If you've enforced a break from a sport, how did that work?

[Drama Llama]

DS11 loves sports, and would play 24/7 if I let him.  I've been worried for a while that he's overtraining and is at risk for overuse injuries.  I think I've posted about it.  At a recent doctor's appointment for an injury, the specialist raised the same concern.  He has suggested that he takes a break from soccer and lacrosse this summer, and be more thoughtful about what he does in the fall. 

If you've made a similar decision, to take a break from a sport, what did it look like?  Did you stop your kid from practicing on their own and playing pick up, or just from organized teams and camps?  Did you let them play other similar sports (e.g. I know if I tell my kid no pick up soccer, he'll head to the playground for pick up basketball)?   We already have approval for summer swim, but I'm trying to figure out the rest of the summer.  

He goes back to the specialist in a week and a half, and we'll obviously talk more there, but I work full time, and I'm not ready for him to be alone for full days, so I'm trying to figure out summer camps etc . . . The best choices are already full!

 

[mommyoffive]

For him, I would just get him into other things that the specialist says are ok.  With him being injured and a specialist saying to not do those things I would listen to that really hard.  Plus he is 11.  That is so young.     Getting him into other camps would be a great idea.  Are there other sports he can do besides swim? 

How about an arts, tech, science, or something that isn't physical.   

Can he bike?  

[Drama Llama]

17 minutes ago, mommyoffive said:

For him, I would just get him into other things that the specialist says are ok.  With him being injured and a specialist saying to not do those things I would listen to that really hard.  Plus he is 11.  That is so young.     Getting him into other camps would be a great idea.  Are there other sports he can do besides swim? 

How about an arts, tech, science, or something that isn't physical.   

Can he bike?  

So, the bolded is what I don't know. I can ask when we go back in in a couple weeks, but he's asking now, and camps are registering now.  I'm just wondering what other people ended up doing during a rest period.

He's signed up for some weeks of robotics camp, but they're full now so I can't add other weeks that I need to replace the weeks of soccer and lacrosse I'm cancelling.  I found a week of an art camp.  

[mommyoffive]

16 minutes ago, Baseballandhockey said:

So, the bolded is what I don't know. I can ask when we go back in in a couple weeks, but he's asking now, and camps are registering now.  I'm just wondering what other people ended up doing during a rest period.

He's signed up for some weeks of robotics camp, but they're full now so I can't add other weeks that I need to replace the weeks of soccer and lacrosse I'm cancelling.  I found a week of an art camp.  

Could you call and ask the specialist the question of what other activities he could do?  It is hard for me to think of things without knowing what the injury is.  

Do you have camps at colleges near you?  Music ones?  Coding?  Theater

Sailing or horseback riding?  

Edited May 13, 2022 by mommyoffive

[happi duck]

From what I've read, no first hand experience, it depends on where the overuse is occurring and one shouldn't switch to a sport that depends on the same muscles, joints etc.

[Katy]

I’ve only enforced it when a surgeon said it was necessary. 

[Drama Llama]

9 minutes ago, Katy said:

I’ve only enforced it when a surgeon said it was necessary. 

Well, the orthopedist telling me he should take a break is a surgeon.  Thankfully, DS doesn't need surgery.  The goal is to keep it that way. 

 

[Zinnia2]

We took two seasons off from soccer one year (fall and winter).  I want to say that he was 11ish?  Before that, we had been less intentional about varying, and he had done soccer three seasons (fall, winter, spring) and swim in the summer for a couple of years.

We just took the season off and hiked instead.  Without practices, he wasn't quite as active, and the hikes on the weekend were a good family time.  But it allowed him to do something active and different.

He is 15 now, and we've moved to a smaller town with a different sports culture.  He is playing something different every season, and even he has noticed less overuse injuries.  

Edited May 13, 2022 by Zinnia2

[Drama Llama]

1 hour ago, happi duck said:

From what I've read, no first hand experience, it depends on where the overuse is occurring and one shouldn't switch to a sport that depends on the same muscles, joints etc.

This particular injury is on his wrist.  He’s a goalkeeper so his hands and wrists get more beat up than a field player.  And we have a plan for the wrist.  But as I understand it, the concern is generally that a kid his age shouldn’t be playing one sport year round.  

It’s kinda hard to think of a muscle you don’t use in soccer.  I am glad he can swim!  

