I'm Blate, I'm Blate.... For a Very Important....

Oh, never mind. I'm blogging late. Trying to be funny. Not happening. Whatever. 

So... I've been sore, and trying to avoid knitting because of that. What a PAIN, literally. It's because I know no moderation. You already know this about me. I have TIME. I KNIT. I forget to take a break, I forget to stop, I forget to stretch, I forget to... well, I was going to say I forget to eat, but that would be a lie. I never forget to eat. I wish that would happen once in a while, but that is never a worry over here. So I don't notice that it's hurting while I'm doing it, but when I stop, and when I'm trying to sleep or even after I have slept, OUUUUUUUUCH, pangs of hurt and/or deep-tendon- and back-, and deep-muscle aches. 

You don't need to tell me, "WELL then, STOP DOING THAT." I already know. And you certainly don't need to be a pain in my ass by telling me I'm knitting wrong. I get it. Yes, I knit English. I am a thrower. And yes, maybe you are another style of knitter, but stop getting up my nose about it. Because I don't believe you. Entire cultures knit the way I do, and entire cultures knit full-time and maybe they hurt and maybe they don't, but it is not WRONG. It is just the way I knit, it's the way I enjoy knitting, and I'm too set in my ways to change. Plus, I don't want to!  

My knitting physical stresses are added to by my professional physical stresses and (in spurts) my exercise stresses and my gardening activities' stresses, and all day long, day in and day out for 30 years or so, I am pounding away on my forearms and elbows and shoulders. I suppose something's gotta give. The damage is done, and the damage is deep, and from time to time it flares up in a very big way.

So just shut up already; I do not believe you that changing my way of knitting, given all that, is going to change whether I experience pain. I'm 51 years old, I've been over-using my hands and my forearms and my elbows and my shoulders for a long time, and they are kind of a mess. Knitting in a different style (I've tried) only makes them a different kind of mess and just slows down my knitting to an awful, horrid, putrid, unenjoyable (and yes, just as painful -- actually more painful) crawl. I consider myself lucky that I don't have arthritis -- only muscle and tendon and joint pain. I gave up kneading my own bread years ago for this very reason. Knitting, stenoing, typing, lifting weights, riding a bike, using the computer mouse or tap-pad, using a garden spade or weeding -- they all use my forearms and hands and wrists, and they're tiiiiiiiiiired and they need a ressssssssst. (And now I've got Lilly Von Schtupp in my head. Thank you.)

One person hilariously claimed that I was stupid and I was knitting WRONG ALL WRONG, and that in her highly intelligent and superior [and the only way to knit] method, there was NO MOVEMENT of her hands or her elbows or her forearms. No use of those muscles and tendons or joints whatSOEVER. No USE of those muscles and tendons and joints of the hands and wrists and forearms and elbows! This is really the kind of magic I am looking for right now! Disney fairy mind-controlled knitting! No hands or arms or elbows or shoulders needed! I wish.

I was going to say just F.O.A.D., but that would be rude, so I won't. Well, I will to a couple of people, but not to you. I know, RIGHT?

Ahem. *taking off cranky pants now* 

I am trying to heal, so as much as I wanted to knit yesterday -- because I truly have THE BUG and I truly want to see David's sweater finished and my mother's sweater finished, so that I can work on two other sweaters I want to work on -- well, it's just [assume Dana Carvey's voice in his George H.W. Bush impression] not gon' happ'n. Instead I watched a lot of Eddie Izzard on my computer. And I rewatched Julie and Julia again on the telly, just because it was there. My lack of the ability to figure out the TV remote, and/or the ability to figure out what the hell is on, are epic and pathetic at the same time. I really do want to figure that out someday.

Nah, I really don't. And anyway, by the time I do, the technology will be obsolete. Not worth the effort. 

But I have been doing some more decluttering and emptying of shelves and bins. I've got more piles of stuff to go to various charities, and I've listed some more of my yarn stash on eBay.

Rowanettes, activate!  

There is some Rowan Cork, perfect for knitting the Log Cabin Socks in Handknit Holidays:

And some Scottish Aran Tweed, the same yarn that I used to knit my Garter Yoke Cardi that is featured in my banner above. If you are small or extra-small, this is enough for a cardi of the same type:

I've also got some random balls of Felted Tweed that I haven't gotten around to listing yet, but I will this afternoon. Perfect for lots of little mitts or a stripy sweater:

Go have a look. And a heads up: I had an "oops" moment with the Magpie Tweed, and found two more skeins of it. I THOUGHT I had more. I found it in a different bin. And so I've had to list it separately. 

There will also be a sweater's worth of Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed added this afternoon:

But first, I gotta eat. (see above)

Comments

[Elizabeth]

Ah, you are teasing me with the tweed, I love tweed in a big way.

I 'throw' pain-free, so don't take any flack; we love you just the way we are. Crochet cramps my hand, though.
I'm scrolling back up to drool at the tweed for a minute longer...

