My recovery from Bell's Palsy

ListeningFromTheBackRow · Veteran Member Joined: 24 Apr 2013 Posts: 180

Hello fellow trumpeters,

A while back I wrote a little piece on my experience with Bell's Palsy and life as a professional orchestral trumpet player. I don't know if the "fundamentals" is the best place to put this, but for the life of me I couldn't think of anywhere better. I hope my story might be inspirational to anyone who is having a tough time with the physical part of trumpet playing.

http://listeningfromthebackrow.com/2013/05/15/a-lesson-of-failure-and-redemption/

Mod's, please delete or move if that is appropriate!

I've dealt with many recurrences of Bell's in the past 10 years, and welcome any questions about how I have managed my recovery with Bell's or even just anyone with major chop problems. I feel like I've been through them all in the last decade!

ListeningFromTheBackRow · Veteran Member Joined: 24 Apr 2013 Posts: 180

I forgot to add my Epilogue (aka the moral to the story) in my previous post. Below is the follow up to my lesson of failure and redemption. Again, Mod's, please move or delete if this is inappropriate.

http://listeningfromthebackrow.com/2013/05/16/epilogue

John Mohan · Posted: Sun Jul 21, 2013 4:43 pm Post subject:

Inappropriate? Inappropriate?!?!

Your posts here and the links they contain are possibly the most appropriate entries into this forum I've ever seen.

Sincerely,

John Mohan
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16 Year Claude Gordon Student

deatea · Posted: Sun Jul 21, 2013 7:00 pm Post subject:

Wow talk about appropriate .... I was having serious problems on a gig this past Thursday night and because of some other strange muscular failures I went to the emergency room last night and was diagnosed with Bell's Palsy. I am very much interested in any other people who have been subjected to this. My range has dropped to third space C and I have poor tone quality with air escaping from the left corner of my mouth. Other than long tones can any of you recommend anything els for me to practice? Lip flexibilities are out at this stage of my illness.
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ListeningFromTheBackRow · Veteran Member Joined: 24 Apr 2013 Posts: 180

John,

Thank you for your kind words. I'm also a professional worrier!

Deatea,

I tried to not take any time off, and that was a terrible mistake, not because it did more damage but because I developed some really bad habits during that period. I would take some serious time off. Hopefully your doctor prescribed some steroids to minimize lasting damage to your muscles and associated areas within the face. I highly recommend beginning with something very simple that will help regain embouchure strength: drink everything with a straw, always on the affected side of your face. It seems like nothing but trust me, it helps. Once you get the hang of drinking, talking, etc, try some free buzzing without a mouthpiece (always with a mirror) to begin the slow work of getting the embouchure back together. Everything might get better quickly, or like me, it might never be the same. I can't stress enough that you should really make every effort to not develop bad habits, especially during the early period of the palsy.

deatea · Posted: Sun Jul 21, 2013 7:22 pm Post subject:

Yes the doctor has prescribed some steroids for me to take and I have started the routine there. With over 45 years invested into my "trumpet playing" there will be a serious void in my life if I am no longer able to play. I can not tell you the number of times that I have told one of my students that "failing to become a professional trumpet player does not mean that they have failed as a student of trumpet". But having actually made the major portion of my livelihood as a professional trumpet player I will have some serious adjustments to make in my "mid-life" years. I am curious to see how many private students I gain or even maintain without the ability to demonstrate some of the things I am teaching??????
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ListeningFromTheBackRow · Veteran Member Joined: 24 Apr 2013 Posts: 180

Deatea,

I think my teaching actually benefited from not being able to demonstrate with the horn for a while - I had to develop my ability to verbally or visually articulate concepts to my students. I've become a better teacher and performer because of this process!

My students were all very understanding, once I explained in detail to both them and their parent(s) 1) what exactly was going on and 2) that the problem I had developed had nothing to do with how I physically approached the instrument.

I think in the long run, the worst lasting damage I suffered was psychological rather than physical. And that, the psychological damage, was because I did nothing to mitigate it and only focused on physical issues for a very, very long time.

Derek Reaban · Posted: Sun Jul 21, 2013 8:58 pm Post subject:

Important story about Bells Palsy from Chase Sanborn
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Riojazz · Posted: Mon Jul 22, 2013 2:48 am Post subject:

My late brother, Sherwood Finley, a NYC session player, wrote an article about this in the Charles Colin newsletter called (I think) the Brass Player. The article would have been around early 1990s. He never discovered the cause of his affliction, but I have since read that Lyme Disease can do it. He made a full playing recovery, but like the OP, sounded like a beginner for awhile.
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Riojazz · Posted: Mon Jul 22, 2013 3:01 am Post subject:

I found the link, but unfortunately it does not work now. I'm posting it anyway in the event someone wanted to contact the holder of Charles Colin's works and track it down. http://www.charlescolin.com/nybc/palsey

The URL jogged my memory that the newsletters were called the New York Brass Conference or some such. I think Scholarships was also in the name?
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Matt Finley https://mattfinley.bandcamp.com/releases
Kanstul 1525 flugel with French taper, Shires Bb Destino Med & C trumpets, Schilke XA1 cornet, Schagerl rotary, Schilke P5-4 picc, Yamaha soprano sax, Powell flute. Sanborn GR66MS & Touvron-D.

ListeningFromTheBackRow · Veteran Member Joined: 24 Apr 2013 Posts: 180

Derek,

Thank you for sharing the Chase Sanborn link - that was the first place I found after my condition was diagnosed. It was inspirational to me that someone at such a high level of playing ability was able to not only recover, but honestly share his story. I still go back and read it when I'm feeling down about my embouchure.

