WAG Where are the parents?

[Midwestmommy]

Hmm let’s see, I have seen kids off in ambulance five times between practices and meets.

My daughter has seen happen at gym or meets concussions, two arm breaks where the bone is showing through skin, more knee and ankle and arm and wrist and toe and finger impact and possible concussion injuries than we can count. That doesn’t count any of the overuse injuries.

I have spent many many hours at hockey games. I have seen two concussions and a couple knee injuries at games. Our family member who plays a high level of hockey, their team has had four kids miss games in the last year time due to injury, two of which didn’t happen playing hockey or training. I do know that many goalies at the college level suffer from some knee and hip problems due to the movement that position requires.

Just because we pretend not to see the nose on our face doesn’t mean it’s not there. Competitive gymnastics has a very high rate injury, I have zero doubt we would see that if there were good statistics (there aren’t).

 

[Midwestmommy]

I asked our orthopedist once and he said most dangerous 1. Trampoline party places, 2. Gymnastics (although the amount of competitive athletes is much lower than other sports so overall they are not the highest numbers through the door) 3. Football and soccer concussion and other issues.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

At our high school, the highest injury rate by sports, especially head injury.................................

Cheerleading

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Hmm let’s see, I have seen kids off in ambulance five times between practices and meets.

My daughter has seen happen at gym or meets concussions, two arm breaks where the bone is showing through skin, more knee and ankle and arm and wrist and toe and finger impact and possible concussion injuries than we can count. That doesn’t count any of the overuse injuries.

I have spent many many hours at hockey games. I have seen two concussions and a couple knee injuries at games. Our family member who plays a high level of hockey, their team has had four kids miss games in the last year time due to injury, two of which didn’t happen playing hockey or training. I do know that many goalies at the college level suffer from some knee and hip problems due to the movement that position requires.

Just because we pretend not to see the nose on our face doesn’t mean it’s not there. Competitive gymnastics has a very high rate injury, I have zero doubt we would see that if there were good statistics (there aren’t).

Some of the difference is safety equipment. Gymnasts have none or nearly none.

There was a time when hockey players didn't wear helmets, now they do.

I have changed my opinion on supports for gym. Done the blame game, oh its not enough strengthen............ You can exercise, build strength. Yep I get its important and should be done. And tiger paws are good too............. And what ever other supports you want.

 

[Ali'sMom]

Teenagers and preteens are not easy. I mean, yesterday my kid asked for popcorn after practice. I suggested a shower first, as it was getting late. Kid stomped up the stairs to shower, then refused to make popcorn after and gave me the silent treatment for an hour. Oh well. More for popcorn for me and DH later.

Wow, it's like you live in MY house!!!

 

[reluctant]

Some of the difference is safety equipment. Gymnasts have none or nearly none.

There was a time when hockey players didn't wear helmets, now they do.

I have changed my opinion on supports for gym. Done the blame game, oh its not enough strengthen............ You can exercise, build strength. Yep I get its important and should be done. And tiger paws are good too............. And what ever other supports you want.

Maybe gymnasts should wear helmets -- at least while vaulting.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Maybe gymnasts should wear helmets -- at least while vaulting.

Well that would sure make me feel better

 

[Deleted member 18037]

That said, my child is older now, and the most I get in response to “did you have fun at practice? Are you still happy where you are?” Is an eye roll. I’m hopeful my kids would still come to me with an issue, but I can’t be sure. I get most information unsolicited through the gym grapevine.

Teenagers and preteens are not easy. I mean, yesterday my kid asked for popcorn after practice. I suggested a shower first, as it was getting late. Kid stomped up the stairs to shower, then refused to make popcorn after and gave me the silent treatment for an hour. Oh well. More for popcorn for me and DH later.

I have one of these too.

Saw a quote. I have more love then you have eyerolls.

It is now my mantra

 

[B&M's mom]

And when people told me that this attitude shift would happen, I didn't believe it. My oldest used to tell me everything. I never in my wildest dreams believed that I would be the subject of the eyeroll and "Mommmmmm" comments but I am. I apparently know nothing and am not allowed to know what is going on in their lives unless they give me the tiny bit of information they think I need to know. Of course, it's my fault when we don't do something because no one thought to mention it to me.

I understand that in their late teens/early 20s they begin to talk to us again. I'm hoping that's the case.

 

[Taxidriver]

As a parent I would like to say I would know if something was going on, I try to keep communication open and try to educate my kids to speak up if not to me but another adult they trust if their is anything going on in their life the are not happy with.
The reason I also give the option of another adult is as a youth worker I know kids especially teenagers often find it easier talking to another adult instead of their parents.
So in reality I know kids/teenagers are very good at keeping bad situations very well hidden from their parents.
I’ve done many child protection courses and when you list the signs and symptom of abuse and the signs of puberty the scary thing is that there are a lot that are very similar so it can make it near impossible to just spot it just from how they are acting.

 

[Flyaway]

I just feel like this question is impossible to answer because they WERE there, and we (the general outside observer) weren't. I just can't honestly say that if I were in the position of, say, Maggie Nichols' parents that I would have done anything different. I'd like to think I would, but I can't say for sure. I have tremendous compassion for all parents wrapped up in this tragedy. They certainly carry enormous guilt all on their own, they don't need any more piled on from me.

 

[l.c.o]

Not scientific evidence, but my orthopedist who deals with tons of gymnasts says the rate of catstrophic injuries is highest with baseball players -- getting hit right in the chest or the head. I had no idea, I just assumed it was football. We spend a lot of time at the orthopedist with foot issues, but so do all our soccer-playing friends.

