I am almost 3 weeks post op from my hand surgery and I am doing great! I am healing so much better and quicker than when I had my right hand done. I am allowed to do anything that my hand can handle which...isn't guitar just yet, that will wait a couple more weeks, but I can play ukulele with both hands again, I'm just out of practice a bit.
I did however pick up a new instrument recently. I got an 88 key digital piano and I am loving it! I've never been able to full read notation but thanks to some great books and YouTube videos/series I am getting it!! I played my first song yesterday, Amazing Grace, which was also the first song I learned on guitar. My hand can easily handle the semi weighted piano keys, too.
Confidence....The guitar has stirred so much in me! Thanks to Guitar Tricks and all the lessons I've been going through, I really grew in my confidence. As I learned each new chord or technique (and of course, still learning!) a little more confidence grew each day. In November I felt confident that I could also learn ukulele and I have been doing that. In fact, I've been working on publishing a book of picking hand music I have written during my down time. But now I also have the confidence to learn piano and finally learn how to read music. I am grateful I have ample time on my hands to do all this and it takes my mind of my chronic pain issues.
I encourage anyone who is thinking of trying something new or even if it's just learning a new style or technique on the guitar, Go For It!!! Life is short - soak everything up that you can. Congratulate yourself every step of the way as you learn how to play the guitar....reward yourself and think of how cool it is that you're actually doing this. This confidence can really carry over to other areas. Have you been thinking of trying a new instrument? Taking on a new style? Trying out Blues? Reading music notation? Go for it! A few years ago I hardly had any confidence in me to try new things. And now it's amazing what I've done in the span of less than a year (started guitar last July).
Just believe in yourself, look how far you've come already, and go for it....
I am looking foward to returning to playing guitar soon and learning all the music theory via piano will surely help me out. Excited to go back to Acoustics 1 and go back to Fundamentals 2 to play what I couldn't these last few months when I could only watch the lessons and not play.
“Often, what seems like an impossible climb is just a staircase without the steps drawn in.” Robert Brault, American Operatic Tenor
