My wrists hurt from playing the guitar, well not hurt by ache or fatigue. I'm not necessarily a beginner.?

I find that playing electric guitar is more relaxing on my wrist simply because the strings are softer and the electric guitar that I use is very thin and the fretboard is not very long. It's comfortable. My acoustic guitar doesn't have a strap because I'm too lazy to attach one and it doesn't seem to be built for a strap so I just play it in my lap or propped up on my leg. The acoustic strings that I use, as a matter of a fact, are medium gauge so that means, it takes a lot of strength to play my acoustic guitar. Nevertheless, I like it that way because I like powerful chords.

Lately, I have been playing my acoustic guitar. This is a song I wrote in one night and a morning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih5DCL6Vy20

I actually have played my electric guitar the night or the night after I sprained my wrist trying to learn how to skate on a stanger's skateboard and trying to make some friends. Let me tell you: it was painful. But, in the end it was worth it. I endured the pain to memorialize a song in video format. This is the result:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffc9_V0vktw

I have always wanted to add lyrics to my instrumentals. But, I haven't done so like ever because, first of all, my lyrics would be really personal and descriptive, and second of all because I compose such technical music that I find it very hard singing and playing a riff to a certain beat for a set amount of measures.

Your hurting wrists may even be because you are not holding your guitar properly in your left hand if that's the one that you form your chords with and move all over the neck of your guitar. Perhaps your wrists is bent too much so that you can focus on a fretboard. Maybe that is the case?

...and don't forget distortion pedals with your electric guitar. Those are really important if you have a weak amp (especially) or if not. I have listened to some of the stuff I composed on my fender stratocaster with a weak amp and it sounded so horrible. It's not all about the technique of the guitarist, if his gear is lacking the fans will probably throw tomatoes at him, then again, I don't have fans. I'm usually pretty busy with school and nobody seems to have a rhythm like mine...Well, there might be one person, but I haven't maintained very good connection with him. Anyway my rant is over...except for the fact that this is a pretty good multi-effect distortion pedal if you have $300:

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ToneLabEX?d...

I guess musiciansfriend doesn't supply the pedal anymore, huh. Oh well. But, there it is. You might find it annoying at first, but when you program your own custom sounds into it [and make sure to save the sounds in its bank] , you might be pretty satisfied...perhaps.

Or you could look into getting a "Boss" pedal of some kind.

I used that effects pedal in my sprained wrist song listed above. I really shouldn't be preaching to you about what you should get for a distortion pedal, but it worked for me. It's simply that I don't really understand why people buy a pedal that can only do one effect for $80 when they could get the whole tubed package, instead.