Injuries are common on high school and college campuses, where students can easily get injured from automobile wrecks, sports accidents, or reckless behavior. My story is a bit different. I was diagnosed with carpal tunnel last year. Carpal tunnel syndrome occurs when too much pressure is placed on the median nerve, the nerve in the wrist that allows feeling and movement in the hand. I have carpal tunnel syndrome because I use my wrist too much. I practice clarinet and piano so much that the pressure builds up on my nerve and I start experiencing tingling sensations and numbing pain.
I never want sympathy from people when they see my wrist brace. I am not a "trouper." Rather, I am a victim of a society that pushes people beyond their limits. I do not have carpal tunnel syndrome because of natural causes. I have carpal tunnel syndrome because I constantly feel the pressure to be a better musician.
I am not the only musician who feels this pressure. Many young musicians suffer from tendinitis or carpal tunnel syndrome, the result of overplaying or playing while under excessive pressure. But I should not claim that only musicians suffer from these injuries. I do not think I have met a single young athlete that has not been injured at some point in his/her career. Some of these injuries are of course accidental, but what about the injuries that result from pushing themselves too hard toward greatness?
It is great that society wants our generation to be a successful one. We need to keep pushing ourselves beyond what we thought possible. But, have we gone too far? In society's quest to produce successful people, it has worked its people too hard.
Now that I am in college, I feel this pressure even more than before. I "need" to take lessons on both of my instruments. I "need" to practice two hours each day. I "need" to be in band and orchestra. Not to mention the constant push by my parents to try to get to the top of the clarinet section.
Would it be so terrible if I practiced just an hour less each day, or if I was only in one ensemble? Would it be so terrible if young athletes and musicians worked hard, but just not too hard? Society would be even more successful if it didn't push its citizens beyond their natural limits.
I envision my peers being successful without health and stress problems. I see my generation achieving great things without falling victim to the unreasonable demands and pressures of society. I am not an unrealistic dreamer. My generation can be great without working "too hard."
I really like your blog post, Bekah! Now I know that blog commenting is about creating discussion, not affirmation, but creating discussion is exactly what your post does. Your arguement is engaging because it asks a question that everyone needs to answer for themselves. Your argument leaves reader with no choice but to evaluate what it is they're striving for and if they are under too much pressure. In my opinion arguments that become personal are the most effective.
ReplyDeleteBekah, you did a great job of addressing an issue that many of us have. If you could go back in time would you have practiced as hard? I think that a lot of the time athletes and musicians are pressured by others to keep performing through the pain because they will "regret not playing". I had two shoulder surgeries and when I was deciding whether to play volleyball or not my senior year everyone told me that if I didn't play through the pain I would regret it. Looking back, I regret playing that year because I only caused myself more pain. I honestly don't think that it was worth it. When we are put in a position where we have to choose whether or not we want to keep playing with high intensity we often look at how it will directly affect us now, instead of the future. Why aren't we ever told that we might regret playing through the pain?
ReplyDeleteThis post forced me to address my own "I'll sleep when I'm dead mentality." I often find myself in a state of either being productive, or more often feeling guilt about not being productive as I should be. The feeling that hard work leads to success is hard to beat and often and easily taken to the extreme. The pressure put on our generation is not just on athletes and young musicians, but the entire college application process, and job application process expects students to have the best grades, involvement, and test scores. While this kind of pressure does produce results, the related stresses are not likely to produce a healthy, well-adjusted generation. I feel that your wrist brace and this discussion is a reminder that we need to emphasize balance as well as hard work, if we want a truly successful generation.
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