Broken Collar Bone Rehab

McBain_v1

19th June saw me beat Bradley Wiggins to the "ruddy annoying collar bone break" award, courtesy of a dozy woman walking her dog. She just stepped out into the road without looking, dog on one of those leads that can stretch to about 30m, ensuring I had nowhere to go.

CRASH!
SNAP!
ARGH!
AMBULANCE!

Been in a sling since then and can feel my fitness dribble away, along with mobility in my arm.

If there is anyone out there who has endured a similar injury, how long did it take:

1) before you learned to write with your other hand;
2) before you could haul some cycling shorts and shoes and get on the turbo;
3) before you could lift weights again;
4) before your confidence returned;
5) before you considered going after some compensation?

Any thoughts appreciated

jocksyboy

Bad luck
not done a collar bone but have done a humerous (and it wasn't) it took me about 6 weeks til i got back on the turbo.

Bradley will probably be back on the turbo tomorrow or wednesday!
Last year a clubmate who rides for a pro team in Holland broke her colloarbone and was on the turbo 2 days later and racing again in 3 weeks!

ozzy1000_0

i can fully 100%%%% sympathise!!! I did my left clavical last autumn.... F'''ing hurt like nothing else I've ever done... jeessuss!

for talking to people i think peoples experiences are pretty different, I think alot of the pain and revoering time is dependant on how much soft tissue damage happens at your shoulder... mine was a pretty straightforward mid shaft break, but i really couldn't doo much for ages.. i think my AC joint was alos fairly dislocated which meant I couldn't put a shirt on or wash my own armpit for about 5 weeks...

are your bones still clic!king and moving? mine seemed to take about 3 weeks to stop clicking, they'd go "pop!" and i'd have a tent of skin at my shoulder again and tears in my eyes... once they stopped clicking and popping it was things moved along very quickly and i could see progress day to day...

time scales were about (if i remember rightly);

3weeks for the bones to set (I was totld this was longer than most people)
5-6weeks for me being able to take the sling off somtimes,
then at around 9-10 weeks it was pretty much back to normal use apart from it felt weak and vulnerable.... i tried riding a bike at around 1-11 weeks an i got 4 miles and rode home carryign my arm...

some people heal much quick er than this, bradley will get surgery becaus he has private health insurance and he'll be on a bike in a couple of weeks.....

i knew someone who was on a turbo trainer 2 days after breaking his..!!!!

i would go easy on the painkillers, i took loads of tramadol and lost all my fitnes due to being a bit stoned all the time...

maybe try borrowing a different bike for the turbo, try getting somthing upright so you have no wieght on your shoulder, if you can sit up and pedal it'd be fine...

any acitivity you can do is good, keeping the blood moving helps recovery..

good luck,
OI

monkeyjo

I broke my left clavical when a dozy car driver ignored a junction and ploughed into the side of me in the middle of May.
I took the sling off after 5 weeks, and I probably had it on too long. I think the important thing is to take your arm out of the sling and move it around a bit to stop it stiffening up.
I'd be back on the bike now if the car hadn't ran over my foot when I came off the bonnet, breaking my toe and tearing/pulling something on the top of my foot.

Most folk I've talked to about compensation say it takes about a year to get it all sorted, and the police aren't particularly quick with reports etc, though they're probably got lots more important stuff to deal with I guess.
My doctor was quite specific about not doing anything weight bearing stuff, and I'm currently still waiting to be contacted by the NHS physio (probably have to go private to get it done quicker).

glasgowbhoy

Hi mate,

Depends how bad it is. I've now had 5 shoulder injuries including 3 broken clavicles and 2 separated AC's . The last one was a week ago tonight. It's a hairline fracture, isn't displaced or tented so have a lot of range of motion and started back turbo training yesterday.
Get it out of the sling as quickly as possible. This time I haven't used one at all but know from more serious breaks in the past that the shoulder can get very tired and very painful and a sling is needed as support.
Get off the pain meds ASAP. The sharp knitting needle pain in the shoulder is a good indicator of doing too much.
If the break is clean then it will pull together in most cases and by what you've said above I reckon you'll be out on the roads again by Early August. Just make sure it's strong enough to endure bit of a bump before you get out and about on your bike.
Keep doing the physio exercises and ice the mofo as much as possible

shockedsoshocked

Broke mine a week gone friday. Broken clean through at head of clavicle. go back tomorrow morning to see if i need surgery. however, i got in touch with the friends i have at uni who handle the athletes there. If you're fit you tend to heal quicker apparently!