ListeningFromTheBackRow · Veteran Member Joined: 24 Apr 2013 Posts: 180

I found what was missing from the Charles Colin link a few posts up by Riojazz. Enjoy!

http://www.charlescolin.com/nybc/palsey.htm

Capt.Kirk · Heavyweight Member Joined: 24 Feb 2009 Posts: 5792

Wow. Excellent story and things like this happen more often then people know opportunity being snatched away and dreams changed because of things outside our control!

I had two life altering events one was something I dealt with in less then ideal ways the other was not good at all but I put it behind decently and moved on. It is funny though how long we carry the baggage from these sorts of things before we mentally truly put them behind us and move on.

I almost killed myself tried but a friend stopped me when I had surgeons tell my I would be lucky to walk again with a bad gate. I had only two things in my life as a kid and that was music and sports. I lived ate and slept those two things at the cost of just about everything else. After I was released from the hospital I tried to kill myself. Friend stopped me literally in the process. Six months latter working insanely hard I was able to play sports again. Constant pain every day of my life but I made it through High School and had all kinds of offer's from Universities. I could not play college sports even though I had all kinds of offer's. My surgeon told me if I kept it up I would be using a walker by the time I was 24 for sure.

Put my trumpet down for 15 years after I had an opportunity to work professionally as a musician come to me after signing a contract with a company that I could not get out of that put me outside the USA for a couple of year. I was so totally disgusted with life and the fact that the opportunity had only come once I was no longer in a position to act on it. It was not until I worked at General Motor's and an accountant I saw 2-3 times a week always had Miles Davis music playing in his office and his discography art work on his walls that I started listening to trumpet-centric music again. In fact none of my friends outside of old ones and family even knew I was was a musician as a young man I never talked about.

I did not pick up a trumpet again until my Oldest son decided he wanted to be in band. You would have thought it was Plutonium-239 in the case the way I approached it.

In the last couple of years I have to start and stop and start and stop due to work and family obligations and health issues. Serious infections in internal organs. Not fun at all.

I think the hardest thing though has been for me admitting that I really never got over either dream being shattered the way they where. What I had really done was push them to a dark corner in my mind and just moved on. I never truly came to terms with the fact that neither of my dreams and plans for my life came to pass. Those where plan A and plan B the idea being that if one failed I could fall back on the other! I never dreamed that both would never come true so their was no plan C. So in the last year I have been trying hard to come to terms with the reality and let go of the resentment and jaded-ness that each topic holds for me. Not happy with many things in my life and making all kinds of changes all for the better.

The take home from your story that I too experinced and I would love it is all others could realize and take into themselves and make their own is what you said at the end "Being positive is a lot of work, but being negative sure takes a lot more energy." I try to make that point to my kids every time I think it fits!

We are the masters of our ships not the Sea they are adrift on. No one can make you anything not happy, sad, upset, that is a choice we always have to make second by second. It is a powerful thing to know that you are always the one at the controls of your mind. You are what you chose to be and that has been very very good for me. Choosing what emotions I attach to idea's, situations past and present has truly started to free me from my mental and emotional baggage I have carried with me for so long!

It was so very inspiring to hear of another story and to know that other's are in similar situations! SO thanks for sharing. I have had nerve damage myself but not systemic rather trama based. Learning to recruit muscle again that you have lost control of is no easy task. I can not imagine losing motor control and sensations in my face. I am very happy that you have managed to do it. It could have been easy and I understand the work you have put in and the moments of frustration!

Thanks for sharing!!!
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ListeningFromTheBackRow · Veteran Member Joined: 24 Apr 2013 Posts: 180

Capt.Kirk,

Thank you for your post, and I appreciate your kind words. Much like anything else in life, it's what you take away from something rather than what it does to you initially that truly matters.

LFTBR

deatea · Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2013 4:48 pm Post subject:

I am happy to say that my bout with Bell's Palsy has been a brief one (at lest for now) even though I was unable to play at all for about a week I have regained control of my embouchure and now can sustain a good solid tone. I have not tried any extended periods of playing but I have been playing long tones and some lip flexibility exercises. So far, so good and I will actually try my chops out on a gig next week. I am keeping my fingers crossed and mentally playing many of the parts down an octave. Slow and steady is how I will approach my progress.
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BeboppinFool · Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2013 6:28 pm Post subject:

Here's the thread I started when I had Bell's Palsy.

I'm convinced now more than ever that, even though it is a condition of the facial muscles, it is definitely capable of inflicting the most devastation on the mind.

I didn't try to play at all until a few days after I could whistle a low note and was finally able to form my lips to get a buzz in the trombone register.

When I was able to actually get a few notes on bass trumpet I knew that there was hope. In fact, playing bass trumpet was huge in getting me through the whole ordeal.

Not playing at all for two full weeks was probably the smartest thing I could have done, that and not freaking out.

Send me a PM if you want to correspond regarding this thing.
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deatea · Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2013 6:52 pm Post subject:

"Not playing at all for two full weeks was probably the smartest thing I could have done, that and not freaking out."

Like you I think that not forcing things and leaving my trumpets in the case until I was able to successfully buzz on my mouthpiece is playing a major pat in my recovery
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ListeningFromTheBackRow · Veteran Member Joined: 24 Apr 2013 Posts: 180

deatea,

I'm glad you are seeing some signs of progress/recovery! Keep extra vigilant against developing poor habits and you're well on the way back to normal.

LFTBR

deatea · Posted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 6:15 pm Post subject:

No I am seriously taking it easy multiple short buzzing sessions on the mouthpiece and even shorter sessions of soft long tone playing when I start to feel tired I put the trumpet down. The endurance will eventually return
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FrankM · Posted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 11:12 pm Post subject:

Here is a link to Sarah Willis' hangout where Stefan de Leval Jezierski talks about his experience with the ailment.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Waxz-DiET00