder rest hurt or interfere with your playing?

5 Comments

Unless Jane is a .....

by donr - 2015-03-03 01:03:22

.....brother to a boy named sue, she should have no problems. (BTW: I know a boy nejd sue - except that he spells it SIOUX.)

Anyway, Jane, just stick the thing up there & see how it fits. Just don't plat "The Flight of the Bumblebee" for your first try. You will never know how it's gonna fit till you try it & at this point, a trial run, even if you don't play, will ease your mind.

Check the spot out with a gentle finger rub across the incision to see how sensitive it is first. After 30 days, short of slapping an M-1 rifle up across there as a member of the Marine Corps Drill Team, I cannot see any harm in a gentle try out.

Face it, you aren't Paul Bunyan chopping down trees in the great pine woods of northern MN or swinging through the heigts of the Big Top w/ the Flying Walendas. You are a genteel violin player who merely gets wrapped up in her music. Big difference.

Donr

Store/Affiliate Products

by Artist - 2015-03-03 01:03:34

If you click on the Store link and then select Affiliate Products, you will find a device that cushions seat belts. Not knowing if you are male or female, they also sell another cushion that fits on a bra strap to cushion that from rubbing on the implant area. Those items might also help to provide a cushion between your incision and the violin. You could even experiment with hanging a folded towel over your shoulder so that it covers the PM area and provides some protective shielding. I am 4 months post op now and my PM feels much more securely anchored and has much less movement when I touch the areal. So it could be that with time you will find less need to worry about shifting or damaging the PM. I would say go slowly at first and see if your body talks to you with pain and redness in the PM area that signals you to stop or modify a particular activity.

playing music again

by tomshad - 2015-03-03 10:03:22

i am a pro musiician and play a variety of string instruments, Violin is not one of them , so i cant tell you specifically about that . I had my icd I'm planet november 17 , 2014 , I took a few weeks off rehearsals and even lifting my arm to tune my electric bass was sore at first . Wearing the bass in a soft case around my shoulders was painful at first but it got better . i definitely feel when anything rests against the pacemaker , yes although it got better .

Violin

by Sue H. - 2015-03-04 10:03:59

Agree with the comments that say try it when you are all healed up. Once incision site is healed there should be no problem.

I'm a former violin player and the position shouldn't be a problem. It rests mainly on shoulder but I think if you play with vigor and move around a lot don't be surprised, if your heart rate goes up with the movement. That would be the
rate response doing it's job. Hopefully it will keep beat with the violin. (LOLOL)

If you have a problem, discuss with your Doctor but don't let him tell you to quit playing....never. Sometimes they simply err on the side of caution......but forget our quality of life we want to continue. We have to remind them. (-:

I ride a motorcycle and my EP after the PM implant told me oh, you're an organ donor so maybe you should quit riding. I said never, and so glad I didn't . It gave me years and years of pleasure and definitely contributed to my quality of life.

Good luck and go back to your passion, your music. Don't give up......

Sue (AKA Magster)


Sue

To add to the conversation.

by MelodyMarch - 2015-03-05 12:03:35

I am an orchestra teacher and semi-professional viola player. I had my pm implanted late October 2013. My incision wasn't fully healed yet when I got clearance to play a very intense concert of Wagner, Prokofiev and Tchaikovsky. That was 2 weeks after implant.

I was sore, and for playing to this day I have added a small sponge to my kun shoulder rest where the pm rubs against it. However, now, I rarely notice my pm while playing.

At a month out it is time to pick it up again. If it gets irritated, try my sponge idea. Do small practice stints, I dove into 2 hr rehearsals, and that probably wasn't the wisest.

Good Luck!

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