The day after i broke it i went to boots and got some supplements for bones, osteocare by vitabiotics. A friend who's a runner and also looked after by the uni has been told to take them in the past due to suffering from low bone density and the resultant stress fractures. The water soluble ones are apparently the best.

It's been a week and a half now and i've hardly bothered with the sling for a few days. it hangs at my side fine but since i've torn all the ligaments in the area i can't move it. it doesn't hurt but feels like a have weights attached to my arms! I've set up my turbo but can't quite get my hand on the bars without it hurting due to the weight.

So as others have said i think it just depends. worst time of the year for it mind. being sat on the turbo this time of year is horrible!

shockedsoshocked

Broke mine a week gone friday. Broken clean through at head of clavicle. go back tomorrow morning to see if i need surgery. however, i got in touch with the friends i have at uni who handle the athletes there. If you're fit you tend to heal quicker apparently!

The day after i broke it i went to boots and got some supplements for bones, osteocare by vitabiotics. A friend who's a runner and also looked after by the uni has been told to take them in the past due to suffering from low bone density and the resultant stress fractures. The water soluble ones are apparently the best.

It's been a week and a half now and i've hardly bothered with the sling for a few days. it hangs at my side fine but since i've torn all the ligaments in the area i can't move it. it doesn't hurt but feels like a have weights attached to my arms! I've set up my turbo but can't quite get my hand on the bars without it hurting due to the weight.

So as others have said i think it just depends. worst time of the year for it mind. being sat on the turbo this time of year is horrible!

bompington

1. Months
2. Months
3. Months
4. Months
5. 10 minutes

Coming up to 4 years ago, large lump still visible on clavicle and my right shoulder still clunks and grinds impressively but seems mostly back to full strength and mobility. Mine was a quite nasty smash involving the scapula as well & a couple of cracked ribs too, I've never seen the original x-ray but when I first saw one taken a year later I thought it was the original.
I could still feel the bone moving 2 months later, it was actually 4 months before I was back on the bike at all.

As for compensation - I first tried to go down the "let's keep the lawyers out of this" route until the driver's insurers made me first of all an insulting offer, then after a medical (they refused my suggestion of going to an independent local shoulder specialist and insisted I went to their guy, semi-retired but at least he did have a decent reputation - for amputating smokers' limbs) they actually revised it downward, I got a lawyer who has since increased it threefold and they're still wrangling.

You might find it harder unless the dozy dogwalker has public liability insurance for the dog - getting money out of a private individual is a much less straightforward process than an insurance company.

McBain_v1

Thanks guys. My right collar bone was the one that gave out - I broke it just 2cm from the shoulder-wards end so I am hoping my shoulder doesn't grind or crunch. I am doing the hand-gripper strength exercise (squeezing tennis ball) but haven't been given any advice about getting out of the sling, I will go to the docs because I can feel my triceps shortening on a daily basis as well as deltoid shrinkage too. Am really keen to get on any bike - even the one affixed to the turbo but don't want to hamper recovery or force a surgical intervention.

Not being able to wash properly is a real pain as well - so was learning to wipe my ass using my 'wrong' hand

ozzy1000_0

McBain_v1 wrote:

Thanks guys. My right collar bone was the one that gave out - I broke it just 2cm from the shoulder-wards end so I am hoping my shoulder doesn't grind or crunch. I am doing the hand-gripper strength exercise (squeezing tennis ball) but haven't been given any advice about getting out of the sling, I will go to the docs because I can feel my triceps shortening on a daily basis as well as deltoid shrinkage too. Am really keen to get on any bike - even the one affixed to the turbo but don't want to hamper recovery or force a surgical intervention.

