Do you follow Drs Orders??

[Wish]

So health issue came up between my ski partner and myself and a few skiers we know that have started skiing a bit before they maybe should have..

 

What's your story..?

 

[oldjeep]

Fractured my collar bone skiing when I was 21. Was in college and working as a ski instructor/race coach. Was told to stop skiing for the rest of the season, didn't and it healed funny. pretty easy to tell which one if I've got my arms hanging at my sides.

[Horton]

I am cleared to ski in a few weeks after 6 months off. Pretty sure I will wait till spring.

[aupatking]

@Horton I want to dislike that comment, so bad B)

[Ed_Obermeier]

I'm not quite 2 weeks out from having my left shoulder rebuilt for the second time in 6 years. Torn supraspinatus, torn infraspinatus, torn labrum, surgeon had to install a dermal patch (Google it) to put it all back together. Did the damage back in mid June, couldn't afford the down time to get it fixed until now.

 

Doc says 6 weeks in an immobilizer sling, don't move it, no PT, nothing until first of the year. Last time in 2009 I pushed using it again, never really felt like it healed entirely right, could just be in my head... Didn't stop me from skiing though so what the hell, right? That is until I tore it again.

 

I can assure you that this time until the doc says so I'm not doing squat with this shoulder, even if it's 6 freaking months. I definitely don't want to do this again. Typing one handed sucks and I definitely want to ski again next spring.

[lpskier]

A ski aquaintance of mine was apparently councelled not to water ski anymore due to a heart condition. He chose to ski anyway and suffered a heart attack today water skiing. He is not yet out of the woods, as they say. I likely would have chosen the same path for myself, but this event is a bit of a wake up call. Those of us in our 50's and older (I'm almost 60) aren't the superheroes we think we are, even if we are really fit.

[Horton]

@lpskier I have heard of more than one heart attack death while water skiing in the last few years

[ral]

Ruptured disc and ligament between C6 and C7. Had a cage+metal plate installed.

 

After insisting a lot, 3 months after surgery doctor said "you can ski, but be very careful during waterstarts, which are the dangerous moments when waterskiing". Do not know what sport he thought waterski was, but I neither clarified nor showed a slalom video...

[bkreis]

@lpskier prayers go out to jeff and family!

[gcam4]

Had a hip arthroscopy to repair a torn labrum and an FAI on 12/18/14 for my right hip. Was originally given a 6 month waiting window which would have put me at July 4th. Luckily I was cleared in April, but took it easy until the 4th. I would have had a hard time waiting until the 4th, but would have as I didn't want to have another surgery to repair the possible damage I would have caused. Best decision I have made was to have have the surgery.

[Than_Bogan]

I used to use the method that @ral outlines ("don't ask don't tell" :smile: ), but at some point I realized I'd rather get their advice after they know what waterskiing really is.

 

THEN I can still choose to ignore it, of course.

[thager]

Depends on who I am playing Dr. with!

 

[DefectiveDave]

It depends on the doctor's orders. If they are cool with me skiing then I'll absolutely listen to them, otherwise my record is much spottier.

[markn]

I very rarely follow doctor's orders and I'm married to one. She's an OB/GYN, so not much help with my orthopedic issues! Having had numerous broken bones, 3 knee surgeries, I do think most doctors are too conservative when it comes to athletes. We are in far better condition than the average individual, heal faster and have a higher threshold for pain. We know our bodies, what they can and cannot do. I will gladly ski with some pain if necessary. MWN

[The_MS]

Blew my ACL January 18 of 02 and skied Nationals in Aug.

[Craig Aitken]

My doctor has a tournament PB much lower than mine so his advice gets filtered to some extent. Pirates of the Caribbean - "them be just guidelines"

[Stevie Boy]

Well I have seven Doctors telling me that I should modify my activities and not to water ski again.

The Eighth Doctor is with me, he,s going to try and keep me going with a procedure which may or not work, if that fails he is prepared to give me a custom knee, he says he is happy for me to water ski on it, but he does not know enough about the sport to say, at what level.

The other seven Doctor told me to go back and see them when I could not get up or down the stairs, before they would do anything.

I will keep going until it's physically impossible for me to carry on, after that ?

