Anon Practices while waiting for Dr appt

[Anonymous (5155)]

TL/DR - What do you do when your child is in pain (probably chronic/overuse type), has a scheduled dr appt, but has practices in the interim and the coaches don’t seem to believe that your child is in pain?

My DD (11 yo, L6/7) has been experiencing some wrist pain since the spring (when she started training beam BHS and yurchenkos). She got Tiger Paws, but is only allowed to wear them on vault and only when they are doing yurchenko-specific drills/vaults.

This summer she started having occasional pain in her Achilles area while tumbling. Over the past few weeks, it has gotten pretty bad and now one ankle hurts more than the other. The past few days she has been noticeably limping in the mornings.

She has been landing short on standing back tucks (doesn’t quite have it all the way around yet), which she says really hurts, but the coaches keep making her do them. Now she’s losing some of her tumbling skills (FHS-FT and RO-BHS-layout). She says she’s not scared of them, but that her Achilles and wrists hurt so much that it’s hard to tumble. She’s also not feeling very secure about her beam BHS, which she has had solidly since April. Up until a few weeks ago she was working series on the medium beam and now she’s just trying to work her regular BHS back up to high beam.

The coaches seem to be upset and told her she’s regressing. She’s never been injured, hates to sit out, and has a high pain tolerance so I don’t know why it seems like they don’t believe her about the pain.

I just got her an appointment with a pediatric orthopedist who is familiar with gymnastics, but the appointment is not until Friday morning and she has two practices before then. I’m not asking for medical advice, but I’m wondering what to do about these two practices. Should I just tell the coaches that the pain has been significant lately, that she has an appointment on Friday morning, and that I’d rather her not do anything that puts stress on her wrists and ankles until she’s been seen by the doctor?

Thank you!

 

[Geoffrey Taucer]

First, let's get this out of the way: we don't allow requesting or giving medical advice on the chalk bucket. Most of us aren't doctors, and any who are can't diagnose or recommend treatment without conducting a proper examination. The best source of medical advice is always a qualified doctor who has conducted a formal examination of the athlete.

FOR THE MOMENT, I'll keep this thread open, but let me plant the flag that this is a thread for discussion between coaches/athletes/parents about whether and how to train while injured.

THIS IS NOT a thread to discuss treatment or diagnosis.

Anyway, what I always tell my athletes is this:
1) If it hurts enough that you're modifying your technique or holding back on your execution because of it, stop
2) If it is getting worse from one turn to the next, stop
3) If neither of the above is the case, training can continue, but always err on the side of caution. If you're not sure whether you can safely do a particular skill or exercise, don't do it.
4) Doctors' orders override coaches' orders. In any situation where your coach says one thing and your doctor says another, assume the doctor is right and the coach is wrong.

 

[GymnastMomX2]

The coaches not believing your daughter is a red flag IMO, and I'd be questioning why I was still at the gym.

Unfortunately we have a lot of experience with injuries so I usually just text the head coach to tell him X is hurting, and we have an appointment scheduled for whenever. The coach then allows my daughter to modify whatever is needed until the appointment, and then requires a Dr.'s note if there is some sort of diagnosis/restrictions, and another Dr.'s note when they are cleared to return. I say the coach "allows her to modify..." but really our coaches are super conservative with trying protect the girls from injury, so if something is hurting its usually the coach telling them they can't tumble on the floor that day, or vault or whatever vs. the girls.

If the coaches won't let her modify practices until the appointment I'd pull her from practice.

 

[Anonymous (f9af)]

In our experience, in these interim practices my daughter has had to let pain be her guide. Which is why it's so important for coaches to listen to their athletes and have faith in what their girls are telling them. Without that mutual trust, practicing safely and smartly becomes a lot more difficult.

 

[Anonymous (f97c)]

For our gym, if it happened once or twice that an athlete was injured, we'd make reasonable adjustments for the practice. If the pain/injury was forcing them to significantly modify practice for an entire week, then we'd ask them to not come back until they'd seen a doctor.