[Drama Llama]

1 hour ago, mommyoffive said:

Could you call and ask the specialist the question of what other activities he could do?  It is hard for me to think of things without knowing what the injury is.  

Do you have camps at colleges near you?  Music ones?  Coding?  Theater

Sailing or horseback riding?  

In my experience specialists want you to wait for the appointment for those kinds of things, which sounds good in theory until I am sitting here with the last space in mountain biking camp in my shopping cart wondering if I should put down a deposit.  

I am looking at all options. I live in an area that has a ton of options but things fill up fast!  

[ktgrok]

Can he do soccer at another position? To rest his hand? Otherwise running and hiking are all I can think of. All other sports will use that wrist a lot. 

[itsheresomewhere]

Check out and see if any local gyms/ymca/even pt places are running a learn to use the gym equipment/ how to keep your body healthy but safe kind of class this summer.  He might enjoy that as a replacement for one of the sport camps.  The teens/tweens who seem to go around here are usually ones who have been told to take a season off.  The instructors seem to really be great at helping the kids learn including proper stretching that may have been skipped over at team sports.  My friend’s son really enjoyed it when he was supposed to take off for the summer from soccer due to an injury.  He talks about how they actually helped him.  The kid is now going next year to college on scholarship for soccer.  And his parents think it helped him not keep injuring himself during high school. 

[BusyMom5]

I'm not going to answer your question,  since my kids aren't into sports, but I'm going to give you some parenting advice.  You are the boss.  You can absolutely tell your kid that the Drs are concerned about his life-long health,  and they don't want him playing this summer.  You have the trump card!  Play it.  Drs don't say things like this lightly, they see sports injuries from kids abusing their bodies, and they are telling you that he is abusing his body to the point that he could cause permanent injury.  Its your DUTY as the parent to tell him he can't play this year.  That doesn't mean you don't sympathize,  and its not forever, but he's 11.  He can't understand like you do.  

[Drama Llama]

9 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

Can he do soccer at another position? To rest his hand? Otherwise running and hiking are all I can think of. All other sports will use that wrist a lot. 

He's finishing soccer at another position, and sitting out most of the rest of the lacrosse season (because all lacrosse players use their wrists a lot) for the current injury.  But for the summer my understanding is that the doctor is saying that kids shouldn't play 12 months a year, and that if we're going to let him play travel soccer then we should enforce no soccer every summer, or at least as long as we can.   It happens that his wrist is what got hurt, but that doesn't mean it's where the next overuse thing will show up, which could just as easily be his knee.  

 

[Drama Llama]

3 minutes ago, BusyMom5 said:

I'm not going to answer your question,  since my kids aren't into sports, but I'm going to give you some parenting advice.  You are the boss.  You can absolutely tell your kid that the Drs are concerned about his life-long health,  and they don't want him playing this summer.  You have the trump card!  Play it.  Drs don't say things like this lightly, they see sports injuries from kids abusing their bodies, and they are telling you that he is abusing his body to the point that he could cause permanent injury.  Its your DUTY as the parent to tell him he can't play this year.  That doesn't mean you don't sympathize,  and its not forever, but he's 11.  He can't understand like you do.  

I know I can tell my kid no or being the boss.  I'm just not sure what I'm supposed to tell him no to.  I mean, obviously I know that "take a break from soccer" means cancel soccer camp.  I'm less clear if it means tell him he can't play pick up basketball with the neighbors in the driveway, or go to kayaking camp.  The guidelines are confusing me. 

[Elona]

As a former professional ballet dancer and teacher, here's what I can tell you from my experience: learning to properly recover from injuries and avoid overtraining are a huge part of being an athlete. The worst thing to go through is a serious injury that could mean the end of your sport/career. By taking overtraining advice seriously and taking the breaks preemptively, he has a better chance of avoiding such a horrible experience. I can tell you that, yes it's hard sitting on the sidelines for a season, but you get through it. It's ok to be a little bored, to read, to play some video games and give the body a break. He can also do some light conditioning to stay active, maybe even work with a physical therapist to improve any muscle imbalances. In the end, it's really worth it. While it can seem hard in the moment, as an athlete, you do what you have to do to stay in the game long term if you love it. This is just part of the life.

