I've addressed similar stuff in the thread on ulnar nerve stuff-- massage and so on can be very beneficial, but go to a professional, and one who has been recommended to you by someone who has experienced similar problems and gotten relief. (Healers of any variety are not created equal, unfortunately.) Acupuncture has helped me with a wide variety of ailments. The most important thing is having a clear diagnosis-- it's worth consulting several practitioners. Having pain ina finger or even a region of the body can be due to a lot of things. Overuse is only one cause. And it doesn't necessarily originate where we feel it.

My incipient arthritis reversed itself when I changed my diet. For me wheat, dairy and coffee definitely make it worse. I was having horrible pain in my elbow for about six months which was totally gone in two weeks after dropping those things from my diet. It comes back when I consume those things. (I do not think that the same thing works for everyone, but 40% of all Northern Europeans are gluten intolerant--wheat intolerant-- according to my uncle's doctor. Makes sense when you realize it's a Middle Eastern food that only became popular and accessible in Europe in the last few hundred years. Some of us just don't have the right equipment for digesting it.)

Lots of nutritional supplements can be helpful too-- but again, what helps one person is not always what helps another. It's worth experimenting with different things to see what helps. Good sources for info are two books titled "Prescription for Nutritional Healing" and "Prescription for Herbal Healing" by an MD and his nutritionist wife. Fairly complete, they include info on each supplement/herb in part 1 and recommendations for treatment of specific health problems in part 2, including not only supplements and herbs but up to date info on causes and other aspects of treatment (heat/cold, food allergies, environmental aspects of illness, etc.)

Do hope you figure this out-- how awful to suffer for doing something you love.

Bekki