Not being able to wash properly is a real pain as well - so was learning to wipe my ass using my 'wrong' hand

you'll be amazed how quickly it comes together when it finally does. just don't over do it. I have a friend who bust his playing rugby and ran his own pub, he went back to working with his arm too early and the join didn't calcify properly leaving him with a bendy very painful collar bone that is still weak years later...... the physio told me to let the join set properly then take it easy. when its set think of motion not load, you want to get the shoulder moving so it doesn't freeze too much but you don't want to load the break. they make you do gentle swinging things with your arm, then later on i found walking my fingers up the wall to lift my arm was good... the joint will to some extent freeze and the muscle will freeze and atrophy, its inevitable... but if you let it recover properly now it'll come back quicker later...

do you have a gorry x-ray for us??

McBain_v1

@ Ozzy1000_0

Thanks for the input. I am really keen to make sure this bone heals good and proper, I don't want to have to go all "Terminator" and have a titanium reinforced clavicle - only place for Ti is my bike frame.

I am off to see my local GP to get another absence note confirming that I cannot drive etc. and I will ask him about physio. I do have private health care insurance so if needs be I might be able to access some sports physios via that route.

I want my before and after x-ray shots though, I am only off to the fracture clinic in August though. 6-weeks in this sling. I must have the stinkiest armpit in history. :oops:

Not particularly looking forward to the physio - aren't NHS physios all disgruntled sadists?

Eddy S

McBain_v1 wrote:

Am really keen to get on any bike - even the one affixed to the turbo but don't want to hamper recovery or force a surgical intervention.

I was riding and training on my Wattbike with a broken leg (shattered but nailed femur) for 3 months earlier this year before having a bone graft due to non-union 6 weeks ago.

It will do your head an immense amount of good as well as your body to get on the turbo. And you’ll be amazed what you can put yourself though once you start... 8)

McBain_v1

@ Eddy S
Thanks Eddy. Your injury sounds catastrophic :shock: I hope that things are on the mend now. I also wish that I had a Watt bike :? Perhaps I should try things out and see how it feels. I can always support myself with my good arm.

Eddy S

McBain_v1 wrote:

@ Eddy S
Thanks Eddy. Your injury sounds catastrophic :shock: I hope that things are on the mend now. I also wish that I had a Watt bike :? Perhaps I should try things out and see how it feels. I can always support myself with my good arm.

It is/was a pretty serious injury but the toughest things to deal with were the lack of healing and the time involved in getting to where I am now - the break happened last Nov. The bone graft has had the desired effect and I'm finally on the mend. I'm hoping to back on my road bike late Aug or maybe Sept and will be racing again next year.

Do whatever you have to do to your turbo bike to make it comfortable to use - raise the bars, fit a riser stem, etc, etc so you're not straining to support yourself with one arm. Spin your legs over and don't underestimate your mental well-being from being able to 'ride' as key contributor to your healing and recovery 8) I hope you get over this quickly.

Eddy.

McBain_v1

@ Eddy S

It sounds as though you and I will hopefully be getting back on bikes around the same time, although I won't be doing any racing. That said I am going to try and make injury rehab the spur to shed weight and get fitter than before the accident. I might also consider shouting at every dog walker I see just to let them know I am around and about!

Bronzie

I was doing gentle swimming (actually looked like a drowning dog to start with) within a couple of weeks of doing my collarbone (I've done both as well) - probably depends on the exact nature of your break as mine were both mid-length breaks - but I found it really helped with the muscles in my shoulder which had frozen and were extremely uncomfortable.

glasgowbhoy

Day 9

Have already done 2 sufferfest videos since Monday and planning another tonight.
Set the bike up with a couple of planks of wood under the front wheel and use the sling when my arm gets sore/tired. As Eddy says, does a lot for your mental well being and helps keeps the leg muscles and cardio at a decent level until you can get out on the roads again.
Even with the garage door open it's still cooking. A fan might be a good idea!

