July 23, 2007
Prognosis
I got up this morning and called the physical therapy place recommended by the doctor I saw Saturday. They were super unorganized and couldn’t offer me an appointment until next Monday at the earliest. No thank you.
So, I called a chiropractor that I heard good things about and saw him tonight. He did some gentle adjustments to my neck and upper back. Then I had ultrasound therapy and stims. I’m going back tomorrow for more of the same and then at the end of the week I’m seeing the massage therapist.
I’m hoping that this massage therapist will be nice and gentle. A few years ago I hurt my back doing a combination of elliptical training and beach volleyball. I saw a chiropractor in New Jersey who had a massage therapist on staff. She was a Russian woman and after the first massage with her, I always got worried when the chiropractor would tell me to go in and see her again. She used to dig her elbows into my back saying "You’re so tight" over and over again. It was agony and literally brought tears to my eyes. I’m hoping this massage therapist won’t be so painful.
I asked the chiropractor how long I’m going to be out of commission regarding karate. He told me it will be a minimum of three weeks if I do everything he tells me to do. A more realistic estimate is about six to eight weeks. He said my muscles and ligaments are all ripped up and that any little jolt can rip things up worse. So I’m relegated to the sidelines for a while.
I figure at the latest, I’ll be back to karate by the end of September. That will still give me about five months to continue training for black belt testing. I’m just really ticked off that I’m losing any time at all. I really felt like I was getting somewhere with kata and bunkai.
I’m also upset that I missed two days of being around such great martial arts minds at the training camp. It’s not everyday that you get to converse with Kyoshi Bill Hayes. If you ever get a chance to meet and/or train with him, don’t miss that opportunity. He’s simply amazing.
I guess I’ll take this time to read some good books, and do some mental kata since that’s the only kind of kata I’m allowed to do for now. You can start feeling sorry for me any time now, because I’m definitely feeling pretty sorry for myself.
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Torn ligaments??? Was that the doctor who told you that or the chiropractor? Very sad! 🙁
WOW. Just thinking about what you’ve described makes my body physically ache. And I thought my asthma, tightened muscles and my bum knee was bad! Do take it easy, as it will be better for you to take the rest and let your body heal completely. You might as well enjoy the rest of the summer, right? I’m sorry to hear that you are so injured. And I will take note– watch the rings, and no ju-jitsu. Maybe it’s time to read some Bruce Lee, as he wrote many of his manifestos when laid up injured. 😉
Aw man, I’m sorry. I hate, hate, hate not being able to train, so I totally understand. The longest I have ever managed to stay off the mat was two weeks (neck/shoulder injury that hurt like hell), but I still showed up to watch class a couple times a week. I hope the guy who threw you got reamed for hurting you.
BBM,
I would love to treat you with “Scott’s Magic Fingers” but I think Mr. BBM would have a problem with that. LOL. Oh, and too bad that thing Mr. Myagi did on Daniel-san’s injury was just hollywood’s take on Asian mysticism and it wasn’t really possible to just heal wounds with chi and heat like that . . .
That is a bummer that you are sidelined for a while. But I think you have a great idea with the mental practicing. Supposedly that can really work as well as physical training.
Yeah, and Karen brings up a good point. What happened to Mr. Toughguy who hurt you? Did he do it on purpose? Was it some illegal technique he used, or did you just land wrong because you are not familiar with that style?
Take comfort in the fact that as you age, it’ll take even longer and be even harder to recover from injuries. Right now, then, you got it easy.
Just kidding.
Steve: They both said I’m all “ripped up in there”. I don’t think there’s any way to tell with just x-rays though, so I’m assuming they made those assessments based on my limited range of motion and the type of pain when I do move.
Dani: Good idea! Maybe I will.
Karen & Scott: I don’t even think the guy who hurt me knew he hurt me. I hit the ground, got back up, realized my fingers were all bloodied, left, cleaned them up, and came back and took my turn throwing them. It wasn’t until later that the hurt started really settling in and I didn’t tell him I was hurt. I think the initial strike to the neck disoriented me and then I fell wrong on top of it. I don’t think he did it on purpose. I just think he lacked control. (He also gave someone else a bloody nose during the same throw.)
Dan: Gee, thanks.
here to lend some sympathy- Poor You! 🙁
i hope the massage and chiropractic care help.
(i know i am not injured but i could really use a massage. i’m going to pout now.)
This is the price you pay for being a modern warrior! You’ll be fine, just don’t go rushing back to the dojo before you’re ready. I know it’s a drag being inactive, but at least this didn’t happen right before your shodan test.
Trust me, you’ll have a good laugh at all this someday. Hang in there! (Gotta find out if this guy Hayes will be giving a workshop in the New York area.)
Six to eight weeks? Crap! Hope you have some luck with the chiro and MT. I spend a lot of time at both places myself but not because I’m a bad ass brown belt like yourself!
feel better 🙂
Poor BBM! Be gentle to your poor abused neck – particularly when it’s starting to feel better and you’re picking your karate back up. Remember, it’s not just the injury, you’ll have to recondition once you’re back.
Sending healing thoughts.
You have my every sympathy in this…do take it easy and do as you’ve been told. Do remember to rehab the back slowly until the mobility and flexibility returns. If it’s onlyl 6 weeks out it’s not too bad!
