Gymnastics 4 LiFE

A Bump in the Road

“Don’t look at this situation and feel sorry for yourself.  Take it on as a challenge, and it will prepare you for life’s other detours.  Let it make you stronger not weaker.”  

-incorporated advice from my coach, my mom, and my dad

When I had my surgery about 2 months ago, I didn’t know how I would deal with it.  I had already retired from artistic gymnastics and moved onto trampoline gymnastics, which placed so much less strain on my body, but I never would have thought that I’d have to cut back even more.  I would have to take an unknown amount of break time from doing any type of gymnastics at all once I found out I had to have surgery. 

Surgery- something I never in my life thought I would need at my age.  I’d never even broken a bone, and now all of a sudden I needed surgery.  It was true though, I remember the day the doctor told me he had bad news after looking at the MRI of my wrist.  He told me my bone was detiorating, and I needed to have it revascularized if I wanted any hope in ever gaining my range of motion back again.  He also pretty much guaranteed that I’d have arthiritis in my wrist when I get older.  You won’t believe how overwhelming it is to hear all of that in less than five minutes.  I think I cried for two days straight in disbelief.  I had just come back from nationals, and I had been so antsy to get back into the gym and start learning new skills for next season with high hopes of making it to the 2007 World Age Group Games if I tried hard enough.  Well, I had to put all those sights on hold with just one doctor’s visit.  The doctor couldn’t set an exact date that I’d be able to get back into my regular gymnastics routine; he did, however, say that full recovery required one year to two years, and getting back into my gym routine we would have to play by ear.  

My mind squirmed with thoughts and concerns for days.  I started thinking about all the weight I’d gain not doing gymnastics, and how much more stressful school would become considering I couldn’t write with my right hand- or my left.  Most of all I just didn’t know what I’d do without being able to do gym.  It’s what I’ve known for the past several years, and I was so taken aback upon recieving all of this news, I just didn’t know what to think of it- and the pessimistic side just seemed to stick out. 

After talking with my parents and coach, I recieved many words of wisdom that I will cherish forever.  Without their support I don’t know how I’d get through this- and still am going through it.  With my parent’s advice, I realized that thinking negatively and worrying about my situation would only make things harder than they already were.  I couldn’t afford for that to happen, so I promised myself that I would not misjudge my capabilities in school and use my wrist as an excuse to not give full effort.  My mom also advised me not to look at what I don’t have, but at what I have, when I start feeling sorry for myself.  I felt really pathetic about my own sympathy one day when I saw a lady at the store with no arm.  I thought I had it hard, but then I realize it’s nothing compared to what some people have to live their lives through.               

My coach encouraged me to not give any sympathy to the rest of my body, just because of my wrist injury.  I was still capable of conditioning, and he encouraged me to keep it up.  He also brought to my attention that life has many challenges ahead, and this is just the first really big one.  He told me, once I conquer this, I know I’ll be strong enough for the next one. 

I can’t tell you that there aren’t any more days that I don’t feel sad about it.  It still creeps back into my mind once in a while, like when I watch my teammates tumble.  I miss it, but I know that I will be back soon; in the meantime, i just have to keep my head up and keep conquering. :)   

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