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Skiing post tibial plateau fracture- advice/your experience?

Polly

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Hi ladies! I won the lottery during a pretty bad Heli ski accident in UT 10mo ago with glorious tomahawking which resulted in a right lateral TPF with meniscus and MCL tears. Thank god for my surgeon in SLC who was also an avid skier. Fast forward to accomplishing all milestones way earlier than they expected, I just started skiing again here in the Tahoe area :smile:

I’ve gone two days and while I’m grateful I’m skiing, I’m obviously not skiing the same. I’m in the backseat guarding my injury. It starts to hurt over time, esp if I ski properly. My MCL and where the hardware is really doesn’t like the lateral force skiing puts on it but I can do it, until I have stop.

I know Divas sustained this horrid injury, too. I’d love to know how skiing again went for you. Did you get your full ability back? Are you now better than before? Or have you had to accept that you may never ski the same? My surgeon made me promise easy/intermediate groomers ONLY this season. It blows but he’s right. Has anyone learned again how to ski pow post TPF? Taken a nasty fall post TPF?
 
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MissySki

Angel Diva
@contesstant might have some good insights as she is a number of years out from this injury. I know other Divas have had this injury as well, but I am blanking on exactly who right now.

I think it’s amazing that you are back on snow only 10 months later Polly! I’m sure there are still plenty of physical things to work through, but also mental. You went through a really traumatic situation, and your brain wants to protect you whether you like it or not. :hug:
 

contesstant

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Patience and time are your friend. I fractured mine (non-surgical, lucky me) in January of 2015 and was back at it the following December with a knee brace and quite a bit of fear. The pain took probably two season to really go away. It just takes time and listening to your body. If there is soreness and swelling, take good care of it and back off a bit. Do other strength activities. Both my knees were injured at the time, and neither has truthfully been the same since, but they mostly just get achy which could also be attributed to being 53 and post-menopausal now.

Can you have the hardware removed eventually? I've known several people who did much better with serious injuries (one was the most heinous TPF with shattered tibia, multiple surgeries) after the hardware was removed. All are high-level skiers/instructors. One was a speed skier and she's still not 100% after two years. There are TPF forums and groups on social media that might be worth joining.

My friend who had the heinous injury took the following season to ski slowly and work on fundamentals.
 

DeeSki

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Well done on getting back skiing after 10 months @Polly! I fractured my left tibial plateau in February 2010 - another non-surgical. I remember feeling jubilant when I managed to run for a train, and catch it, in January 2012! Agree with @contesstant. Keep doing the strength exercises, ice if it’s sore and take it easy. I found my skis were too stiff when I went back first and I wasn’t able to drive them forward, which was part of why I was finding myself in the backseat. Renting a softer pair made things much easier. Might not be an issue depending on your skis and conditions, but maybe worth considering.

My skiing isn’t quite what it was before, but that’s more because my life circumstances - various moves of house and country and two children added to the mix - have meant that I haven’t had as many opportunities to ski. I don’t notice the old injury holding me back in any other way.

More than anything else, just try to enjoy being outside in the snow. The skiing will come in time.
 

Pequenita

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
First, congrats on living to tell the tale of a glorious tomahawk. :smile:

Depending on the milestone, not all of them are great to accomplish ahead of time because the body is going to take whatever time it needs to heal and recover - it just can't be sped up. I've had 3 significant knee injuries on the same leg (not all skiing injuries, either) in a 26-year span. Now, 5+ years after the most recent one, I am skiing at or above the level I was 5 years ago, with the exception that I haven't gone down the run where that injury happened even though I've skied much more challenging terrain.

FWIW, a couple years ago, I was diagnosed with a physical issue where my physician told me to stop skiing bumps/dial back my skiing. I haven't. Instead, I decided I need to ski better/smoother. It also means that I don't ski on marginal days. I don't really ski early season because of the obstacles, or I'm not as used to missing obstacles as I would be later in the season. If the visibility sucks, I'm not going to ski because I'll likely be more tentative, which will lead to a bad chain of events. And so on.

I don't want to say that it'll take x amount of time for you to get your ski legs back, and the snow forecast for Tahoe is looking really good, so I get the desire to get out there. But I do think patience is helpful. Hang in there!
 

AJM

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Well this is going to be me next NZ season and I'm terrified :eek:

My TPF seems ok now , nearly 3 months post injury (non surgical) although I still have my brace. I also have major ligament damage in both legs and ankle that I'm having scanned tomorrow so fingers crossed it can all be fixed with PT :hail:I had a spectacular tomahawk a few seasons ago and survived unscathed, nothing like seeing your legs waaaay above your head to make you think "this is it !!!".
I did my TPF and subsequent ligament damage coming out of a chute and slamming into a rutt (flat light) whereupon my ski's kinda got stuck and I had backwards twisting fall.
Hopefully I can be back skiing next season but I'm seriously running out of time to rehab and as far as the mental challenge goes well that's a whole different beast.