[Erika]

By your description, it sounds like you're zoning out and over-working yourself by accident. Have you tried using a timer, to snap yourself out of the flow and take a break?

When I'm having trouble with my hands or wrists, I will often set a kitchen timer to knit in 15-minute increments. If I take a good break in between (30 minutes or so), I can get in quite a lot of those little bursts of knitting in an evening.

In other words, for me at least it's not the cumulative total time spent knitting. It's the time spent knitting in each session that makes the hurty.

[aliceq]

I'm going to tell you that you're wrong, but not about knitting. Don't be so quick to assume that your aches and pains aren't arthritis. For years I suffered from similar episodic and sometimes debilitating aches and pains, thinking I couldn't possibly have arthritis, because, damnit, I'm not old, no I'm not (just not as young as I used to be). Now that I'm being treated for inflammatory arthritis (greater specification isn't needed in order for the insurance company to cover the specific medication I'm on), I have my life back, and it's extremely rare for me to have enough breakthrough pain and swelling that I can't do something I want to do.

If whatever you have is affecting your quality of life (and anything that makes you cranky and keeps you from doing stuff you want to do *is* affecting your quality of life), you shoulnd't just suck it up.

[Jan]

I have finally relaxed about the way I knit (throw method), and I say "hooey" to those who tell me I'm wrong. It's what I like to do. My right thumb hurts, when I crochet, and my left thumb hurts when I play with the Nintendo DS too. What's a gal to do? If nothing is hurting, it usually means I've been watching too much television.

[Seanna Lea]

I'm not going to say anything about how you knit. Heck, it is the same way I knit. I'm younger than you, and I get similar pains because I sit in a strange cramped position for hours when I decide I want to knit (need to knit). I've had rounds of PT and massage and all it takes is a day or two of sitting funny and BAM!

Knitting is just one of the things I do for fun, for everything!

[gayle]

I went through carpal tunnel problems (with tennis elbow thrown in just for laughs (not that I've played tennis since dinosaurs roamed the earth, but apparently the name is stuck to that sort of injury)) that was work related. That was bad enough - having pain from something that is supposed to be FUN is just not fair...

[elizabeth a airhart]

you are talking to the choir tonight

[Charlotte]

Maybe switching up what project you are knitting on would help? But maybe that wouldn't happen because you get into a groove and knit on one favorite project for hours straight (which is what I do)?

When I've knit for too long (defined by the feeling that the tendons in the bottom of my wrists feel a bit achy), I find that resting my wrists on a heated rice bag helps relax the muscles and loosen things up.

I get pain in my hands when I've been on the computer too much, but it's in a different place (tendons on top of the hands).

Do you have pain in your hands in the same place no matter what activity you do, or is the pain specific to the activity?

If you take pain medication (ibuprofen, tylenol) for pain, you might get more relief if you take it just before you start a long knitting session--sort of heading off any inflammation before it happens.

Just suggestions. Keep knitting the way you like!

[Elizabeth D]

I vividly remember -- just last year, so I should hope so! -- someone at a knitting guild meeting chastising me for knitting all wrong. And proudly showing me her "correctly" knit lumpy mass of holes, twists, and dropped stitches. . . so much nicer than my impeccable, but thrown, stockinette. . .

[margene]

Norma, it's just not fair that our bodies run (or ruin) what we can do even though we do our best to eat well, exercise and take care of ourselves. Shit happens, eh? If only my nightly glass of whiskey had extra healing qualities.

[Sarah]

I'm sorry you're in pain, Norma, and hope you heal soon.

[Enjay]

I was skimming your post and ran across the line "I am trying to heal" only I read it as I'm trying in heat and I thought no wonder she's so cranky...
I did go back and read the whole post, I just wanted to drool over the yarn first :)

[Elizabeth]

Let me just say that I knit continental-style and I HURT TOO! So tell those people who say you're knitting wrong to stuff it. Like you, I've overused my wrists and forearms and shoulders for decades and so when I sit and knit my right shoulder starts to tell me what's what. But I'm not going to stop and I'm not going to change my knitting method and I'm happy to hear you aren't either.

Although I LOVE the person who thinks she doesn't move at all or use any muscles when she knits. Oh, delusions! Where would we be without them? (=

[claudia]

I know you already have a great chiro, but I'll share anyway. Active release therapy (ART) has helped my IT band issues so much and is currently helping out hubby with elbow tendonitis. If your chiro doesn't practice it, you might give it a try with someone else.

[Jenn C.]

Ugh. Sympathy for you from another rsi / tendonitis sufferer! Those who would claim it's because you throw your yarn are full of hooey! I hope you're feeling better soon, and would echo the suggestion above about taking short break to ease the chances of injury, but once you're feeling it, there's not much to do but rest it and hope it goes away quickly!

[elizabeth]

Have you seen the Lego interpretations of Eddie Izzard's comedy bits? They're great, especially Darth Vader goes to the cantina! I'd link, but youtube is blocked at work.

[Cookie]

Honey, all the cool knitters knit English. Hello!

xo