Wellness Awareness

In February of 2024, I began experiencing some hitches in my playing that I had never experienced before. Playing became seemingly impossible. Physical exhaustion came much earlier in my playing day than ever before. Along with this physical toll, the emotional weight became unbearable. With my high-level playing responsibilities, clouds of humiliation and frustration loomed over me every day. The trombone became something I feared.

It took many months of hiding, fully convinced that "if I ignore it, it will just go away!" before coming to terms with the fact that this was not something I could figure out on my own, especially considering the mental state I was in as a result of it. I began seeing Austin Pancner (a.k.a The Functional Musician) as part of his 1-1 Recovery Program in June 2024. Through our work together, I began to better understand my situation and the factors that contributed to what was seemingly my playing disappearing in front of my eyes.

With a lot of patience, many good and bad days, and grace for myself, I began to see improvement! More importantly, I began to feel my relationship with the trombone transform again. As I continue to work through this, I am very grateful for the guidance of my teacher Dr. Josh Bynum and mentor Austin Pancner.

It is no secret that musicians live very busy, often hectic lives. It is imperitive that we take stock each day of our physical and mental wellness and ensure our ability to show up for ourselves very first.

Learn more about Austin and his 1-1 Recovery Program through the links below.

Be well. 

TH