fractured knee

[newton333]

i fractured my knee yesterday... 1 day before 2 week surf trip! had to cancel everything... sucks so bad. any of u guys have bad injury? how did u deal with not surfing or paddling? any tips to heal faster? so bummed! this was my big surf trip for the year and with the horrible winter here i was looking forward  to it more so then ever!

[spookini]

Damn!  That is terrible.  Almost as sad as the "something happnened on Maui" post. 

How did it happen.  Pls don't say it was during an exercise recommended on your "20days to get fit" thread? 
I'm guessing you slipped on ice??

Back when I used to be  big into road cycling, I booked a fantasy cycling camp vacation to Mallorca Spain, put on by the 1987 TdF winner.  Get to ride w/ one of your idols, everyday!!
Week before, I was XC skiing and tore a hamstring.  Had to cancel the whole trip.  Was past the cancellation window, which meant I would lose 50% of my payment.   
So I did the right thing:  called and told them I had just been in a bad car accident.   

Got my money back.  Went the following year.  But what a bummer it was at the time.  Hang in there, man!!

[eastbound]

once went skiing in UT with a bad flu--tried to ski through it and got really sick

[newton333]

yup.... i was using land paddle to get just get arms working the paddle motion a little took a slam on skateboard... i was torn between jogging and using the land paddle and skateboard. i chose the land paddle cause its way more fun.  bad decision!  i got rent a car money back and friends are cool with letting me slide on what i owe for house rental, and i paid the $200 to hold plane tix. for 1 yr. out of work 6 to 12 weeks will only get paid for half that time...   sorry for your story spookini but it does make me feel a little better! I'm just so bummed!

[spookini]

Upside:  I was in better shape the next year, probably had a better time.
Upside:  You lost 7lbs getting ready for your trip
Downside:  You're probably so despondent now, you'll drown your sorry in pizza and ice cream 

Try to keep the weight off at least 

[stoneaxe]

Damn that sucks....feel for you. It's not easy. I missed most of the summer of 2009. Get involved helping organize an event or something. Helps take your mind off it some. Maybe shoot some video of others. Keep the vibe at least. I also spent a lot of time on here.

[1tuberider]

That sucks and I hope you heal fast.

I tore my ham string and was out 3 months and I still have to take it easy.
I have lots of interests and just focused on everything but surfing. I did not even go
check the surf. It was not easy.

Get some points on your honey do list. Enjoy your family. I enjoy the mountains and wheeling, shooting and prospecting.
If you don't have anything, figure it out because life is not single focus and if all you do is surf you are missing much.
There is always another swell and taking the time to heal properly will extend your time surfing. Grandpa also told me that injuries hurt twice. When its injured and it comes back when you are older. I used to not understand but now I do.

Enjoy your time out, take care of all that other stuff and heal properly. It will be over soon. 

[Twitchy]

Sort of sucks, but you'll get through it and appreciate it more when you get back in the water.  I took a fin through my calf late this past summer and was out of the water for around 3 months.  I figured I'd be in the water as soon as the stitches came out, but that got prolonged due to the stitches pulling apart and needing more time.  Then of course the muscles that got cut all bunched up and limited my mobility.  I had to use crutches for around 3 or 4 weeks and still walked with issues for a few weeks after that.  Of course shortly after I got the stitches out and before I could properly walk/hold my own weight up, I hobbled out to the beach one evening and reminded myself how badly it hurts why I shouldn't have been in the water.  Nothing like trying to SUP with one leg working.    

[Bean]

I broke my foot last year just before the Gonzalo swell; had to watch from the beach.  My doc told me I was very lucky it was my left foot because I could still drive (legally) - I didn't tell him I drive a stick.  I was back in the water about 8 weeks later.

Hope you heal quick!

[GOTWAVZ]

That sucks! I was so paranoid before my Fiji trip that this would happen, I backed way off.

Why don't you get a drone and film your buddies.  You can do that while enjoying their stoke.

Speedy recovery!

[supthecreek]

Geeze... a knee is a rough one. Damn. No way around that it sucks big time. Sorry that it happened to you .
Heal WELL.... more important than fast, sucky as it sounds.

Buy a camera, shoot and edit surf flicks.... it will keep you in the game and occupy a crap load of time. Which you now have a lot of.

I was a skateboard fanatic as a kid and into my 30's.....then one bad moment made me look hard at the realities.....
surf: crash in water.
skate: crash on pavement.

Never got on a skateboard again.... surfing was/is just too important to me.

Damn... all that time off and......

make lemonade. Do something frickin' fantastic!

[starman]

So where were planning go?

[jumpfrom13k]

Patellar fracture? Do you need surgery on it or not?

Just don't Youtube and look for how the operation is done.

Patella doesn't heal all that fast, not much blood vessel going through it. If you do get an operation they put about 4 pins and put this wire in a figure 8 ish pattern, so that holds the kneecap together until it heals. It will take you about 5-6 month to be able to go out and SUP. Consensus of my broken friends with metals are, that it takes about year or two to completely be pain free, and they are all under 30 years old.

Now I gotta go see a friend in hospital today who just got done with femoral and pelvic fixation last night.

[madmax]

Motorcycle.  Femur through the pelvis.  Compound fracture of tibia and fibula.  Dug into the dirt.  2 1/2 hours to the hospital.  2 1/2 months in the hospital.  A year before I didn't limp.  I learned to hate a bedpan.

I hear ya.

[PonoBill]

Hey Newton, that sucks, and yes, I'm very used to long layoffs. There's some great advice above. Let me add a few things.

1. You need to find a way to stay fit. Exercise all the parts of you that can still be exercised. You have to guard your injury, but it's pretty easy to work around it if you pay attention to stability.

2. Do your PT, set yourself a schedule and stick to it--religiously. Do it longer than the doctor says. Most people stop way too soon. I'm still doing shoulder PT exercises from my surgery last spring. I quit for a few weeks a month ago and the realized my shoulder was getting weaker. Keep it up, and as you recover, pick up the pace rather than slacking off. You injured area has to be stronger than before because now its compromised.

3. The best thing to do when you start feeling sorry for yourself (everyone does) is do something for other people. My brother (Stoneaxe) is a great example of that. It's one of the things I admire most about him.