I am amazed to realize I'm getting older ... surely not me! It's when I overdo that I find that I can't do a particular activity or do as I used to do it. Am I really turning into my grandmother?
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Okay, I was advised by my rehumatologist a number of years ago, if you're past 25, you've probably got some arthritis. I have to take breaks (a lot of them) when I cut strips for the log cabin quilts I've done. I also have some fairly serious spinal issues (had two lumbar spine surgeries) and I'll be 73 soon -- as another poster pointed out, I do one task, then take a break and/or do another task for a while. There are a lot of things I used to do in my 20's that I sure don't do anymore, like lugging 50 lb. bags of fertilizer for my rose garden -- guess what, I decided that the price of having the rose garden was just too high!
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I'm an RN and can tell you that most of us end up with arthritis somewhere. I probably have it although I don't "feel like I do". It sounds to me like you just overdid though. Several hours cutting is a lot!
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Originally Posted by Prism99
(Post 8020092)
I am 71 and would never cut strips for longer than an hour. If I had done what you did, I would have paid the same price. My advice is to lay off cutting for a couple of days to give your body time to heal. I always have a variety of things to do, and usually do not stick with any one activity longer than an hour at a time.
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About half-a-hour at a time is about all I can cut, then my back starts hurting.
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Isn't it funny, our minds say we can do "IT" but our bodies say, Ha, Ha! I'm 74 and that happens every day all day. Do your cutting in smaller time bits--it will still get done.
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I like using the 60mm rotary cutter for cutting. Plus I use the AQ system for cutting strips to avoid repetitious cutting.
Are you arching your finger tip to hold the ruler? I started using this method with less fatigue. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybQLai6Mv58 Perhaps one of those weighted grippers for the ruler would help.Hope you feel better soon! |
You might want to consider an ergonomic cutter like a Martelli. The thing that I've found most effective is to have a couple of cutters. Use them both switching back and forth, and as others mentioned, don't cut for over an hour! Take lots of breaks.
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I like my Fiskars ruler with the blade attached for cutting strips. It's about 7 x 28". But even with it I can't cut unlimited strips in one session. I hate my age limitations but try to be thankful for and focus on what I can do.
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I agree with everyone that you maybe need to change activities off and on. When I need to have alot of fabric cuts I will cut for awhile and then go to sewing something and then iron a little and then back to cutting. Hope you feel better soon.
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