Parents do you let your gymnast take painkillers?

[trampolinemom]

Do you let your gymnast take painkillers? And if so to get through training? for competitions only? DS ( 11 yo is in trampolining at the highest national level.) is having a nagging foot injury which basically prefents him from training on the trampoline ( PT says its because of hyperflexibility plus growth plus high impact)

Past week he could barely walk and couldn't jump so he only did strength and flexibility training. First competition is on saturday ( not the most important one this one but qualifiers for world age group competition in november are coming up in a couple of weeks. )

Would you give your kid painkillers to sort of get through training and competitions?

 

[profmom]

Not without imaging to rule out stress reaction/stress fracture, and not without an orthopedist's recommendation. There's a bit of evidence that NSAIDs like ibuprofen can inhibit bone growth, so it's important to know what you're dealing with before you dose up.

I'd also try to keep the big picture in mind. What are the benefits to competing, and do they exceed the costs of potentially losing months if he winds up with an acute injury?

 

[NutterButter]

I’ve done it a handful of times but as practice I don’t like to. I have to be pretty certain on the cause of the pain as pain. In your case with your DS having a difficult time walking and unable to train normally I would not give ibuprofen to get through the competition.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Not as it relates to gymnastics. For her teeth when she gets her braces adjusted and happens to have practice. Soreness that comes with a lot conditioning, which is different then a possible injury.

Pain is an indication of a problem and the need to know is it getting better or worse.

 

[MILgymFAM]

I do, but only because we’ve been through the gamut of doctors and tests. My DD has chronic shin splints and her doctor and PT encouraged pain killers as needed since the problem isn’t going away. I would be wary of just masking pain without knowing the source, though.

 

[skschlag]

Yes, sometimes. For headaches, yes. For minor soreness, sometimes. For undiagnosed injury, no. Once we know what it is, and are under the care of a doctor, we do what we are told. But he is really good at knowing whether he truly needs it or not.

 

[meganliz77]

DD has recently been diagnosed with Osgood's (really inflamed in one knee - her 'good' one) and we have been allowing her to take ibuprofen or naproxen to deal with the discomfort when it is really bad (and then she is icing and elevating as well). Long term not a good solution... but she has used it through the latter part of this meet season because it was really flared. She has also had to rest it when in possible. I wouldn't do it without a diagnosis and treatment plan from physician if it is for an injury or suspected injury.

 

[momnipotent]

Agreed that I will do it for certain things like headache or known pain that is benign-muscle soreness or the shin splints mentioned above. For what you’ve mentioned-pain so bad he can barely walk? Probably not unless recommended by a doctor. I would worry that he would land funny and tweak it without realizing because of the painkillers and then be in a position to really hurt himself on a following jump. I think I would try giving him a couple of weeks of full rest-no PE at school, just conditioning and stretching at gym, and see how it is then before making a decision. World age groups is a big deal, but I know he has been before and seems on track to go again in the future, so missing one year in order to ensure my child is able to totally recover and not have any lasting problems would be the more important factor-especially since athletes can compete trampoline well into their 20’s and 30’s.

 

[Amanda]

I don't like to let her take painkillers- especially before practice. I like pain to be her guide. However, right now, we are dealing with a possible flare of her arthritis (it had been inactive for years) and she has to be on naproxen around the clock so that the inflammation doesn't damage her joint. She is aware that just because she is mostly pain free doesn't mean she is necessarily healed. At this point she is super limited in what she can do anyway- mostly just core/arm conditioning. I don't think I would allow regular pain medication without clearing it with a doctor.

 

[trampolinemom]

Thanks a lot for your replies. Good to see the perpective. He did see the national federation's sports doctor a couple of weeks ago. He also thought the pain comes from hyperflexibility plus high impact and that at this point there was no reason to think about stress fractures for instance, the same his PT says. He got assigned specific excercises and if they wouldn't help he needs to return in 2 months. Still I am not sure if it won't improve soon I would like him to have a scan. Today with no training he didn't feel pain in his daily actvities, so hopefully it is improving.

