Talk to me about skiing after an injury

[clam]

Would like advice from anyone who has been in my position and to tell me if I am mad to even consider this?
Broke leg in January - aiming to ski again in February 2014, 13 months on. Have made good progress in recovery so far (spiral break of tib, plus fibula and ankle broken) but what could I be doing to help prepare for pootling about on greens and maybe blues, if I'm up to it. Have accepted I'm not going to be able to keep up with dh and a bunch of able teens on reds and blacks.
Asked my physio, but she's not a skier, so couldn't really advise.

I know this is a bit of an old thread, so maybe you've had some advice elsewhere?

I have not broken any bones exactly, but I did have a hip replacement in June 12. I then did a lot of walking and went skiing at New Year and again at Easter. Pretty much as better - but a hell of a lot less painful! A lot of my friends thought I was mad, but the consultant said he couldn't see any issues. I think the best advice is to take things at your own pace. I don't tend to fall over which is a good thing as getting up from the ground is pretty much impossible for me!

Good luck.

before not better!

Broke leg in the June (reeaaaaallly bad break of the ankle. So the doctors seemed to delight in telling me ) and skied again the following Feb. The boot held my ankle rigid, so helped a bit. My legs felt a bit floppier, probably due to weakness and lack of exercise for a while. I spent the few months before going trying to do a lot of strengthening exercises and getting a bit fitter. The other thing I found to help once I got there was lots of gluhwein stops!

Ooh, thanks for replying. Had forgotten about this thread. Am still a bit worried about it, to be honest, but think I'll just have to stick to the easy runs and not even attempt to keep up with reckless teens. We were talking last night with the other adults going and it seems that we're all, injuries or not, thinking we'll not keep up with the reckless teens. Do you think they could ski without an adult? (2@17, 1@16 and 2@15) Precious or sensible?
There's a snow-dome near us so I probably ought to go and have a mess-around there before I commit to ordering a lift pass and ski hire, but to be honest, I always ski crap-ly (?) there. Don't like the snow texture and too mogully. They'll probably take one look at me and order me off the slopes as I must be a beginner!
The ankle and tib will be firmly encased in the skiboot, certainly. I suppose it's the knee that worries me - not that I broke that, but there's a pin running through it anyway.

Oh, and I'm happy to pop pills for the week as well, if it's going to hurt. As long as I don't do any damage.

Fear is my biggest problem, actually.

I think at the ages of the teens they ought to be fine - depends how reckless they are - do that mean just compared to you or that they really have no judgement about what is and isn't safe? Would they go off piste if you told them not to for example. I refer to my DC as reckless - but this means they like to ski trees and powder and do jumps. I like a nice wide groomed run taken very slowly.

My younger children go off and do some runs alone, but we agree what they will be skiing and where we will meet and that they will stick together, but never gone for hours. We usually get them a private instructor for at least 1 day to do the really terrifying stuff. By the time they are the ages of your DC I imagine they will just meet up so we buy lunch!

DH had knee surgery a couple of years ago in the summer - had to miss skiing at Christmas - his consultant looked horrified - but was back by February, but more cautious. He was pretty good with physio, but it did swell up and need icing at night.

I ski with a knee brace these days following partial dislocation of my knee cap & very bad tear of medial cruciate ligaments. I start doing ski exercises 2 months before I go to ensure I have as much muscle surrounding the damaged joint as possible. I am cautious on the piste and refuse to hurtle down blacks or mogul fields any more. I want wide reds & blues only!!!!!! I go with other people, so the DC tend to bundle off and do their own thing.
I take seriously strong painkillers for the whole week! Every year I wonder why I still do it.
OP - I don't think the broken bones will be an issue, as they mend fairly quickly, it will be ensuring you have built up muscle strength again following immobilisation that will be key.

It's pretty much as silas says - not particularly reckless teens, apart from two that are not mine no, but they like jumps, half-pipes and a bit of off-piste (as in nipping off out into the trees and back onto the piste lower down rather than disappearing off the sides of mountains), which us adults can no longer manage. It's not a massive resort, so we can probably keep tabs on them in terms of location, and anyway ds has a homing pigeon's sense of direction unlike dd. However, I would worry about what would happen if anyone fell and got injured without an adult around.

Muscles surrounding the injury are pretty good, but I can definitely feel things creaking and chafing in there, particularly when the weather is a certain kind!

DH, who has had various knee ops in recent years, has to use a brace and painkillers, but gets by.