[Elona]

13 minutes ago, Baseballandhockey said:

I know I can tell my kid no or being the boss.  I'm just not sure what I'm supposed to tell him no to.  I mean, obviously I know that "take a break from soccer" means cancel soccer camp.  I'm less clear if it means tell him he can't play pick up basketball with the neighbors in the driveway, or go to kayaking camp.  The guidelines are confusing me. 

I would say pick up games and kayaking and such would be fine, depending on his pain levels in his wrist. The thing about overuse injuries is that it's the very specific, repetitive movements that are problematic, so broadening out and doing other types of things shouldn't be bad, especially if he's not doing the same thing every day. For sure stay active, just stay very aware of pain, even if it seems like 'no big deal.'

Edited May 13, 2022 by Elona
Edited for clarity

[happi duck]

Sport-level cycling might affect wrists

[Elona]

One last thing: Has he had any time off from all sports lately? Having a 2-3 week period of no organized sports, with maybe one or two pick up games a week could allow his body to do some of the repair it needs. I don't think anyone needs a whole summer like that though, unless a specific injury requires it. But I would highly encourage a couple of weeks of focused rest and recovery!

[Katy]

Call the doctor and ask. I’m guessing he would say no mountain biking camp because that can be hard on the wrists too, but realistically it depends on the surgeon. If he also has a physical therapist you could call them, IME the know the guidelines for the surgeons in their area. 

[ktgrok]

1 hour ago, Baseballandhockey said:

He's finishing soccer at another position, and sitting out most of the rest of the lacrosse season (because all lacrosse players use their wrists a lot) for the current injury.  But for the summer my understanding is that the doctor is saying that kids shouldn't play 12 months a year, and that if we're going to let him play travel soccer then we should enforce no soccer every summer, or at least as long as we can.   It happens that his wrist is what got hurt, but that doesn't mean it's where the next overuse thing will show up, which could just as easily be his knee.  

 

Ah! Ok, thought this was specifically wrist related. 

So, without the wrist at play, like in future summers, things like rock climbing, rowing, biking, and weight lifting along with of course swimming, would be different activities that would maybe use different muscle groups. I'd think basketball would be pretty similar wear and tear on the body as soccer? 

But with the wrist issues, not sure if any of those will work. 

Photography? 

[Drama Llama]

1 hour ago, Katy said:

Call the doctor and ask. I’m guessing he would say no mountain biking camp because that can be hard on the wrists too, but realistically it depends on the surgeon. If he also has a physical therapist you could call them, IME the know the guidelines for the surgeons in their area. 

Do other people's doctors take calls for things like that?  Maybe I'm not pushy enough.  I feel like if I called the doctor's office and said "have the doctor call me back to give me advice on summer camp" there's no way that would work, but I haven't actually tried it with this particular doctor.  

We aren't at the point of physical therapy yet, I don't know if we're headed that way or not.  

But this isn't about injury specific advice.  The injury is why we ended up in the ortho's office, but what raised the issue wasn't the injury, it was when the ortho asked him to describe what happened and he said "Well, I hit it when I dove after the ball at a soccer game, and it kinda hurt, and then that afternoon I had 2 hours of try outs for a different team and after that it hurt more, and then when the lacrosse ball hit it at my game . . . " and the doctor asked him how much he plays, and what he has planned for the fall and said "this is too much. . .".

I know what the short term wrist restrictions are, I'm asking about general long term principles for overtraining, which is tricky, because the advice seems to be "take 3 months off your primary sport every year, but stay active during that time", but doesn't give a lot of guidance on what "off" or "active" looks like.  

[J-rap]

How about golf?

[Drama Llama]

1 hour ago, Elona said:

One last thing: Has he had any time off from all sports lately? Having a 2-3 week period of no organized sports, with maybe one or two pick up games a week could allow his body to do some of the repair it needs. I don't think anyone needs a whole summer like that though, unless a specific injury requires it. But I would highly encourage a couple of weeks of focused rest and recovery!

Not really.  He goes to a school where they play a sport a season and pretty much roll from one to another.  He had Christmas break off, but we went snowboarding every day which I guess isn't "organized" but he pushed himself hard to keep up with his big brother and older cousin and uncles.  Spring break was 10 days, and he had soccer practice 3 times a week and games on the weekend.  He'll finish soccer and roll right into swim team.  

I'm also not convinced that, for him, the idea that just playing on your own is less of an issue.  It seems to be based on the idea that kids will slow down if they get tired, or stop if it hurts when they are playing on their own.  I do not see evidence of that.  If I watching him playing on the playground or with his cousins and uncles he's going 110% there too.  

