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Recent Injuries


Matt Bryant

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Anybody getting injured?

I've been in chronic pain for awhile now in my right shoulder and back. A Physical Therapist friend finally helped diagnose some shoulder blade discomfort to an issue with my neck and a Chiropracter has helped out with that a bit but the shoulder problem is lingering(I got ice on it now, as per the physical therapists instructions but I'm pretty sure I've been working with "injuries" for a long time now and it's been affecting my performance "at work". ...anyone else out there working injured?

I found a good clay based ice pack at cvs for 14.99 but other than that, not sure what I should really be doing. I have freelancers insurance out here in NYC, bluecard PPO I believe. I could use any referrals anyone's got for doctors familiar with "sound" related injuries. My track record with cold calling places is pretty bad, a lot of these places I find seem to want to bleed the money out of you slowly before finding out what is really going on with you. They don't seem to take any notes either and they don't remember what went on when they worked with me (I can't say i take sound notes but I do remember roughly where issues were or what takes may need some work with post...)

PM me anything you got referral wise,

Thanks

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I've had some problems with shoulders and arms and so I went to a guy who simply told me: "Work out". He could show me all the good things that massage brought, the positive effects of good medication. And then he showed me the benefits of exercise. And how cheap it was compared to drugs and massage sessions. In two massage sessions I would've gotten like 1% "cure", and it would cost me half the price of a 1 year gym card each session! Same with the medication. It can't help you get rid of the pain, only stop it from hurting so much... And give you side-effects.

Exercise is now more common for doctors to prescribe than serious pain relief and anti-depressants here in Sweden.

Don't know how much exercise you do, but for me at least going to the gym practicing on a ball will help me with a lot of things, and I feel a ton better just after a year of slow working out. Plus, going to the gym lets you meet nice people.

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Yeah, I've been refusing to take any pain meds. And the pain was too much to do any exercise so I think the problems began compounding.

Massage seemed to not help, heat was making things worse. This crazy electricity thing seemed to bring some relief, but then I began thinking about that drunk history where Crispin Glover goes around electrocuting animals to show why alternating current is bad. Felt pretty crazy though.

Put simply, the answer is just to be a beast and power through the pain right.

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One for the boom op's.

Been booming 15 years - last couple of years my wrist's have been getting sore, repetitive stress injury - Carpel tunnel syndrome.

Anyone any advice on keeping wrists healthy. I do some wrist streches and sometimes wear wrist support - mainly with outdoor scenes when using heavier mics.

Do boom op's just fade away after reaching a certain number of slates? Whom out there is the oldest swinger in town and how do they keep doing it.

Kind regards

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Man up! Well, man up with meds, take them, respect them and be careful with the stronger ones, but why not take them? Massage doesn't help me at all, I suspect I haven't found the right type of massage or the right person, but it doesn't help in the slightest.

Massage doesn't help in the long run... There is some scientific proof that massage can help stressed muscles to an extent. But it's more like placebo really. When the body's getting massage(s) it produces dopamine which is the "joy-hormone" and that gives some relief, but not long term. As with everything else: a perfect combination of each ingredient will help you with the end result. But once injured, it's really hard to be un-injured. There's no quick solution. Like fixing everything with gaffer's tape, eventually it will break again and possibly there'll be some new injuries.

Don't mean to sound like I know any better and I mean no offense, but this is my view on injuries. I've been lucky enough not to be seriously injured, but the small injuries I do have are really annoying, and they never go away, they just fade out really slowly and will never reach zero but maybe 2.

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One for the boom op's.

Been booming 15 years - last couple of years my wrist's have been getting sore, repetitive stress injury - Carpel tunnel syndrome.

Anyone any advice on keeping wrists healthy. I do some wrist streches and sometimes wear wrist support - mainly with outdoor scenes when using heavier mics.

Do boom op's just fade away after reaching a certain number of slates? Whom out there is the oldest swinger in town and how do they keep doing it.

Kind regards

Get some heavy drumsticks and play away!