 

[Noideaaboutgym]

I have a 12 yo who is growing rapidly and hurts when she is trampolining. She is also having problems walking but then has odd days when it is fine. Bones grow way faster than ligaments, muscles and tendons so when it hurts she is told to stretch and roll more. She also struggles with hyper mobility, her main pain is heels but all her joints trouble her! I think she copes because she doesn’t just do trampolining, however she has National teams coming up and I would definitely allow her to take paracetamol or ibuprofen for that. For a lesser competition I probably wouldn’t, I would let her take the lead and either give it a go or scratch depending on her decision.
Good luck deciding what to do.

 

[Annikins]

For headaches yes, but not for an injury. The pain would be a warning to a child not to keep doing that movement usually (unless she'd been advised by a doctor/physio that it would be ok to do that).

 

[trampolinemom]

So we decided to cancel the competition this weekend. It is just not going to happen. His coach and I also decided that he will only start competing again if he is feeling comfortable again and ready even if that means missing nationals and World Age Group qualifiers the coming weeks (and so that will most likely mean missing WAGC in autumn as well) He does feel sorry for it also for letting his synchro partner down, but it is just the only real option. We increased PT to twice a week now. Hopefully he will get better soon.

 

[sce]

Yes, sometimes. For headaches, yes. For minor soreness, sometimes. For undiagnosed injury, no. Once we know what it is, and are under the care of a doctor, we do what we are told. But he is really good at knowing whether he truly needs it or not.

All of this.

 

[profmom]

I think you made the right decision. He is still so young!

 

[BachFlyer]

On the off chance that there is a misdiagnosis, I would be heading in for an X-ray. It’s worth the cost.

 

[gymgal]

Seems like you made the right call to pull him from competition. Especially a first one that doesn't mean anything in the grand scheme of the season - not worth it. As for the pain killers. Depends on what you are referring to. Dd takes ibuprofen almost daily just before gym to help reduce any inflammation that may be going on. Just the over the counter dosage, not prescription. Any stronger dose or a more potent medication, true "pain killer" would be on dr orders and she likely would not be training as it would mean she has a true injury that needs rest and dr or PT care.

 

[trampolinemom]

As for the pain killers. Depends on what you are referring to.

I indeed meant ibuprofen or paracetamol.

 

[profmom]

Seems like you made the right call to pull him from competition. Especially a first one that doesn't mean anything in the grand scheme of the season - not worth it. As for the pain killers. Depends on what you are referring to. Dd takes ibuprofen almost daily just before gym to help reduce any inflammation that may be going on. Just the over the counter dosage, not prescription. Any stronger dose or a more potent medication, true "pain killer" would be on dr orders and she likely would not be training as it would mean she has a true injury that needs rest and dr or PT care.

http://time.com/4746319/ibuprofen-painkillers-risks/

If it would work for her, she might be better off taking NSAIDs after practice, and limiting their use as much as possible. But obviously this would be a discussion for you and her to have with her physician.

My daughter was briefly on a daily high dose of OTC ibuprofen to address acute inflammation after imaging confirmed no bone injury, but her orthopedist gave us a clear time frame (I think it was two weeks if I remember right.)

 

[gymgal]

http://time.com/4746319/ibuprofen-painkillers-risks/

If it would work for her, she might be better off taking NSAIDs after practice, and limiting their use as much as possible. But obviously this would be a discussion for you and her to have with her physician.

My daughter was briefly on a daily high dose of OTC ibuprofen to address acute inflammation after imaging confirmed no bone injury, but her orthopedist gave us a clear time frame (I think it was two weeks if I remember right.)

Thanks for the article. I will check into it. Her pediatrician and ortho's have been ok with long term use of low dose ibuprofen. Unless she has an actual injury, she only takes it once daily and it helps avoid any inflammation/pain. We also have a family history of juvenile and adult inflammatory arthritis so that may play a part in the drs being ok with it.