[ricski39]

In my experience it’s a good thing to explain to your doctor what exactly you mean when you ask when you’ll be safely allowed to waterski again. A lot of doctors probably think we’re going to be gently pulled down the river on two skis. I hurt my knee skiing a couple years ago and asked the doctor when it would be safe to get back on the water. He told me that he didn’t see a problem in going out the following weekend. So I pulled up a video for him on YouTube to be sure that we were on the same page. His immediate response was, “Ooh. No, you don’t want to do that for a couple months.”

[igkya]

@Stevie Boy What are your knee issues and what options/procedures have you looked into?

[Razorskier1]

It's a marathon boys, not a sprint. What's your goal, to be able to ski next week, or to be able to ski in 10 years? Correct rehab may cost you an extra few days, weeks or months of the current season, but might buy you 5, 10, or 15 more seasons. As my old man used to say, 'a horse that shits fast don't shit long'. Which kind of horse do you want to be?

[Stevie Boy]

@igkya well I have had a lot done, my cartilage turned to jelly, for some reason, I have very little meniscus, been trimmed three times , very little articular surface, more or less bone on bone, a little bit of anterior damage, and a 7mm cyst sitting in the groove where my pattella tracks, this came about after micro fracture, I also have damage to my Hoffa pad which causes impingement and a lot of discomfort.

Looking at arthroscopy, to clean up, try to do something with the Hoffa pad and see if it is possible to get rid of the cyst, if this fails and my symptoms, persist, the only option left is to have a knee replacement.

 

@Razorskier1 anybody that has tweaked their knee, either do not ski on it, or make sure you brace it, if not you are going to pay the price, they reckon my cartilage got damaged when I use to kneel in puddles of water, welding cars to earn a bit extra to pay the bills, one thing is for sure your youth will catch up with you, when you get older, you will not get away with it.

[Ed_Obermeier]

@Stevie Boy wrote "one thing is for sure your youth will catch up with you, when you get older, you will not get away with it."

 

I know THAT'S right! Ah, the ignorance of (my) youth...

[MISkier]

I have not had any injury that required surgery or any restriction from a doctor. Some sprains and a shoulder issue. Probably two concussions. In all cases, I did my own rehab and went back when I felt I was strong enough and pain free enough not to do more damage. I have skied with painful ankle sprains that felt good in the bindings.

 

I did have some back problems 17 years ago that required physical therapy and traction during the period that I was not skiing (was away for a long time due to family commitments/job commitments/money issues), but I have done the exercises that were prescribed and have not had any issue since.

 

I did have some oral surgery procedures back in 2007 and 2008 that kept me out of the water for a few intervals of several weeks each, because I did not want to risk infection that could be introduced or worsened in the various lakes. I already had enough problems that it really wasn't a loss to take that time off.

 

Now, with all of that said, I know I am really pushing it with some of the elbow tendinitis I have had in the last two years. But, this year was a really good year and it affected me less than prior years. Some of that relief is improved technique and some is aided by various physical rehab, stretching, or bracing/support.

 

Listen to your body. And, if you do have surgery or other issues requiring a physician's intervention, listen to your doctor.

[igkya]

@Ed_Obermeier yours and mine. The sad thing is if I could do it over again, there's not much I'd do different. Isn't that the definition of ignorance?

[Ed_Obermeier]

@igkya pretty much nailed it dude.

[xrated]

@gcam4 I lost an entire summer for the same surgery. I went into it in great shape and killed rehab but danged if I still didn't need/take the whole 6 months. It sucked but it was worth it as now I only have any real pain after a couple hard days or when the weather is wet and cold...I hate spring and fall now.

 

But I also chose a ortho doc who used to ride motocross so we were on the same page.

 

I view all injuries the same. I am not being paid millions of dollars or even 6 figures to ski, ride motorcycle or whatever else. I gotta be able to work to take care of people and I'd rather still be playing at 60 than hurt worse at 33.

[JohnCox]

Sometimes....when I had bicep surgery last June, the doc said it would be 6 months. He confirmed that in follow up. Skiing a month or so early would have been no benefit at all, so I did exactly what he said.

 

On lesser things, I have to admit that there have been occasions where I thought "thanks for your input, doc....but I'll go ahead and do whatever I feel like I can do..."

 

:wink:

[skidawg]

It totally depends on the situation. In case of a ruptured tendon accompanied by surgery, definitely wise to follow doctors guidelines. Many other cases-Meh!