[Elona]

The main point for taking 3 months off of your main sport each year is to rest the motion patterns that you use day in and day out in that sport. It sounds like the ortho wants your son to take at least some rest from all organized sport, and a full 3 months from soccer. I am sure he would call you back to clarify further. It sounds like activity would be fine, but several hours each day of workouts may not be right now. I always tell my students to pay attention to pain the reoccurs and doesn't seem to go away in a few days. At the very beginning of those issues, you have to stop, ice, rest and let it get better or you end up with chronic injuries. I hope that whatever he does this summer he will pay attention to his pain and not push through. I would say to avoid anything competitive this summer where he would be hard pressed to stop if he needed to. 

[theelfqueen]

When my youngest broke his wrist and elbow, his physical therapist insisted he couldn't shoot (archery - he was a well ranked bare-bow archer who won several buckles) for more than a year. In the meantime he found karate which didnt involve contact sparring for quite a while  and he has been doing that ever since.... didnt ever pick up his bow again. But he is training for his black belt now. 

Edited May 13, 2022 by theelfqueen

[wintermom]

If it's a wrist problem then swimming is going to be an issue as well, unless he doesn't do any actual swimming strokes. What's the trouble wih soccer? Is it still the wrists, or something related to the lower body? 

Rest for athletes is typically a challenge. They want to be active, but it's got to be something they actually enjoy doing. What other physical activities does your ds enjoy? 

I had to take a break from swimming due to shoulder issues. I also had to give up running because of my hips. I'm able to play tennis because it's not the same constant overhead motions for my shoulders as in swimming and it's not the same constant pounding on the legs as in running.

 

[Elona]

6 minutes ago, Baseballandhockey said:

I'm also not convinced that, for him, the idea that just playing on your own is less of an issue.  It seems to be based on the idea that kids will slow down if they get tired, or stop if it hurts when they are playing on their own.  I do not see evidence of that.  If I watching him playing on the playground or with his cousins and uncles he's going 110% there too.  

Yeah, it's not part of the culture to stop when you feel pain, and that's largely because you do have to push through "good pain" as an athlete. Kids this age are just learning the difference between good pain and bad pain. You and his doctor will have to drive the point home that there is a difference between typical muscle pain/soreness or the pain of a fall and that of chronic injury. You can't ignore it, it doesn't go away, it only gets worse' even if the pain itself doesn't seem horrible. But if you stop when the problem first shows up, take a few days off to ice and rest and see a doctor if needed, then you can head off big problems. All kids have to learn this. It will be easier to learn to pay attention when he's not competing with a team, but that doesn't mean he will get it right away. If you are concerned that he can't self monitor, then I'd have him take a full month totally off from anything sports related and just focus on solo conditioning. That said, your doctor may have other guidance.

[katilac]

2 hours ago, Baseballandhockey said:

In my experience specialists want you to wait for the appointment for those kinds of things 

You won't know unless you call. 

2 minutes ago, Baseballandhockey said:

Do other people's doctors take calls for things like that?  Maybe I'm not pushy enough.  I feel like if I called the doctor's office and said "have the doctor call me back to give me advice on summer camp" there's no way that would work, but I haven't actually tried it with this particular doctor.  

You don't need the doctor to call you back, you just need an answer to what sports are acceptable besides swimming, and possibly how many hours per day. Leave a message saying you have an appointment but need to know before then bc camps are filling up. 

The doctor doesn't have a portal to send messages? 

[mommyoffive]

I wouldn't think mountain biking would be good for a wrist issue.  But again it would take talking to the doc to find that out. 

How about running?  how about getting into to some summer races?  Or a running team?

Oh do you have summer school where you are?

[StarSailor]

You have my sympathy.  I’ve been in similar spot with both of my kids and its hard.  Hard for kid and hard as a parent.  Your child sounds like mine, loves their sport and the social stuff that is a part of it.  Its “their thing” and they thrive with it.

a couple things that i had to realize for me:

- realizing and sympathizing with child that this sucks.  And other choices will not truly replace beloved sport and/or upcoming summer plans that came to a screeching halt. New things are just new different things, they may become a new beloved thing but they are not true replacements right now.  Ie, word choice and mind set helped a little.  Also choosing good moments to remind kid that long term plan is to enable him to continue sports in a way that is not detrimental to his physical health, so you are working towards the balance of correct amount of training that will allow him to excel.  Too much training is just as bad as too little training.

