post injury question

[Chris75]

Hello all,

Hoping someone out there has experience on what sort of limitations I might be facing in the future after having broken the ulna and radius bones in my shooting arm. Additionally, the doc felt it necessary to operate and place a metal plate in my wrist. My question/concern is whether I can hope to once again shoot magnum loads out of my 44 mag and 357 revolvers.

 

[Whitwabit]

Not sure of your location but would think if your weather gets cold, meaning below freezing I would think that would give you more trouble then shooting !! I had broken my wrist on my strong side arm years ago and shooting doesn't bother it .. but weather sure does ..

 

[Rpg]

I broke my radius and chipped the ulna on my strong side in mid January this year. Had a plate installed as well that will be removed this summer.

Regaining function and strength has been slow. Physical therapy is a must. I'm just getting to the point I can handle a pistol.

Based on my recovery rate so far, I think I'll be back shooting as I want by hunting season.

 

[varmint243]

I've banged myself up pretty good a few times.
My advise is give it plenty of time to heal before you start abusing yourself again.
Some days things bother me, some days they don't, when it's bothering you back off for a while.
Besides, it gives you a good excuse to add another nice .22 to your stable

 

[Jack Flash]

Varmit243 is right, give it plenty of time. It may be really wise to (with doctor's ok) start with air guns and slowly move up to .22s, target loads in a .38, ... Go slow and stop if there are any issues.

I imagine that the rate of healing is a highly individual matter. A lot of variables: exact location and extent of injuries, age, health, body type, ...

 

[chud333]

Give it time and try the smaller calibers when you return
to shooting. Start out slow. You should be fine.
I've broken every bone in both my arms or close to it and
still shoot rifles with no problems. Pistols are also no problem.
Like Whitwabit said, the cold weather affects my bones more
than recoil.

You probably should have posted this in the "Lounge" my friend.
Just for future reference.

Chuck

 

[Chris75]

Thanks for the responses. Broke my tibia at the same time (took the short route off of a roof) as the wrist so I won't be shooting again any time soon. Good to know that recovery is in my future.

 

[g8rb8]

Varmit243 is right, give it plenty of time. It may be really wise to (with doctor's ok) start with air guns and slowly move up to .22s, target loads in a .38, ... Go slow and stop if there are any issues.

I imagine that the rate of healing is a highly individual matter. A lot of variables: exact location and extent of injuries, age, health, body type, ...

This is great advice.
Use a process of slow and gradual increase in the recoil and stop if it hurts. Even if you cannot get back to .44 magnum loads whatever you get back to is better than some of the altenatives.

 

[scooter123]

More that anything else your age is the most determinant factor. Because as we age the amount of Growth Hormone we produces declines. BTW, this decline in Growth Hormone is actually beneficial, because this hormone really "fans the flames" in regards to Cancer so a decline in this hormone actually extends the time we can remain alive and functional after the onset of Cancer. The downside of this decline is that it takes longer for broken bones to heal and if you are over 90 it's possible that a broken bone won't ever heal.

Now, keys to healing at any age.

First, allowing time for the injury to heal completely. Just because a broken bone doesn't hurt anymore doesn't mean that break has fully healed. So, give it time and LISTEN to what your doctor tells you. Yeah, he'll probably be distinctly conservative about telling you that you are back to 100%. However, re-breaking a prior injury can cause enough trauma that second may potentially never heal properly without something like a bone graft. So be conservative and if something doesn't feel "right" talk to your doctor about it.

Second. NUTRITION !!! This can be so critical as we age that you really should talk to your doctor about consulting a Nutritionist about a diet plan. Naturally you'll want food rich in calcium and vitamin D but I'm sure that there are more aspect to a diet that promotes healing with a serious injury than I'm aware of.

Third. Therapy. Follow your therapy plan to a T and don't do any "cheating" on the heavy or light side of your therapy plan.

Finally, REST. This means that you want to get a solid minimum or 7 hours of sleep every single night while you are healing.

 

[sw44spl]

I have a plate in my wrist and the next summer I was shooting my model 64 after the surgery I took it easy and the next summer after that I was banging hot 44mags

 

[Jack Flash]

... having broken the ulna and radius bones in my shooting arm. ...

It just occurred to me that this may be a good opportunity to get serious about practicing with your other hand.

 

[H Richard]

A close friend of mind got serious tendonitis in his right (shooting) arm. He couldn't hold up his target pistol. As bullseye league was going to start soon, he began practicing left handed, and made a new set of grips for his pistol. His first week was about expected, around less than 200 on a 300 point .22 gallery round. By the 6th to 7th week of league he was up to nearly his right handed average, (around 270). He surprised even himself.,

 

[Long Barrel]

Similar cicumstance

I had a similar situation with my non firing arm. There is a lot of good info above, but let me add a few things:

1. Check your Vitamin D level. This will help you fix calcium in your bones.

2. Check around the gun club and see if there is a shooter who is an orthopedic doctor. No one understands your problems better than the guy who has the same ones.

 

[Double-O-Dave]

Long Barrel is correct. I broke the radius in my right arm several years ago (fell off of a bicycle). I had an unusual condition known as a non-displaced, nonunion fracture. I really didn't have any real pain at the site, but could not do anything that involved torque (twist a door knob, stir paint, etc.). I could still fire a handgun, shotgun, even a lever action rifle.

A specialist wanted to remove the broken fragment and insert a prosthetic in my arm, but I refused. I was subsequently referred to a different doctor and he did a lot of lab studies and found I was deficient in Vitamins B, and D, and my testosterone level was in the toilet. I took the Vitamin supplements (I am still taking the Vitamin D tablets every day), and started with the testosterone gel (still using that every day), and what do you know - the radius repaired itself!

I can now do everything I couldn't before the vitamins and testosterone supplements, so I am grateful.

By the way, if you are over 50 yrs. of age, I suggest you start seeing an Internal Medicine doctor instead of a Family Practice doctor. There are so many things that start going wrong as we age that you really need a specialist.

Best of luck,

Dave

 

[sodacan]

I had a severe injury on the thumb of my (right) shooting hand. Until it healed, I practiced with left hand. It's a work in progress, but my range sessions are more interesting.

 

[Packin Heavy]

I am a 75 year old Air Force veteran. I have been enrolled in a bone density exercise class for quite a while. I have Osteo corrections, however, my shooting although limited to range shooting, is doing ok. The only real problem was about 6 years ago when an Osteo spur on my right shoulder hooked under and cut the rotator cuff. Believe me and several other contributers here, regardless of injury or surgery, always give 100% to therapy and rehab. It is essential.