Musician Unchained

Musician Unchained I help musicians navigate the challenges of injury prevention and recovery
https://musicianunchained.com/

If only this guy knew what was ahead of him… In July of 2022, I was fortunate to go on tour with my school’s band We wer...
09/08/2026

If only this guy knew what was ahead of him…

In July of 2022, I was fortunate to go on tour with my school’s band

We were getting out of Covid

I was hitting a musical growth spurt

Things were happening!

Shortly after I got home, I felt a sharp pain in lip that did not go away.

And four years ago today, I made a decision that would change my life

I recorded a special episode of the podcast (video only) to reflect on that experience, career pivoting, and finding fulfillment through injury recovery.

Keep on keepin’ on!

09/04/2026

Our brains love certainty.

That’s why the unknown of injury recovery can be so difficult

But the feeling of anticipation causes the same physiological reactions within us that fear and uncertainty do

What would change about your injury recovery experience if you looked to the future with anticipation, instead of fear and uncertainty?

09/02/2026

Life gets complicated

But if we can learn to be present in the moment, no matter what we are doing

It can help us simplify the complicated

08/28/2026

If you think your performance is mostly mental, how much do you invest in training it?

08/26/2026

Sometimes true discipline is giving yourself the rest your body needs when you want to grind it out and get work done.

Listen to your body!

08/25/2026

If you are a musician going through an injury, and are considering moving on, please don’t think you are selling out

Selling out is when you make decisions that are inauthentic to who you are, your values, and your needs.

That is part of what I had to realize when I decided to pivot away from actively pursuing my recovery for the sake of my performing/education career, and pursue performance psychology full time.

Honoring that direction my life was taking was not selling my musician self out, it was honoring who I was becoming.

Keep on keepin’ on!

08/20/2026

What small wins can you focus on through your recovery journey?

08/19/2026

What have you tried in the past and been successful at? Use that confidence to help you through your injury recovery!

08/18/2026

Thanks to Chris Williamson from Modern Wisdom for introducing the idea to me of a REST ETHIC! You need both a good work ethic and a good rest ethic to succeed!

05/26/2026

One new thing I learned this season is that body mapping is just as important for singers as it is for instrumentalists.

Also, it is so important to get a correct diagnosis when recovering from an injury!

My guest this week has experience in both.

Dr Bonnie Draina is a renowned vocal pedagogue and performer. In addition to this, she is an expert in body mapping for vocalists, and literally studied the craft with Barbara Conable herself (who developed body mapping).

We talk about her experience with illness that led to a misdiagnosis of muscle tension dysphonia of the larynx.

Later on, after pursuing recovery from that malady, she received a correct diagnosis of singers dystonia.

We talk about how dystonia manifests itself for singers, how to develop correct vocal pedagogical jargon, and much more!

Enjoy!

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