-learning to empathize and sympathize and let child emote whenever needed.  But to remember i did not need to be a problem solver in all those moments.  Sometimes my child just needs to vent.  So i had to learn to be sounding board and not always move into “fixer” mode.  There honestly was no fix for the disappointment and pain related to the short term “you have to give up beloved sport for a season”.  (Yes, you as parent do have to find new summer plans, but that is separate from giving up sport challenges)

you or he will make mistakes in the journey.  Don’t beat yourself up. Even PTs have to modify programs because they asked too much one week.  Learning how to recover is part of the journey.  Learning when to stop or modify is part of the journey.  And its a journey, not a sprint.

suggestions:

call or message docs office or nurse.  They will understand the need to sign up for camps now.  They will also understand that you need to have daytime options while you work.  Ask if they know camp options that prior patients used.

if the doc is in the sports rehab side of orthopedics, call office and ask if they know of any summer conditioning camps.  My local scottish rite sports rehab dept does this all summer long.  Since its sports rehab they are used to kids with injuries, etc.  this would help kid stay in good condition, learn good workout to do at home, and have social with other sports kids

scottish rite rehab here also takes non-patients in these camps.  Shriners does similar if no Scottish rite. Or if they don’t have ortho dept look or ask around to see who does pediatric sports rehab. Your local childrens hospital sports rehab may offer camps too.

in our case it is knee, hip issues.  Doc wrote letter listing types of things not to do which helped.  (Its the type of letter they write for school PE modification after an injury) But it took a bit for me to understand it all and I still often have questions.  Knowing if its high impact or repetitive loading or certain repetitive “moves”, or warm up activities like lots push ups, etc. Also ask if doc has any in house sports trainers.  They are very helpful in finding ways for kid to still do sport, etc.  and know what kind of braces work with what sport, etc. Sports trainers and PT are two different things but do overlap.

also ask if bracing, for short term, during sports practice would allow for some options.  One of my kids wears good wrist braces during horse riding on the off chance horse decides to suddenly take off.  (My child has past wrist sprains and her wrist hyper extends easily)  she can also wear same brace for tkd for push ups, etc, if there is symptom flare.  Look to see if there are any therapeutic horse riding places that need summer helpers.  He may be too young, but some of our local ones take kids to help with summer projects that need doing.

Could your son do horse riding, swimming, tkd (some studios work with those who need accommodations and don’t require sparring.), ice skating (not ice hockey), ymca camps. We have a local salvation army camp that runs week long camps.

Or would there be anyone that could use a week here or there of a helper?  Ie, someone with a business that your kid could shadow or help out?  Or someone with a project and could use some helping hands?  A friend that would enjoy a helper with summer clean out project or painting project, etc.  maybe priest or pastor might know someone?

Hope something in all that is helpful.

 

 

[Drama Llama]

34 minutes ago, J-rap said:

How about golf?

Maybe for a differet summer?  It's not really his thing.  His brother and one of his uncles love it so he goes sometimes, but he hasn't been interested enough that I've put him in camp or anything.  For right now, golf would address the issue of any overuse in his legs, since it's really different from soccer, but you use your wrist a lot.  I think pulling him out of mountain biking, for example, and subbing golf might be going in the wrong direction. 

[Elona]

The reason I focused so much on pain and self awareness in my comments above is because overtraining injuries don't just happen out of the blue, for the most part. So, I could give you advice about cross-training and constructive rest, etc, but all of that would just be meaningless guidelines if he can't stop when he feels pain. It's those tiny, niggling little pains tha ARE the overtraining. It's pushing through those pains that truly does the damage. So if he can listen to pain and honor his body's signals, you don't have to worry nearly as much about WHAT he's doing, because he's taking care of his body wherever he goes. Of course, he has to have responsible, responsive coaches, too. I hope this makes sense! I think rest is important and I think cross-training is helpful, but pain trumps all, and learning to discern good pain from bad is a critical skill that will help him avoid overtraining more than anything else.

[ktgrok]

horseback riding? Any nature based camps, where they do some hiking, some swimming, but not competition type stuff? 

