Hi! I am here recently, can you tell me, is it normal that after the first lesson and several tasks my hand started to hurt a little, is it because of drawing using my shoulder?
Hi!
As Benji once told me: "Soreness is fine, in the beginning. Pain, is not, ever". This to say that if your hand hurts you must stop and take the pain seriously. We don't want to end up with and injury.
It could be that you are locking the wrist too hard. Sometimes I catch myself keeping the hand rigid as If I'm a statue and I have to stop and loose it up a bit. Also try to not keep the fineliner in a death grip - which is another common issue.
And finally it may be that your hand just needs time to adapt to a new position. Give your joints enough time to rest and take a break whenever you experience any soreness.
I think my hand just needs some time to adapt. Thank you for your answer!
Hi! It's not weird that things start to hurt a little, especially if it's your first time doing something like this regularly, though what usually hurts is your shoulder, and that just passes with time. About your hand however, recently, mine was hurting quite a lot and by ignoring it I ended up slowing me down because of pain, so I recommend this stretching exercises for the hand and forearms, which Elodin gave me. The wrist and hand is a more fragile joint than the shoulder, so we gotta be very careful with it!
Thank you!
Rest, put ice and voltaren for a couple of days. TAKE BREAKS. Do hand and wrist stretches to loosen up the joints and muscles
Ok, thanks
Yes that is ver normal. I would say to just rest for some time and to just stretch for a little bit and put some ice on it. I had your same experience a couple of days ago. I feel you TwT
I tell my students all the time that they are using muscles in their hand and wrist that they aren't normally used to using. It's like going skiing when you haven't done it in a year. As your hand and wrist get stronger, the more you work them, the less pain and weakness you are going to have. Just pretend like you are lifting weights and you are going to be sore for awhile but it will go away the more you use those muscles over time.
If you're just starting out, its probably just soreness as your body acquaints to a new task. Starting dedicated drawing programs, many quickly realize that drawing is amazingly physical. Especially foundational and perspective courses like Drawabox. So its probably nothing to worry about.
That said, as somebody with a long and illustrious history of repetitive stress injuries, the single best piece of advice I will give new travelers on the path is "If you listen to your body when it whispers, you won't have to hear it scream." Pushing yourself and working hard is important, but always err on the side of caution when it comes to your physiology or you can end up sidelined and losing out on time anyway.
It could just be your body getting used to it! A dull ache while drawing for extended periods can be normal. Remember good posture and taking regular breaks. You have to take care of your neck, shoulder, and back as well. If you do that, you can push as hard as you want!
Warning Signs
If you start to experience twitching or tingling in the first three fingers of your hand
Sharp, needle-like pain in any part of your hand
Tenderness at the base of your palm or along your forearm
If you experience any of those symptoms take a few days off for sure. If they persist/worsen, see a doctor.
Right from when students hit the 50% rule early on in Lesson 0, they ask the same question - "What am I supposed to draw?"
It's not magic. We're made to think that when someone just whips off interesting things to draw, that they're gifted in a way that we are not. The problem isn't that we don't have ideas - it's that the ideas we have are so vague, they feel like nothing at all. In this course, we're going to look at how we can explore, pursue, and develop those fuzzy notions into something more concrete.
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