The Cuban Me Method - Urinating hands to protect your skin

[ATALAKIMBAMBA]

Atala.
Muy bien, you know that our cultures have many cutoms, "costumbres" and if anyone wants to follow a particular custom, everyone is welcome. But first I would analize what is that you are
urinating your hands with, not everyones urine is the same. Urine in most cases is acidic and varies on the persons diet. Acids takes away natural oils. Some of our hands let out a lot of acid, and if you don't mantain the drum head, cleaning it and applying some natural oil.There goes the head, and I have seen many play on gone heads. Natural oils keep the skin playable.

Mr Olsongo, as always I feel your reponses/help very helpful and really kind and warm...thanks again, thanks to all the congaheads in the forum...I was researching this topic beacuse altought I`m very disciplined with my tecnique and see myself advancing so much, I play Candombe, and this is so heavy on my hands( I play only open slaps, left hand, stick in the other) there comes a time when fingers explode, i get some blood bubble`s on the fingers, end up pissing some blood, too, and altought I work on my tecnique here too, there`s something unexplanaible here...The Psico-Somatic aspect of Candombe, It`s even Stronger than any other type of drumming I ever experience, so much sacrifice, but so gratified we end that is impossible to quit, and you end up playin`even harder, beacuse the atmospher that candombe creates...unexplainable, try to post a video or something, but you have to feel it my friends...Thank you so much, el maja...
...encontrando el nicho...

[pcastag]

I've goy a great CD of candombe from uruguay. It is good stuff! Sounds a lot like batucada.
PC

[ATALAKIMBAMBA]

I've goy a great CD of candombe from uruguay. It is good stuff! Sounds a lot like batucada.
PC

Really?...guess I`ve never heard enough batucada in my life...I think we discussed this topic the time I introduce myself to the forum...the best candombe record I ever heard is kind a french documental called "tambores del Uruguay" introducing the most know barrios:palermo (Ansina), Sur ( cuareim) and Gaboto...Hope to share some more with you guys...maja....

[OLSONGO]

Atala, I know about those long and play hard sessions. What I recommend is look for some info on nurturing the "chi" or cosmic energy . This oriental thought concept will help you to breath naturally,thus by pumping more oxigen to your blood stream and controlling fatigue, also it will help you relax your body,keeping ot supple not hard. And as for the blood blisters in your hands...as you learn to relax you will start to strike the drum using your whole body energy, this energy will propel itself through the hands without tension. No le pegues al tambor acaricialo. The blood in the urine can be from bad posture, too much pressure on the kidneys when sitting down, keep your back straight, or if you strap a drum, some straps also apply preassure to the kidneys, may want to check other strapping methos. And also drink plenty of water, keep hidrated ; what a difference that makes.

Amor, Paz y Rumba

OLSONGO

[JohnnyConga]

Blood in urine comes from the straining of your kidneys while you are carrying and playing the drums...I know cause it has happened to me only twice in my 40 years..it will go away the next day , but u still have to be aware of your playing situation and how much you might 'strain" your self....."JC" Johnny Conga...

[pcastag]

Yes, it's happened to me twice. I do 99% of my gigs on drumset, but I've had a couple of all night jams that turned into bloody pee the next day. Did a bit of research on it, it apparantly happens to long distance runners on occasion as well. I thought it might be related to the corpuscules in the hand breaking, and the kidneys not being able to reprocess the blood back into the body. My bata teacher in Havana told me that a lot of perussionists in Cuba end up with kidney problems later on in life.
PC

[ATALAKIMBAMBA]

Yeah, this is a real serios issue, we´been told here that it has to be with dehidratation, so producing malfunction of the kidneys. Problem is that you don´t need to drink lots of fluids, but drink small gulps in short periods of times, 6 hours before playing!!! I´ve been trying this but is really dificult for me, mate, coffee, and alcohol drinks also deidratates you, so...more difficult, ´cause I drink a lot of Mate, also!!!
Thanks for the feedback, people!...elmaja, hidratado hasta la medula!...