I also agree that messaging via portal or phone message, saying you know the doctor said he's doing too much, but you are not sure how much is too much. Is there a number of hours a week, or hours a day, etc that he'd suggest as a limit? And any particular things he'd suggest?

 

[ktgrok]

I wonder, if you have a nearby college with a soccer team, if you could message/email them and ask if they can give suggestions on cross training ideas for the off season, for a competitive soccer player? Say that his doctor is worried about overtraining and suggests a break, and ask what they suggest. I'd clarify that you know they can't give specific advice for your son, but just want to know in general what activities they advise their own players to try for cross training when not playing soccer.

(I reach out to college people all the time for random stuff and almost always get a response back). 

[ktgrok]

https://www.soccernation.com/best-off-season-conditioning-strategy-for-serious-soccer-players/

[Dmmetler]

When L had to leave cheer to rehab a knee injury, we substituted a group performing music group. It gave the "team" without the pain. (This was in addition to a rehab program, which included physical training to strengthen the joint and keep other skills up). The bigger loss was the emotional one, and the music ensemble helped that dramatically. 

Edited May 13, 2022 by Dmmetler

[Katy]

53 minutes ago, Baseballandhockey said:

Do other people's doctors take calls for things like that?  Maybe I'm not pushy enough.  I feel like if I called the doctor's office and said "have the doctor call me back to give me advice on summer camp" there's no way that would work, but I haven't actually tried it with this particular doctor.  

We aren't at the point of physical therapy yet, I don't know if we're headed that way or not.  

But this isn't about injury specific advice.  The injury is why we ended up in the ortho's office, but what raised the issue wasn't the injury, it was when the ortho asked him to describe what happened and he said "Well, I hit it when I dove after the ball at a soccer game, and it kinda hurt, and then that afternoon I had 2 hours of try outs for a different team and after that it hurt more, and then when the lacrosse ball hit it at my game . . . " and the doctor asked him how much he plays, and what he has planned for the fall and said "this is too much. . .".

I know what the short term wrist restrictions are, I'm asking about general long term principles for overtraining, which is tricky, because the advice seems to be "take 3 months off your primary sport every year, but stay active during that time", but doesn't give a lot of guidance on what "off" or "active" looks like.  

Yes, doctors take calls for everything. I’d probably just ask for guidance with summer activity restrictions when you leave the message.

[Drama Llama]

29 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

I wonder, if you have a nearby college with a soccer team, if you could message/email them and ask if they can give suggestions on cross training ideas for the off season, for a competitive soccer player? Say that his doctor is worried about overtraining and suggests a break, and ask what they suggest. I'd clarify that you know they can't give specific advice for your son, but just want to know in general what activities they advise their own players to try for cross training when not playing soccer.

(I reach out to college people all the time for random stuff and almost always get a response back). 

I think the problem is that adult bodies are really different from pre-adolescent bodies, and that we got in this situation (not the wrist injury, but the concerns about overtraining in general) because youth sports in our area assume that kids can train like adults.  

[ktgrok]

8 minutes ago, Baseballandhockey said:

I think the problem is that adult bodies are really different from pre-adolescent bodies, and that we got in this situation (not the wrist injury, but the concerns about overtraining in general) because youth sports in our area assume that kids can train like adults.  

Gotcha. I'd just then ask the doctor if he needs time off soccer specifically, or sports in general, or how many hours of athletics a week is too much, etc. 

[Elona]

58 minutes ago, Baseballandhockey said:

I think the problem is that adult bodies are really different from pre-adolescent bodies, and that we got in this situation (not the wrist injury, but the concerns about overtraining in general) because youth sports in our area assume that kids can train like adults.  

Yes! So much this! There is always this push to make kids better, push them harder, etc. You are absolutely right to be aware of the danger here. The best people I ever worked with to help guide me in the care of my own body were actually not doctors, but sports physiotherapists. I found that doctors often didn't understand the nuances of training and how to find the middle ground - their solutions were often to sit out and heal, which isn't bad advice, but it is incomplete. Coaches just want their best players to be better. Always better. They always want you in the game, of course once you're hurt, they too want you to heal, but most aren't great at preventing injury. Physical therapists on the other hand, really understand the body and can be an amazing help on an ongoing basis. I'd encourage you to make an appointment with one if you can!

[catz]

I have a nephew that had some similar situations.  One concern we had was about mental health.  These activities end up being a physical, mental and social outlet.  They were very intentional about social outlets, breaking some covid protocals they earlier had in place.  My husband happens to have a lot of experience with sports medicine, etc.  

