Sometimes repetitive practice, while beneficial, may not be the only answer - as leeneia posted above. The piano story reminded me of something that occurred just a few days ago:

Barre chords are all but impossible for me on my guitar. While I can do some individually, integrating them into a song has been pretty much beyond me. My fingers just won't respond to my brain's commands, even with month after month of near-daily practice on certain songs. They can't find the correct strings, or they plant themselves between the strings, etc. Then, purely by accident, I tried something: I closed my eyes. The improvement was like night and day. While I'm far from perfect, at least I have some hope and a different approach to take.

For me, even the barest glimmer of hope is still something. A little bit of light at the end of the tunnel. I mean after all, practice is all fine and well, but wanting to practice is even better.

Jay