Figure skater w/broken arm...need some feedback

[Figureskates]

My 12 year old figure skating neice broke her arm yesterday in a non figure skating accident. Thankfully it did not involve the growing plates.

My sister-in-law is really in uncharted waters here about being on the road between being overly protective in her return to the ice and not being cautious enough.

I am interested in feedback from figure skaters who they themselves have done the same thing or know of figure skaters who have broken their arms at this age.

My niece is really upset about this since she really is quite the skater and I just want offer some encouragement based on other skater's experiences.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

[Mrs Redboots]

I know an ice dancer who broke her wrist when she was about that age, and she was back on the ice within a couple of days, nearly braining her partner with her cast, but still..... It depends on what your skater is doing; I doubt that it would be wise to attempt much in the way of jumps and spins with her arm in plaster, but if she wants to work on her Moves or Dance, I don't see why not. If, on the other hand, she wants to stay off the ice for a while, that's fine too. As we are all saying to Melanie on the other thread, "Play it by ear!"

[skatign babe]

I broke my thumb a while ago but I had a cast that went all the way up my arm as if I had broken my wrist. They put me in a fiberglass cast because I told them that I wanted to keep skating. They said I could do practically anything with it on. I just had to make sure it didn't get too wet. I was jumping and doing triples with the cast on.

[ChristianeDK]

Please, please, tell her to be careful the first week and try not to move to much! I broke both bones in my underarm when I was thirteen, nothing complicated, but the first two times I went to have an x-ray check they could see that the bones had moved - the third time I had to be operated :(

That's
3x anaesthesia
+ 2 very nasty looking 20cm scars
= something I could definitely live without

My advice is to stay calm in the beginning - it can save her a lot in the end.

Good luck!

[pinkjellybean]

I broke my wrist skating...I had to wait a week and a half until they replaced the plaster cast with a fiberglass one and then I was back onthe ice... the second cast you get is much lighter, smaller and the swelling has gone down a lot. Thankfully mine happened in the summer so while it was a drawback to major training I was able to get back on the ice and finish up my programs. I wasn't allowed to jump (I did sneak some in but nothing big like doubles or triples) Later on I did some spinning but mainly went through and finished programs (without the jumps) I did dance and skills and worked on some footwork.

After I got my cast off I had to skate with a wrist brace (it just looks like wrist guards people wear when rollerblading but mine was thinner/not as bulky)...I think I had to do this because I broke my wrist and any time I would fall on a jump I would land on it...When you're skating in a cast (or right after when it's till weak) you don't want to fall again and injur the break more because it might not heal properly and you might need surgery. But other than being careful I had no problem and my cast came of relatively early so I could get back to jumping and competing (athletes seem to heal pretty quickly).

Good luck to your neice!

[TreSk8sAZ]

I actually just broke my arm this summer while skating. It is a horrible blow psychologically. I was told two to three weeks, or until the majority of the pain had gone away. The fiberglass cast was enough to throw me off just a bit, and I wasn't supposed to jump (still did, but that's a different matter). After that, I got a wrist brace. When they take the cast off, the bone is still healing and it is important that you wear it! I did fall with it on and it saved my wrist. Otherwise, just common sense and a bit of caution will do fine, and she'll be back on ice in no time. Wish her luck for me!

[garyc254]

I'm sure a lot would depend on the severity and location of the break.

I fractured my wrist while skating on a Monday night a couple of years ago. I was back skating with a cast on Wednesday. My doctor didn't tell me not to skate and I didn't ask him if I could.

My fracture was just a small split on the end of the lower arm bone though, so it wasn't something that had to be set.

I'd let her doctor know how important her skating is to her and let him tell her when she can safely get back on the ice.

[ddpskater]

My daughter broke her wrist twice last year (one skating and one non-skating accident) and her dr told her she could skate with the splint on right away, but said "try not to fall on it" which put a crimp in her practice, to say the least.

[Lutzgirl]

Dont worry im 12 and i broke my arm jus a year ago!
Dont worry getting a break from skating will do u the world of good! And you wont want o back afterwards!

Well getwell soon!