[Horton]

 

[jhughes]

Tell you what- I certainly followed Dr's orders regarding post-vasectomy skiing! I remember thinking before the procedure that I'd be skiing in a couple days, "no problemo". Afterward, NOT A CHANCE IN HELL of skiing earlier than told. I waited the full 7+ days and even then I was terrified!

[gcam4]

@xrated I feel like I chose the best doc within a 10 hr driving distance. Luckily I live in NC and I'm within a hr of Winston-Salem. The funny thing is he recommended that I ski on 2 the first couple of times back on the water. I quickly stated I had no desire to do so, and I would take it real easy on one! He is somewhat familiar with the sport and actually knows one of the places where I used to ski which is where I likely tore my labrum at.

[Beastmode]

This season was a huge mental struggle for me. I trained all year and First tournament on May 30th beat my PB by 4 bouys - Two days later stuffed the tip on my off side free skiing and majorly sprained my ankle. Had no stability because of a partial torn ligament My General Doctor said it could be a Year before I could ski. The following week I saw an Ortho Specialist and I was told I could ski as soon as I had Stability. Two weeks later with my ankle taped with Duct tape like a walking cast I was back on the course. Had issues on my off side at 32 and 35 but I kept trying, because I just couldn't end the season! still have issues with the Ankle now. So, Long story but it is best to error on the safe side and let it heal.

[Stevie Boy]

How about this for my latest Doctors Orders

After my latest knee surgery, he said he has done everything that can be done, his words were, you are well on your way to a knee replacement, so go and do what you want to do, when you cannot do it, come back and see me and I will replace your knee, so that you can to continue to ski.

[Horton]

I saw the doctor last week and he said I could start skiing now. It is December. screw that.

[ForrestGump]

Double hernia surgery tomorrow. With the fact that they're telling me to stay out of the water for 3 weeks, I'm done til Marchish. No way I'm going to take 3-4 weeks off and start skiing again when the water is in the 50s. I'll just wait until it's back to the mid to upper 60s.

[thager]

@ShaneH Oh come on! I shoveled snow the day after my double hernia surgery. Of course that might be why it sometimes hurts like heck now?

[6balls]

Being able to play through has always been a tough guy thing. When an injury or illness suddenly swaps your ability to do what most non-athlete types consider normal...get around the house, take care of oneself, go to work and be productive...it's an eye opener.

 

The realization of what we take for granted comes quickly.

 

Two spine surgeries in two years...neck last year and back this year and father time is catching me despite the fact I'm not that old...just over-used. The rules never applied to me before (in my mind), but now I'm following orders.

 

Facing the fact that the super heavy lifting days are in my rear view mirror...will be happy at this point to work out and stay fit. My tourney PB may just have to stand...will be happy to get out and run some buoys with regularity. If it all goes better than this and I can challenge again...bonus. Gotta throw the handle on stupid stuff, though...never my strong suit but very important now...even in a tourney.

[ISP6ball]

I had my left ACL and meniscus repaired Nov 19th, and had my right rotator and anterior labrum repaired Dec 2nd. It sucks being down. I hope I can get back on the water late May/early June. I'm confident my knee will be ready, but not sure about my shoulder. Frustrating!

[ForrestGump]

No worries about me not following dr's orders. After surgery Monday, I hurt enough that it may be May before I get on a bike or ski again. I feel like I was the victim of a prison yard shanking with 6 holes in my abdomen.

[gregy]

@Shaneh hernia surgery was a slow recovery for me. I went back to work after 3 weeks but it was a few months before I felt comfortable doing anything strenuous. I've got another now. Plan on talking to a surgeon in few weeks. Its not bothering me too much yet.

[wolfgang]

@gregy & @ShaneH , I had a great experience at the Shouldice Hernia Clinic in Toronto. They use an apparently advanced technique to get you active again as soon as possible. I was talking chip shots on the driving range a week after my operation and skied gently within a month. No ill effects ten years later. There were many international "guests " and the food was not bad but the nurse who shaved me was not hot!

[ForrestGump]

I worked this week. And will probably try and ride my bike Saturday which is 13 days after surgery.

[Horton]

@ShaneH I'm not sure I believe that you listen to anybody about anything

[ForrestGump]

No, not so much. Just kind of go through life doing what I want. LOL