Parents This may be the end

[PeanutsMom]

Hi everyone.

Peanut's mom here again with yet another setback. It looks like the dreaded injury is likely taking my girl out of gymnastics. She had been complaining of hip pain on and off for months. We did PT, we tried stretching. It would get better and then it would return. We made an appointment to see an orthopedic to get xrays to see if there was more going on. Boy is there. Her hip actually looks fine (go figure) but she has a complete break, not a stress fracture, of her L5. She is been told NO activity for the being. She is being scheduled for an MRI of both her back and her hip (just to make sure there is nothing there as well) and we are being referred to a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. She got her team leo on Tuesday for this coming season and her appointment was on Wednesday, so now her season is over before it begins. She may not ever get to go back to gymnastics. She is angry, she is sad, and she is afraid she won't find something else she is good at or passionate about. I don't know how to best support her while feeling upset and angry myself that her passion is being taken from her. My husband and I have always believed that gymnastics was HER journey and we would support her as long as she loved it. When she was done, we would be fine with her walking away. However, she has had no choice in this. She isn't done and it feels ridiculously harder than I thought it would be (maybe because I am watching her sadness and as a mother seeing my kids hurt is the worst thing ever). Logically I know she can't do anything about it. Logically I know this is the only RIGHT decision. However my heart hurts for her.

Prayers for patience, healing, calm, and peace would be appreciated.

Merry Christmas and I wish all your gymnasts a great upcoming season.

 

[Deleted member 26368]

Oh my goodness, many virtual hugs to you and your baby! You guys have had a rough road, based on what I've read of your journey, and I agree that it's sad that it has to end like this. I'm honestly praying for her health. As for the rest, I have no sage advice, but your daughter has an amazing support system and I know you will get through this together.

Random mom down here in Georgia pulling for you, and Merry Christmas!

 

[raenndrops]

Hi everyone.

Peanut's mom here again with yet another setback. It looks like the dreaded injury is likely taking my girl out of gymnastics. She had been complaining of hip pain on and off for months. We did PT, we tried stretching. It would get better and then it would return. We made an appointment to see an orthopedic to get xrays to see if there was more going on. Boy is there. Her hip actually looks fine (go figure) but she has a complete break, not a stress fracture, of her L5. She is been told NO activity for the being. She is being scheduled for an MRI of both her back and her hip (just to make sure there is nothing there as well) and we are being referred to a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. She got her team leo on Tuesday for this coming season and her appointment was on Wednesday, so now her season is over before it begins. She may not ever get to go back to gymnastics. She is angry, she is sad, and she is afraid she won't find something else she is good at or passionate about. I don't know how to best support her while feeling upset and angry myself that her passion is being taken from her. My husband and I have always believed that gymnastics was HER journey and we would support her as long as she loved it. When she was done, we would be fine with her walking away. However, she has had no choice in this. She isn't done and it feels ridiculously harder than I thought it would be (maybe because I am watching her sadness and as a mother seeing my kids hurt is the worst thing ever). Logically I know she can't do anything about it. Logically I know this is the only RIGHT decision. However my heart hurts for her.

Prayers for patience, healing, calm, and peace would be appreciated.

Merry Christmas and I wish all your gymnasts a great upcoming season.

So sorry to hear this. Years ago, we had a girl (Old Level 4) who had been complaining of hip pain off and on. She competed in the first meet (scored 9.0 on vault), and as they were driving home, they passed an urgent care center. They stopped because her hip was hurting again. (had time and the center was "in-network" for their insurance). Turns out that she had a broken back. She was out for the rest of the season.
Virtual hugs. Merry Christmas.

 

[Gym_Mama]

Oh no, I’m so sorry! Was the nagging pain in the front of her hip or back?

Hopefully, you get a better idea of what the future holds with the scheduled MRI’s. Take time to rest and mentally prepare … I know an optional gymnast who took almost years off and is now a level 10. It can happen, but long term body health comes first. It may take time to come back or she may decide to retire. There is so much to explore and I hope she finds joy in trying new things.