I’m sorry. I hope your chiro helps. I see one regularly once a month. I love him. He keeps me moving.
You can go to karate class and observe. You’d be surprised what you see when you are observing. Subtleties you miss when you are engaged in the class. You can also “walk through” things. No intensity, just walk through the moves (this is HARD, cause you want to go all out, lol.)
Wishing you a speedy recovery
I’m so sorry to hear about your injury. I hope everything heals up fast.
I hope this can be of some help: there are devices that are used in some spas that supposedly help with wrinkles by emitting a certain wavelength of light, which promotes new collagen growth. People on a cosmetics forum have used it on injuries and gotten good results. I bought one, and it is really too big for use on my face (it almost blinds me!), but my husband and a friend have both used it on knee pain and have gotten significant overnight relief. Here is a link from the cosmetics forum where some people have talked about it: http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=17027&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0.
I imagine there is probably a chiropractor/alternative medicine practitioner (or even a spa) somewhere in town who has a similar device. Good luck!
As far as the massage therapist, LET HER KNOW IF SHE IS GOING TOO DEEP!!! Any massage therapist that doesn’t listen to a client’s request is not worth the time. Let them know your history regarding massage and that you are a little apprehensive. Whiplash should be treated very gently in the first week or so post-injury. So, do not feel at all shy about letting the therapist know about pressure, etc. Okay, soap box is not put away…it sucks to get injured because you really need to heal before going back, which takes time. That is especially true for ligament/muscle damage. Drink lots of water, rest and read some good books!!! Take care, soma
Ack. I’ve been out of the loop for awhile, so I just caught up to this news. Shouldn’t a black belt candidate have some more. . .I don’t know. . .CONTROL?! Hopefully this PT and MT goes better than last time, and I’m with Karrie–scream early and scream loud if it hurts. I once got a massage that left me walking like Quasimodo for weeks because it was too hard and must have pinched every nerve I had in my neck. Hang in there–it will get better.
I find chiropractors useless, but to each her own. Unfortunately, there is no way to rush the healing of an injury (which shouldn’t have happened in the first place, if you ask me). (No reflection on you, rather, a shot at the person who injured you)
Did you read about the guy in the hometown paper? He had fended off a pit bull by kicking it. It had it’s jaws firmly attached to his leg and he kicked it in the throat with his free leg. He was able to get it off him just long enough to run inside.The article said he had taken karate. Apparently our hometown is rampant with inrestrainted dogs. 🙁 In addition to the incidents listed in the paper, I remembered your incident a few months back.
So sorry to hear! Get better soon!
Sizzle: I’m pouting with you.
John: Yes, definitely look into attending something where Hayes will be present. He is awesome!
Izzy: “Bad ass brown belt”-now that’s a name for a blog. . .
PB, WG, GAMommy, Deryck, DMD: Thank you for your speedy healing thoughts.
Karrie: Thanks for that piece of advice. I don’t know why I didn’t speak up before. Probably because she had her elbow in my back and I was SCARED! OUCH!
PapaB: Yeah, my thoughts exactly on the black belt candidate. And Quasimodo? AH! I’m like robotic woman right now-I certainly don’t need Quasi action on top of that! I will definitely speak up!
Junebee: I don’t think you’ve been to the right chiropractor. I’ve seen four through the course of my injured life and they have all helped me immensely. And yes, I did read about the pitbull problems and the karate guy. Good to know that snap kicks work on aggressive dogs too! 😉
So sorry to hear about your injuries! I echo everyone else’s sentiments in that you shouldn’t try to rush your recovery. You could injure yourself even worse.
Here’s a suggestion for when you begin to be able to move again–slow motion, no focus kata. Do your kata in super slow motion, totally relaxed. No tension or focus whatsoever. This is also a good way to concentrate on the little details of your stances and techniques.
Anyway, best wishes for a speedy recovery.
Oh I am so sorry to hear about your injuries. I know how frustrating that is. Most importantly, though, is to do exactly what the doctor tells you to do. And keep up the mental karate. I had Shorin Ryu summer camp this past weekend, but luckily no injuries except bruises. I am sending positive healing vibes your way as I’m sure all your readers are doing.
Hang in there~ try not to let it get the best of you. You will heal.:)
I am so sad to hear about this.. You have my most sincerest sympathy.
May you get better quickly.. far more quickly than the best prognosis that the doctor can give you.
Take good care of yourself.
I know what you mean about the massage therapist being rough. I had one just like that only he would literaly stand up on the table at my feet to get more leverage as he pushed down with all his body weight.
That totally blows. I hope the massage therapist is gentle (one lesson I learned after a massage or two is that you can tell them it hurts…they honestly don’t know unless you do, and they can lighten up a bit…) and everything works. Too bad you have to sit out Karate for so long. 🙁
Take care ya. Have a good rest and ensure you’re fully recovered before you attempt any karate moves again.
How are you feeling???? Hopefully a little better. 🙂
I didn’t see this and am sorry you’re hurting. For what it is worth I’m on the same page with Junebee regarding chiropractors but if they work for you that is all that matters.
Sometimes we need to take one step backwards to take two steps forward (God I sound like Cain from Kung Fu)