Hi, everyone,
I am an instrumental music teacher and a wind specialist with clarinet being my major instrument. I am wondering if there is anyone on here in the same or similar position. I am wondering how TN has affected your ability to perform your instrument and fearful that my chops are going to decline. I am also afraid of booking a gig and then having an attack and being unable to perform. I have gone ahead and booked myself for this summer and will just wait and see how it goes for right now. Playing has not proven to be a trigger for me yet....however, barometric pressure change and air temperature are.
Hi clarinomes,
Welcome to the site! I'm glad that playing your instrument is not a trigger for you. I am an amateur classical pianist so luckily I don't have to use my mouth for my instrument. However, I find that singing at church is proving to be a trigger since it involves moving my mouth. It's a combination of that movement and the vibrations from the singing, I think. An issue that affects my piano playing is actually the side effects of the medication. I take Tegretol (carbamazepine), which makes me uncoordinated. I started at 100mg twice a day but now I'm up to 300mg twice a day. My hands tend to shake and be unsteady, and sometimes I get uncontrolled jerky movements in my fingers. It can make playing soft and delicate passages more difficult. Fast and loud passages are actually easier. I don't have to play piano for a living, so I'm not too torn up about it, but my playing has definitely declined somewhat.
I think you should still continue doing what you love without fearing for the future. It's highly possible that your TN will go into remission or be well controlled without ever affecting your playing.