Hey, I've been playing guitar off and on since I was 15. I'm 32 now but don't let that fool you. I'm only a basic open and power chord player with very minimal lead knowledge.
I'm in a band now and I really want to bring something to the music we are creating but I only have so much knowledge of the guitar.
I guess I want to go back to the basics and touch up on what I already know and then learn from there.
My greatest challenge is trying to come up with lead parts and solos to the songs we have. I just go through a simple pentatonic scale and all the solos kinda sound the same. I want to change that immediately.

So I'm new to this site and was just wondering. Where do I start?
and what kind of tips can people offer me.

I also have one more thing to add. I'm actually concerned about it. I started a job at a resteraunt and ever since I started my hands have been cramping up. My fingers get tingly and numb when I use tongs a lot.
So now when I play guitar for a longer period of time I get that same feeling in my fingers and hands. They get really tingly and go numb and cramp up.
Music is my life and I love the guitar. I definetelty don't need this now and I'm worried it will affect my guitar playing. I only feel comfortable now playing open chords or some lead. When I get into bare chords and power chords or when I hold down an open chord for a long period of time I can really feel my hand start to get numb.
Any tips? Anyone else experience this? What do I do?