I woulda liked to know!

[ceagle]

WHY didn't my guitar instructor tell me this 30 years ago??

https://ledgernote.com/columns/guitar-guru/guitar-calluses/

(great and very thorough article btw)

Comments

[bunny-hugger.livejournal.com]

Alas, I had great calluses in college and early grad school, with the nice lines for the string to slot into and all that. I wasn't a good or trained guitarist but I was a CONSTANT guitarist. I loved playing and learning songs so much that I didn't need to bug myself to practice to grow calluses fast. I just played even when it was sore as heck because I loved it too much to stop! It took me probably an entire year of not playing to lose the last of them but although I have gone through a couple of periods of trying to start practicing again, I've never gotten them back like I had in the old days. My big problem now that stops me playing isn't the lack of calluses though. It's that the last time I really intensively started trying to learn to play for real again, I started getting pain in my left thumb. I went to the doctor and they told me I have arthritis in my left thumb. Most righties get it in their right hand first, so it's a direct result of trying to play the guitar again. That caused me to quit playing again, discouraged.

[c-eagle.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the reply, and lovely appropriate icon btw :>

I was glad to learn you had a good callousing experience years back! I simply had no -one ever tell me that they could be managed so well, until I found that article yesterday. I have recently been wanting to get back into it also, and have been investigating ways to do it right and/or mute the pain, like half-wound or flat-wound strings, nylon strings, etc. A few months ago I even invested in one of these stringless models ---} YouRock Midi (https://images.ecosia.org/n8_uUzKYT_yJjBQdf0hosl3I6io=/0x390/smart/https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.pitbullaudio.com%2Fmedia%2Fcatalog%2Fproduct%2Fcache%2F1%2Fimage%2F1000x1000%2F9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95%2Fy%2Fo%2Fyou_rock_guitar_with_radius_black_new.jpg) . It's fairly nice, but while it has some plusses, there's a few standard techniques you can't do, like picking REST and palm REST effects. It has a rest inducer, but it's a bit awkward.
Another option I looked into are these ---} fingers 1 (https://www.amazon.com/Guitar-Fingertip-Protectors-Silicone-Finger/dp/B071LPLGTX) or fingers 2 (https://www.guitarcenter.com/Gorilla-Tips/Fingertip-Protectors.gc) .
I've actually ordered some from a Canadian manufacturer but haven't tried them extensively... maybe they can help with your situation? Here's hoping you will be able to play again.. it sounds like you were really devoted!

[bunny-hugger.livejournal.com]

I didn't know there was such thing as a MIDI guitar. That would probably actually help with my arthritis issues, though I've (almost) always played acoustic.

The icon is from an early Tezuka anime cartoon called "The Amazing 3." I've never watched it, but I saw pictures of the bunny character from it somewhere and was amazed how much she looks like BunnyHugger-the-character. Even more so when I discovered she plays the guitar!