 

[gymgal]

My thoughts go out to your family. We were there several years ago with a bad tibial plateau fracture where we didn't think she would come back to gymnastics. My best advice is - Just keep telling your daughter (and yourself) one step at a time. Not to look too far ahead without knowing the full details yet. drs are notorious for giving the worst case scenario. It's important to leave that door open for realistic hope that she can return. Yes, the season is over given it is a complete break but don't stress just yet about whether she can continue gymnastics after healing. The MRI will give the drs more answers for that. Many gymnasts have come back after complete vertebrae fractures and compressions that have required surgery and /or extended recovery.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

Hi everyone.

Peanut's mom here again with yet another setback. It looks like the dreaded injury is likely taking my girl out of gymnastics. She had been complaining of hip pain on and off for months. We did PT, we tried stretching. It would get better and then it would return. We made an appointment to see an orthopedic to get xrays to see if there was more going on. Boy is there. Her hip actually looks fine (go figure) but she has a complete break, not a stress fracture, of her L5. She is been told NO activity for the being. She is being scheduled for an MRI of both her back and her hip (just to make sure there is nothing there as well) and we are being referred to a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. She got her team leo on Tuesday for this coming season and her appointment was on Wednesday, so now her season is over before it begins. She may not ever get to go back to gymnastics. She is angry, she is sad, and she is afraid she won't find something else she is good at or passionate about. I don't know how to best support her while feeling upset and angry myself that her passion is being taken from her. My husband and I have always believed that gymnastics was HER journey and we would support her as long as she loved it. When she was done, we would be fine with her walking away. However, she has had no choice in this. She isn't done and it feels ridiculously harder than I thought it would be (maybe because I am watching her sadness and as a mother seeing my kids hurt is the worst thing ever). Logically I know she can't do anything about it. Logically I know this is the only RIGHT decision. However my heart hurts for her.

Prayers for patience, healing, calm, and peace would be appreciated.

Merry Christmas and I wish all your gymnasts a great upcoming season.

So sorry to hear about this latest injury. I have no experience with this kind of injury or with the emotional aspect of such an abrupt ending to gymnastics. I definitely see why your daughter is angry and grieving. Sending you all positive thoughts and wishing your daughter peace and healing.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

You all need to concentrate on healing her back. She is going need that for the rest of her life. And you didn’t cost her a dream, so let go of that.

Dealing with disappointment and expectation adjustments is a huge life lesson.

It’s ok to acknowledge her anger and disappointment. Do not be overly empathetic. She needs to know, when one door closes another opens. It would help if you actually believe that….. mostly because it’s true.

Healing then see where it goes. But where ever it goes, it can actually be awesome.

 

[RTT2]

Any updates? Hope there is either some encouraging news for her back, or that she's feeling a little better about moving forward in a different direction.

 

[MUTigerMom]

Sending you hugs and prayers. Hoping she can get some relief from her pain. Know that she will find something else to love and the skills and discipline she learned in gymnastics will serve her well. My daughter suffered a stress fracture in her L5 2 years ago that forced her retirement from gymnastics. She has since thrived in a multitude of other activities. The other day we were talking about it. She asked why we allowed her to try to come back after the injury instead of forcing her to quit. As I tried to explain, she interrupted and said, "So... you didn't want to crush my dreams. But that happened anyway. But is okay. It all ended up okay. I just found new dreams and I love them."

 

[PeanutsMom]

Any updates? Hope there is either some encouraging news for her back, or that she's feeling a little better about moving forward in a different direction.

Not yet. With the holiday, they didn't even schedule us for the MRI until January 14th. We will follow up with the local children's hospital after that. I guess the silver lining is that almost a month will go by without any activity before we even get to the surgeon so maybe her back can start healing.

 

[novagymmom]

Will be thinking of you guys. I know how hard this must be for her, and for you to watch her. Wishing her good strong healing . . . and then happiness in whatever comes next. You have a strong girls with grit. I suspect there are great things on the other side of this!