[lenneysk8er08]

oh that sucks! she really only has to take of like a week and a half though thats what one of my friends did and she worked on spins and moves and easy jumps that she WOULD NOT FALL it would really hurt but she did her single jumps just to try and keep her timing on her jumps she also visualised them to help from back traking when she went back to her hard jumps!

[Mrs Redboots]

At that, I know an adult woman - older than me - who broke her wrist at a skating camp a couple of years ago, refused point-blank to let them put on anything other than a removable cast, and insisted, not only on finishing the camp but carrying on skating when she got home again as though nothing was wrong. She dances with my husband sometimes, and the only problem was that he had to be very careful of her wrist when they were partnering each other.

You simply can't legislate: one skater will stay off the ice until the cast is off and he or she feels completely healed, another will refuse to miss a session! Or anywhere in between. Tell your sister-in-law to play it by ear: if your niece wants to skate, let her; if she doesn't, that's fine too.

[TashaKat]

ITA with Annabel. I broke my wrist a year ago and the only reason that I didn't get back on was that I don't get paid if I don't work and couldn't risk doing further damage!

x

[*Starryskye*]

I broke my wrist last year in a skating "accident"..well...somebody else broke it for me..but thats besides the point:lol: ;)

For about two weeks I skated on it before going to the hospital, including in a big competition. I skated with a brace on, and it wasn't until after the competition that my coach actually insisted that I go to the hospital because it was so swollen and miscolored.

The night I got home I went to the hospital, and they said absolutely nothing was wrong so I ended up going to a different doctor. He took x-rays the next day and found well..who knows what..! All I know is that my wrist was broken and the ligament was extended too far and I needed a cast. He put on a fiberglass cast right away, and encouraged me not to skate. However, it was prime competition season and I was all set and ready to go to some really big competitions and told him there was no way I wasn't going to skate. That same night I went home and got on the ice to skate! He taught me a way to fall too...so that nothing would happen.

I'd encourage your niece to keep skating, but know that if she falls she absolutely can NOT put her hand down to stop herself..becuase it will break a bone further up her arm or elbow definitely. It's been a while now, but I still will probably always have to skate with my brace on in practice... just as a precaution. Tell her to be careful, and not attempt any jumps higher than singles that she doesnt ALWAYS consistantly land...and also to try to stay away from camel spins. I know with the cast on those gave me lots of trouble because of uneven weight and I took a couple falls. Hope I helped:)

[simcity]

Ask the doctor. There are so many different types of fractures. It depends on the type. I wouldn't want tomake a simple break into a complex one. It isn't the end of the world to take some time off.

[rf3ray]

Hi, I just recovered from my broken wrist, and have a FUTURO wrist brace do you think that is sufficient it has like metal plate in it and is reversible for the right hand as well is this what you bought from a local chemist?

I broke my wrist skating...I had to wait a week and a half until they replaced the plaster cast with a fiberglass one and then I was back onthe ice... the second cast you get is much lighter, smaller and the swelling has gone down a lot. Thankfully mine happened in the summer so while it was a drawback to major training I was able to get back on the ice and finish up my programs. I wasn't allowed to jump (I did sneak some in but nothing big like doubles or triples) Later on I did some spinning but mainly went through and finished programs (without the jumps) I did dance and skills and worked on some footwork.

After I got my cast off I had to skate with a wrist brace (it just looks like wrist guards people wear when rollerblading but mine was thinner/not as bulky)...I think I had to do this because I broke my wrist and any time I would fall on a jump I would land on it...When you're skating in a cast (or right after when it's till weak) you don't want to fall again and injur the break more because it might not heal properly and you might need surgery. But other than being careful I had no problem and my cast came of relatively early so I could get back to jumping and competing (athletes seem to heal pretty quickly).

Good luck to your neice!

[NickiT]

I think it's best to ask the doctor. I doubt that I'd want to skate with my arm in a cast, no matter how much I love skating. It's sod's law that you will fall on it again and even with the cast on, a jarring of the injured wrist could do even more damage. I know people who have skated with a cast on. I also know of a young girl who is currently off the ice at the moment with a broken thumb. At the end of the day I guess it's personal choice, but I would check with the doctor in any case.

Nicki