i have a stress fracture on the right side of my lower back. I got this from gymnastics. i guess i over-worked myself, because it wasn't just ONE move i did. I was trying to get a skill, so i would constantly do it all night for 3 hours during practice. its on the L5. It started hurting in late September but i didn't tell anyone till November. I would always tell my gymnastics friends, and sometimes my coach. i would say "oh, my back hurts" and i would keep going. so my coach didn't really question it because i kept playing. Finally in early December, i went to the doctor. i got an x-ray, but nothing showed up. Then they sent me for an MRI, and it was proven that i have a stress fracture. i was put in physical therapy for 2 months. then, after that, it STILL hurt. i also wore a brace. its very annoying but i wear it sometimes. its hard to wear, because its really big. anyways, i have home exercises to do now since my plan is up for physical therapy. nothing is working, and its really hard. will my back EVER get back to normal? ive been so depressed. gymnastics is the only thing that makes me happy. i need to get back to gymnastics, its killing me.
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stress fracture in my back STILL not healed?
(3 posts)-
Posted 2 years ago #
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Well, I would talk to your doctor about your individual case as every one is different, but hopefully, the story of my friend will help.
My friend is catcher on the varsity softball team and through out the spring season, she would always throw the ball to second base while still on her knees which put a lot of repetitive stress on her back. It always bothered her during the spring season, but she would just ice it and heat etc. Finally, she saw a doctor and got a bone scan which revealed stress fractures in the lumbar region, I think the fancy name she got for it was Spondylolysis. So, she wore small black back brace during the summer and then went to another doctor and got a much larger restrictive brace. She wore that one from Sept. through Feb. although the stress fractures no longer showed up on the scans in December. She wore it the extra few months because her back still hurt and she wanted to make sure it was healed correctly. In February and March, she did a lot of physical therapy and was able to start softball again in April. She is being really careful not to over due it and still regularly ices and heats her back. Her doctor said it's common among athletes, but is often ignored and mistreated.
Keep trying with the conservative treatments, they will eventually get better, if you see no improvement, talk to your doctor about other options, but no matter what route you take, you are going to be missing sports. Remember if you want to be able to do them the rest of your life, you need to take time off now. Would you rather do gymnastics for a few months now and then have back problems? I know it's hard, but I'm sure, for now, you can find other things you love to do. I have been out of sports since July because of a knee injury and surgery.
Good Luck :]
Posted 2 years ago # -
These type of fractures (usually a spondylolysis) are quite arduous. I'm afraid you are in for a long recovery....give it up to a year and avoid hyperextension....
Posted 2 years ago #
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