[OLSONGO]

Keep that good posture up , just like your mother said " sit up straight"
Keep the gravity from getting to you, do your crunches, practice your brathing exersices, Can't let the muscles collapse around the kidneys , that puts pressure on them and messes up also your vertebrate, (lower back pains). Atala in one of your fotos. many of you have a strap that puts pressure on your left kidney. On water how ever you drink it ususally get neglected,your mouth lets you know if you are dehidrated. I recommend water with lemon and a mint leaf, the lemon breaks up calcium deposits that turn into kidney stones OUCH!!!!.Mint for flavor
I know father time doesn't forgive anybody, but while I can , I will.

Amor , Paz y Rumba.

OLSONGO



Edited By OLSONGO on 1148412985

[ATALAKIMBAMBA]

Olsongo, not to my surprise, you hit on many right spots...

_Posture: Right on! Important topic, since I ain´t got no tamboril ( I play with an old CP quinto), I tend to bend myself forward. This is terrible, because it makes me hurt in differents spots on my back...specially the lumbars, ####! I think that some abs exercises could mean strenghtening those little lumbar buggers...but im so lazy!

_Thanks for the beverage recipe, I´ll try it...sounds tasty.

Once again Olsongo, your feedback is the perfect example of what make me wanna check the site everyday, that desire of help each other and the posibilitie to learn from the different experiences that we all have.

Peace!...maja...

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[Duke]

Hey Bro, by the looks of your drums (rims are very uneven - pulled to one side on both drums) I would be saying that those drums are not in tune with them selves, so you would not be getting a clean tone/note out of either one of thoses drums. Which could lead to hitting the drum wrong, which then makes sence why you are peeing blood.
Check out this artical on peeing blood (I came across it a few years ago).
http://djembelfaq.drums.org/v13f.htm

The next thing would be to fix your drums (re-fit your heads)and work on your technique. Hope this information helps you out.
Cheers
Duke

[OLSONGO]

Duke could you explain how a drum not in tune, affects you in hitting the drum wrong ? And how hitting the drum wrong makes you pee blood ?
Thanx Olsongo

[tjaderized]

Well, I heard similar stories by old folks here in Germany about treating cuts into the skin with urine .....
The basis for all this is the content of urea - this substance is contained in the human skin, and it helps keeping the moisture in the skin. The drumheads are hygroscopic, they draw the mositure from your skin, and dry skin will burst much faster. There are plenty of lotions for the treatment of dry skin available over here based on urea, synthetically processed urea that is, and they work well.

[OLSONGO]

There are natural products that do a great job for treating the skin. One is Aloe vera, (penca savila) coco butter; great for burns.
Golden seal only native to North America a wonder natural anti biotic and Avocado for dry skin.

[Duke]

Hi Olsongo,
If your drum is not in tune with its self i.e. rims bent or out of shape or pulled down too much to one side you are less likely to sustain a clean note/tone from your drum (it is not in the frequency/pitch of a chosen note taken from any interval/triad). Then you would start hitting the drum too hard (trying to make it sound better - get a cleaner sound and more volume, etc), which in turn over a playing period of 1 hour plus you would start to slightly bruise your hands, which eventually leads to peeing blood.
Now I am no doctor, but I did suffer from peeing blood many years ago and it had me very worried, I spoke to my teachers at the time and they were all saying it is from bad technique (yes I was hitting the drum too hard to make up for my bad technique and lack of truly understand the tuning of these drums etc), after a lot of research and a very strict dedication to practice, also with a lot of guidance to improve my technique, I turned out a better player with very good technique.
I would suggest you go and see you local doctor and ask about a condition called Rhabdomyolysis, Myoglobinuria, Hemoglobinuria and Acute
Renal Failure. I would strongly suggest you speak to your teacher if you have one, if not I would go and find a teacher to review your technique.
My friend I am not trying to lecture any body here I am merely pointing out a reality that happens to some players (and you have pointed out this is starting to happen to you) and let me tell you from my experience it is not a good thing for your playing or more importantly your health.
Cheers
Duke

[OLSONGO]

Duke I don't have that problem and never had. Our friend Atala' has made reference to something he's had to deal with in his playing. Anyways his drums don't look that bad, a couple of turns on the wrench on the highest side would solve that problem. Hitting the drum hard with out technique may or may not, I don't know...produce blood in your urine, But we don't know if Atala' has bad thecnique or not.