McBain_v1

Going to the doctors on Monday to get some advice since my break was extremely close to the shoulder (2cm away) and so end of the bone might be very mobile. Got the turbo trainer set up with 4" and 6" front wheel lifts to see if this will help, but I am certain that my shoulder muscles will have seized up.

Whilst sitting in A&E I had no idea of just how disruptive and damned inconvenient this sort of injury would be

glasgowbhoy

Day 16

Have been turbo training with both hands on the bars since last Friday. It now only causes a bit of discomfort when i get out the saddle and pedal. Full range of movment but still lacking a bit of strengh in the arm. Have a bit of cabin fever now and desperate to get back on the roads but still a bit hesitant that I fall and it goes again. Will give it another week before I join the club guys again.
Hope you are all recovering well.
I think I got off lightly this time with just a fracture and no displacement.

mamba80

Broken my Rt one 3 times.

the first 2 were put in a Figure of 8 bandage that hold the shoulder back and in place, the most recent one was just a sling- NHS dont use that sort of bandage anymore - and it was very very painful, so i bought a bandage off the 'net and used that, made a quick recovery, on Turbo within a few days and back at work 4 weeks later, mainly driving and no lifting,

a bit late now but there is some advice that you should nt be using NSAIDs for pain relief ie Neurophen/asprin as they slow down bone growth, Also, as it will be more painful you are less likely to use it before it has healed proper .

get some Physio advice on rehab exercises so you can keep a full range of motion as soon as poss. when you can do a few Press up's then you ll be on the mend. and most importantly keep a "can do attitude" it will soon be a distance if painful memory.

McBain_v1

@mamba80

Thank you for words of encouragement. Am just trying to get another x-ray done now under the BUPA scheme so I can see what progress - if any - has been made. It is a strange feeling not to be able to lift my arm out in front of me, and for my small shoulder muscles to be so tender. I am going for some physio under the same BUPA regime so am hopeful that I can make some rapid recovery. It's been long enough now.

glasgowbhoy

Well the turbo training off the last 2 weeks seems to have paid off. Was out on the 25 mile chaingang this evening and felt good, well apart from the slight discomfort in the shoulder when standing out the saddle. Was up the front doing turns all the way round at an ave speed just under 25mph. Good luck McBain. Get on that turbo!!

McBain_v1

@ Glasgowbhoy

Going on turbo trainer tonight - fed up of wondering. Will jack front wheel up 6" and keep sling on and go for spin session (105rpm) in an easy gear hopefully for about 45 mins or so. I need to do something - anything - to stop feeling so lardy. My GP says that it isn't worth getting an interim x-ray and so I am going to be hanging on until 8th August to find out where things are up to.

I will be going to Harris and Ross for physiotherapy as they have a clinic right close to me. Apparently they handle all the physio for the rugby players so quite what they will make of my 'cycling' physique remains to be seen :shock:

I dunno about you, but my shoulder is aching, even though I am taking the sling off for a bit every day now. I think it must be all of the small muscle groups being forced to work again. Even typing with both hands seems to tire it out - although that could be because I am using a netbook with a tiny keyboard!

McBain_v1

Update - am off to fracture clinic on Monday next week and will obtain x-ray picture for uploading. Fingers crossed my body has done the right thing and I will be able to tell the surgeon he doesn't get to play "operation" on me!

Turbo trainer session felt great but my arm felt really hot in the sling and not being able to change the gears was a real pain, but still felt good to be on a bike again.

McBain_v1

Update #2

Collar bone not completely healed but has made a good start. I have to go back in six weeks time but at least I have been told I can jettison the sling. I have my first physiotherapy session tomorrow morning at 0945 (should be painful and instructive). I will try and post up details of the agony exercises I am given just in case anyone else needs a few pointers about how to go about freeing up a frozen / stiff shoulder after a long period of inactivity or a heavy knock.

Also, should be putting up my x-ray pics later this week as I purchased a copy of them (£10).