I believe this. My DS has already been hit in the face with a baseball twice. He’s 10. It scares me more than gymnastics, TBH. At least there he’s well conditioned for the skills he does. Not as easy to prepare for a line drive to the head when you’re pitching.

 

[l.c.o]

Maybe gymnasts should wear helmets -- at least while vaulting.

That and bubble wrap, please!!

 

[tomtnt]

from ACEP (college of emergency physician)

Between 1990 and 2005, an estimated 425,900 children from 6 to 17 years of age were treated for gymnastics-related injuries in U.S. emergency departments, representing an average of 4.8 injuries per 1,000 gymnasts per year.

This annual injury rate is on par with those reported for sports such as hockey, soccer, and basketball

 

[gymgal]

There has been a lot of discussions about abusive coaches anything from verbal abuse to physically assaulting gymnast. Where is the parent responsibility in this? How could they not know a coach is treating their child this way? Obviously the child didn’t feel comfortable telling the parent what was going on or the parent didn’t observe practice. I find this baffling. I keep thinking about the gymnast who injured herself so she couldn’t go to practice with Geddert. Are parents
chasing this Gymnastics dream for their kid they will do this at all cost. I don’t get it

When a person wants something bad enough, they are likely to ignore many of the negatives to fulfill their goals. Add to this the fact that most don't know any better in the sense that they have never been to another gym or at least not one of a particular caliber. This goes for both the child and the parent. If we are talking about a well known high level gym (as in this case) then there is also the reputation that gets considered - They must be doing it right since they are so successful and everyone wants to be there. Add to that the threat of blacklisting rumors parents hear and you have a recipe for potential abuse.

I personally would never be in a gym where the parents were not allowed to drop in and view practice. It tells me that there is a potential for coaches to be hiding something from the parents. Any gym can easily set up gym cameras and monitors in a parent room without disturbing/distracting gymnasts from their practice. I haven't watched dd practice in a year now, since she started driving, but I want the option of viewing if I felt the need to.

 

[my4buffaloes]

Yes I would know. There are body changes in kids. Personality changes. There are other parents and other kids. I might not hear every word. But there are signs and cues. There is a tone as to how practices goes, how injuries are handled, how parents are “handled”

I respect my “ick” factor. I would know.

And I operate from the assumption my kid will absolutely not tell me everything or anything.

You think you would know and you assume you would know but that doesn't mean you really would know.

 

[coachmolly]

My brother was a high level competitive swimmer and he had some brutal coaches, he heard lots of different ways to swear in his teen years through coaches. I think one would occasionally slam a clipboard down on the pool deck while going on a screaming tirade for max effect. So it does happen in other sports. I think the difference with this coach was that his behavior wasn't anything hidden. It was all on the surface for parents and kids to witness. So kids who chose to compete for his program knew what they were in for. He was a great technician and my brother had a ton of respect for him and the ability to laugh off his antics. This coach has since mellowed with age.
Unlike this guy, I think lots of coaches who use abusive tactics are much more calculating with the when and where. They give hugs at meets, smile and high five when the parents come to pick the kids up, feed parents a great line when they come to check out the gym, but when the doors close and the practice begins, their true colors come out. So when the kids share the stories, and the parents only know the sweet coach they see at meets, they have to make sense of that. Is the kid just speaking from anger or frustration? Or is something really happening? Is the coach really abusive or just a bad fit for my child? And those questions can be pretty hard to investigate at gyms with practices closed to the parents!
I went to a gym for years that, while not actually abusive, was a bad fit for me as a person and left a mark. My parents were well aware of what was happening, they communicated with the coaches, they worked with me, but without them being a fly on the wall- it was impossible for them to know the extent of what was going on. They knew I wasn't in physical danger, so I think they just figured it would work itself out. I was also a very high anxiety child, so they knew I wasn't an easy kid to coach and attributed some of it to that. I eventually left that gym for another but was so broken down physically and mentally that I quit soon after. Fast forward a few years and one of the coaches from that gym called me and asked me to come into the gym so she could apologize for her coaching methods. It was an incredible thing for an adult to do for a then teen.

 

[Midwestmommy]

from ACEP (college of emergency physician)

Between 1990 and 2005, an estimated 425,900 children from 6 to 17 years of age were treated for gymnastics-related injuries in U.S. emergency departments, representing an average of 4.8 injuries per 1,000 gymnasts per year.

This annual injury rate is on par with those reported for sports such as hockey, soccer, and basketball

Few gymnastics injuries get treated in the ER. 4.8 injuries per 1,000 per year is laughable and meaningless. Competitive JO gymnastics injuries per year that limits kids training say for more than one week per year.. Umm that number is probably at least 15 percent of JO competitive gymnasts per year which is 150 not 5!! If you know any gyms in the Midwest with a lower number than 15% please share the names, I know a lot of parents who would LOVE that information!

 

[Midwestmommy]

Hey parents do you know any gyms in the Midwest with levels 4 through 10 JO whose teams have less than 15% (3 in 20) of their kids out for more than a week each year?

 

[amiandjim]

Few gymnastics injuries get treated in the ER. 4.8 injuries per 1,000 per year is laughable and meaningless. Competitive JO gymnastics injuries per year that limits kids training say for more than one week per year.. Umm that number is probably at least 15 percent of JO competitive gymnasts per year which is 150 not 5!! If you know any gyms in the Midwest with a lower number than 15% please share the names, I know a lot of parents who would LOVE that information!

Funny, I just calculated and I believe we currently have 21 injuries (that are keeping girls from either practice or competitions) out of about 150 girls in levels 2-10, so that’s 14%. Almost right on your prediction.