I was born with a nueromuscular disorder as some of you know, and it is more pronounced in my lower extremeties, but it does effect my hands in subtle but very annoying ways. The muscle tension isn't enough to hinder me from playing completely, and over the past three years I've practiced tirelessly and made great strides. I absorb knowledge and techniques like a sponge and have applied them to my own playing....but we all know it's key to have loose muscles and hands when playing guitar, well as far as picking goes that's almost impossible. I'm not stiff as a bored persay but very tense and that is something I'll never be able to help. So seeing as I've never been a quitter I have opted to just try and adapt and find ways around it. I have gotten advice from Richard Lloyd, Alex Skolnick, and Jason Becker which is most inspiring to me...but my best friend gave me a blow to my dignity that is hard to get over. He noticed (yet again) that my picking wasn't so even and clean....like I didn't already know that, like I don't focus on that so much it drives me crazy. He suggested maybe I shouldn't put so much pressure into my picking...well duh. Yet I march on, play each note slowly and cleanly to a metronome day after day after day. Though the hangups become less and less apparent, I will play a scale or a lick I made up and blammo each time I get to the third string playing upwards from the low E (playing a three note per line lick) my hand inadvertantly slows up or freezes..suffice it to say I'm so bloody frustrated. They say doing the same thing over and over expecting different results is insanity, maybe I'm just that. Today there's a special sale at a local music shop for prefered customers and I was going to buy a new guitar. As much as I love playing I'm begining to wonder whether I should use my money or not on a new guitar...oh well, my problem I guess. Thanks for reading this desperate diatribe.