No seriously I've had issues with my wrists as well and at first my doctor told me he wanted to give me something that makes my wrist move and that's heavy at the same time. So I took my drumsticks down and out from my attic and taped some small weigths to them and just banged slowly on stuff. It did me good. That and selene pills...

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Don't mean to sound like I know any better and I mean no offense, but this is my view on injuries. I've been lucky enough not to be seriously injured, but the small injuries I do have are really annoying, and they never go away, they just fade out really slowly and will never reach zero but maybe 2.

Never thought that for a second, it's always interesting to hear other peoples fixes for the problems we all experience.

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Working out on a regular basis has been the best thing for me. I've lost about 50 pounds over the past couple years and I have found it far easier and less tiring to do long days in the heat, extreme cold, or just a regular work day.

My wife is a pilates instructor and she has helped get my core a lot stronger. I can't stress enough how much this has helped for doing bag work. My back muscles are stronger and my abs are stronger.

Now, if only I could stay away from Oreos. :)

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I don't really have "boom swinger" injuries but time, gravity,arthritis, some sports activity and other life experiences have worked their toll.

I don't have any specific physicians I can direct you to in NYC but you want to see someone who specializes in sports medicine. It shouldn't be difficult to find that kind of specialist in any big city. A specialist can often make a more precise diagnosis that would help a physical therapist design an exercise regimen that targets the injury. And they can give cortisone injections that sometimes relieve the condition long enough to help with healing.

Then schedule your visits with a physical therapist and follow the program exactly or as closely as you can. Massage therapy may provide some relief - and a physical therapist will typically use some massage - but they will also use other tools like ultrasound.

Working with your physical therapist, you can modify your technique to avoid the exact movements that tend to aggravate your condition. Of course, if advised to not hold a boom pole over your head, you are basically screwed. But it may be possible to avoid certain kinds of movements or stances until the injury has a chance to heal. (It may never heal perfectly and may always be more susceptible to re-injury but it may get better.)

Most of the boom ops I work with can work either side with equal facility. That is they can boom either lefty or right-handed equally well. I can only handle one orientation myself but, as a mixer, I don't need to handle a pole all that often. But, if you are primarily a boomer or one-man operation, it would be good to develop this facility. Being able to work the other way can help avoid re-injury while you heal.

David

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Yeah, I've been refusing to take any pain meds. And the pain was too much to do any exercise so I think the problems began compounding.

Massage seemed to not help, heat was making things worse. This crazy electricity thing seemed to bring some relief, but then I began thinking about that drunk history where Crispin Glover goes around electrocuting animals to show why alternating current is bad. Felt pretty crazy though.

Put simply, the answer is just to be a beast and power through the pain right.

Your instincts may be wrong.Pain killers do not always just treat the symptoms. For example, while ibuprofen is a a pain killer, Ibuprofen is also an anti- inflammatory and there are well documented occurences of people having problems related to the inflammation that were CURED by a steady course of ibuprofen.

Maybe, you should give following the doctors orders a chance, they just might be on the right course.

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In the past 2 months i've recorded a feature and recorded for additional photography on a feature both with a torn ligament in my left foot. The damage actually came from running 5 miles in order to recover from a 20hr day two days prior. I managed to get through it ok (still have remenants of the pain) but stress levels were definitely increased because of the injury. I used vet wrap to support my foot and used ice baths (in the evening)+ cooling gel for swellings plus deep heat and some iboprufen rub for the pain/ache. I did (before the injury) run at least 12 miles per week and used to do a reasonable amount of biometric exercise - crunches, the plank, sit ups, diamond press ups, various stretches etc every week. I do think exercise is invaluable for both the recordist and definitely the boom op but i am wary of weights in the gym and over stressing joints in very specific areas. I have been lucky enough to work with a few very high level martial artist (now stunt men) and also had some good advice from my family many of whom are pro rugby players and my sister is an olympic rowing coach. They have all said 2 things that have stayed with me:- 1 is that booming and booming with the bag places the biggest strain on the core so core exercises and posture (straight back) exercises are critically important to reduce stress on your back, your arms and therefore your brain. 2- The happy face sad face principle - which is any exercise or exertion you do in one direction you should do the same amount or at least try in the other direction. So being pulled forward all the time needs to be counteracted with exercises like 'supermans' which is basically pulling yourself back. A good friend of mine who is/was also a sound man has recently had to retire due to massive back and leg problems and he's younger than me. So i think you can never underestimate this issue, i'd rather have an injury i can fix than a condition which i have to manage.

