i am dealing with a slight injury these days. i have costochondritis which is "inflammation of the cartilage that joins the ribs to the breastbone." how did i do this? a very bad habit... about nine months ago i began using my sternum as a place to rest my ring mandrel while i was forming rings with a hammer. the jarring motion of the mandrel against my bones damaged the cartilage. i started to feel the affects months ago and in the last few weeks the problem worsened and i could no longer ignore it. i went to the doctor a few days ago. this injury, although not serious, will take months to heal and it's pretty painful sometimes. i just have to cut out this body-as-tool nonsense and take it easy. so my fellow jewelers (and craftspeople, really) ...please be kind to your bodies. that's all.thanks for reading.