I agree asking doctor about specifics is a good idea.  If he he swimming, I think that is awesome and perfect.  Like is there any way he can do some social swimming with friends?  Just playing in the pool burns of some steam but is so much lower impact.  

Is there anything newer he'd be willing to try over the summer?  Like as a mental and social outlet that might be less physical?  Like musical theater?  Physical kids often just jump right into that - they tend to move well and have some confidence.  Or robotics clubs, chess team, new music lesson/ensemble, science museum class, etc etc etc.  Like maybe see if filling up some of his time with something else might be helpful?  

[mathnerd]

Personally, I would not allow my kid to play any sport involving his wrists for the summer and give his wrist a chance to recover completely so that he is able to do what he loves in the Fall and beyond. Since you are pressed for time to decide on summer camps, I suggest that you look for non-sporty camps that also are very stimulating and fun and gives him new experiences while keeping him busy. Look for Day camps in Science museums, aviation museums, martial arts studios (without sparring or board breaking), Maker camps,  theater camps at Conservatives etc. I think that occasional pick up games are ok, but he needs to be aware of his wrists when he plays with the basketball or any other game.

Another suggestion is to message the orthopedist office through their online portal and ask what possibilities for physical activity and sports are there for your son given his situation and they might respond by email or call you back. Good luck.

Edited May 13, 2022 by mathnerd

[Ausmumof3]

Could you do swimming?

[Drama Llama]

1 hour ago, catz said:

I have a nephew that had some similar situations.  One concern we had was about mental health.  These activities end up being a physical, mental and social outlet.  They were very intentional about social outlets, breaking some covid protocals they earlier had in place.  My husband happens to have a lot of experience with sports medicine, etc.  

I agree asking doctor about specifics is a good idea.  If he he swimming, I think that is awesome and perfect.  Like is there any way he can do some social swimming with friends?  Just playing in the pool burns of some steam but is so much lower impact.  

Is there anything newer he'd be willing to try over the summer?  Like as a mental and social outlet that might be less physical?  Like musical theater?  Physical kids often just jump right into that - they tend to move well and have some confidence.  Or robotics clubs, chess team, new music lesson/ensemble, science museum class, etc etc etc.  Like maybe see if filling up some of his time with something else might be helpful?  

The mental health piece is important here.  He’s had a pretty stressful few years, and sports are how he self regulates and really the only way he connects with his Dad.  On the other hand I think that those are reasons why he’s really susceptible to ignoring pain.  When he took the final blow to his wrist he was clearly in a lot of pain, but also very focused on not wanting to be pulled from the game, and on not wanting his Dad to see him pulled.  

Summer swim has a huge social component and that will help and presumably whatever camp he ends up at will have other kids.

[Drama Llama]

24 minutes ago, Ausmumof3 said:

Could you do swimming?

He’ll do the summer swim at our neighborhood pool which is an hour a day, through June and most of July, but I need more hours of childcare than that.  I know there are 11/12 year olds who are ready to spend whole weeks home alone, it’s not the right choice for him.  

[rebcoola]

Hmm.  You're in a tough spot if the doctor is wanting him to rest from soccer and similar activities and not use the wrist.  Football, basketball, soccer, lacrosse all have very similar movements.   Biking if is wrist can handle it is good.  Weight lifting is common in the off season you would have to find a person or program that works with his age group.  Swimming is always our go to around here.  

 

[mommyoffive]

Cooking camp?  Nature/adventure camps?  They usually  have some at nature centers.

[Clemsondana]

What about bike riding?  One of the things that you see with high school baseball pitchers is that they have to run during practice (or before or after games) on the days after they pitch because upping cardio is the best way to get the blood circulating and help heal tired or injured tissue.  When kid had a fractured elbow, he couldn't run so we got an exercise bike.  So...maybe running but for most kids bike riding is more fun, and it doesn't seem like he has the kind of injury that would make bike riding unsafe (unlike our kid in a sling)?

[SKL]

We go to a chiropractor who specializes in sports injuries and encourages continued activity unless there's a real need to stop / cut back.  My daughter trusts him and listens to him.

I would ask about whether your son can play a recreational sport or whether there are specific exercises he can do (e.g. in the weight room) while recuperating.  Put together a list of options and let your son choose one.