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" you should give following the doctors orders a chance, "

a big +1 on that...

I like to know, what I am taking, and why, and what to expect, including side effects, and contra-indications. after my Dr. gives me thorough information, verified with the pharmacist, I follow their advice. (If I don't like their advice, I would change Dr. or and pharmacists!)...

I am alive and healthy today because of modern medicine, having lived longer than anyone else in my family!

While I do not need or use medical marajuana, I am in favor of it, as well. Today doctors pay a lot of attention to pain management, and the comfort of their patients, and I do not believe that there is any advantage or even reason to suffer symptoms that can be properly managed and alleviated. I believe in the appropriate doses, medicine is a very good thing.

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I've had surgery on both knees last 5 years due to degenerative joint disease. I find that Ice does a better job than meds most of the times. I also lost about 25lbs last couple of years and that really made a huge difference towards endurance and pain. When my knee gets swollen I use a ice pack called "Polar Care" from BREG and it works wonders. They also have a shoulder pad available and you can find the whole kit at eBay for a fraction of the price.

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Anybody getting injured? I've been in chronic pain for awhile now in my right shoulder and back. A Physical Therapist friend finally helped diagnose some shoulder blade discomfort to an issue with my neck and a Chiropracter has helped out with that a bit but the shoulder problem is lingering(I got ice on it now, as per the physical therapists instructions but I'm pretty sure I've been working with "injuries" for a long time now and it's been affecting my performance "at work". ...anyone else out there working injured?

Yeah, I have some shoulder issues myself: calcium deposits, which look like little sandspurs, sticking into the nerves. I have good days and bad days. Heating pads, alternated with ice packs, lots of rest, occasional massage... that plus exercise seems to help. I try to avoid any exercise or movements that I know exacerbate it. I've had a torn rotator cuff before, and that was agonizing (and took weeks to heal). Even with a post job, it was murder -- I had to have my arm in a sling for about a week.

I figured out a long time ago how to "listen" to my body and realize when I had serious pain, vs. something I could just work through. I also try to stop and take my time when I'm doing any kind of physical labor. Most of the time I've ripped out my shoulder has been when I wasn't paying attention, and I just ran and did something without thinking. This is way too easy to do in the stress of a fast-moving shoot, or when you get caught off-guard.

Stretching is something I don't do enough of, but I try to get in the habit of doing that. I've been so busy lately, I've been remiss at getting back to the gym, but I'm doing it today (back and arms), and I'm making a mental note to do some stretching. Those core exercises are murder, but those are good, too -- major endorphin rush (or "endolphins" as they said in Postcards from the Edge).

--Marc W.

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Wow some sad stories out there.

I still do some bag work and am used to it after carrying Nagras around strange countries for years!

Many boom ops in New Zealand have been forced to retire on the basis or strain and injury.

Oh well there's no art without pain!

mike

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Yeah, I have some shoulder issues myself: calcium deposits, which look like little sandspurs, sticking into the nerves. I have good days and bad days.

--Marc W.

I do know people who've had the calcium deposits in their knees. However, It did take years for it to be diagnosed correctly. Doctors really wanted a knee replacement surgery though so it took a bit to find the doctor who would recommend something that wouldn't result in a repeat "sale". However I'm pretty confident that is not my problem at this point.

Wow some sad stories out there.

I still do some bag work and am used to it after carrying Nagras around strange countries for years!

mike

I still can't believe people ever did eng stuff with Nagra's. Are you running around with a Cantar these days?

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