Wishing you all the best for your season and I hope it all comes together for you and that you get back to your previous form and endurance. Please update us with how you are going and here's to skiing powder again !! xx
 

KBee

Angel Diva
I had the TPF break without the soft tissue injuries in March, and it still aches now and then, skiing or not. More so when skiing.
 
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Pequenita

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
btw, @Polly, if it's helpful, my injury 5 years ago was a TPF, non-surgical. Other than the general location of the fracture, it seems so different an injury from yours that I don't think it's fair to compare. But I have had meniscus, MCL tear, ACL tear, bone contusion, etc. in the other injuries.
 
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contesstant

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Following the thread. I received a pre-Christmas gift of a TPF on Monday and was thinking it wasn't a big injury. I am now adjusting my recovery expectations.
Oh no! Have you seen an orthopedic surgeon yet? I'm assuming you are non-weight bearing on that leg?
 

chasinghorizons

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Hi ladies! I won the lottery during a pretty bad Heli ski accident in UT 10mo ago with glorious tomahawking which resulted in a right lateral TPF with meniscus and MCL tears. Thank god for my surgeon in SLC who was also an avid skier. Fast forward to accomplishing all milestones way earlier than they expected, I just started skiing again here in the Tahoe area :smile:

I’ve gone two days and while I’m grateful I’m skiing, I’m obviously not skiing the same. I’m in the backseat guarding my injury. It starts to hurt over time, esp if I ski properly. My MCL and where the hardware is really doesn’t like the lateral force skiing puts on it but I can do it, until I have stop.

I know Divas sustained this horrid injury, too. I’d love to know how skiing again went for you. Did you get your full ability back? Are you now better than before? Or have you had to accept that you may never ski the same? My surgeon made me promise easy/intermediate groomers ONLY this season. It blows but he’s right. Has anyone learned again how to ski pow post TPF? Taken a nasty fall post TPF?
You're probably already doing this, but physical therapy is a must for these kinds of injuries! Preferably a therapist who specializes in sports medicine - they know how to push you more to get back into strenuous activities faster. My therapist had me doing exercises that I never would've thought I would be able to with my injury, so her guidance was immensely helpful. It also helped that she is also a skier!
I had a non-surgical TBF + MCL tear this past May and was skiing again by this November with no knee pain (my TBF was relatively minor though - no compression thankfully). Good luck in your recovery and great job wanting to get back at it again! :smile:
 
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AJM

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Following the thread. I received a pre-Christmas gift of a TPF on Monday and was thinking it wasn't a big injury. I am now adjusting my recovery expectations.
Oh noooo you poor thing, did you need surgery?
 

Pequenita

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
Following the thread. I received a pre-Christmas gift of a TPF on Monday and was thinking it wasn't a big injury. I am now adjusting my recovery expectations.
I really, really think it's different for everyone because the range of what a TPF entails is pretty huge. I was skiing 4 months (Mar 8 - July 3) after my TPF, but that was way too early. The main issue if it's an "easy" injury is that there is going to be a non-weight bearing period of time. The amount of strength, flexibility, etc., that one typically loses when not walking around is not insignificant. Take good care of yourself. :smile:
 

IceHeeler

Angel Diva
I really, really think it's different for everyone because the range of what a TPF entails is pretty huge. I was skiing 4 months (Mar 8 - July 3) after my TPF, but that was way too early. The main issue if it's an "easy" injury is that there is going to be a non-weight bearing period of time. The amount of strength, flexibility, etc., that one typically loses when not walking around is not insignificant. Take good care of yourself. :smile:
I'm expecting my downhill ski season to be over. Torque seems like something to be avoided as long as possible. Once I talk to the Ortho, I'll have a better idea of my training time frame. Ideally, I'll be able to do some uphill or snowshoeing by April or May.
The good news is I hurt my "good" knee, so my weak side is getting the opportunity to catch up. I teach functional fitness, so this is a good time to practice what I preach. My single leg squats are improving already. This may be my year to master pistol squats.
 

Pequenita

Ski Diva Extraordinaire
I'm expecting my downhill ski season to be over.
Yeah, personally, that's the approach that I would take, and then be delighted if you receive other news. I really was back to skiing waaay too early, and then when the proper season began in December, I had unexpected circulation issues in the leg that have since resolved but were really disconcerting for a while.
I teach functional fitness, so this is a good time to practice what I preach. My single leg squats are improving already. This may be my year to master pistol squats.
:smile: Hope you're a good patient for yourself!
 

skibum4ever

Angel Diva
I did that a very long time ago. Displaced so plate and screws.

I skied before I was supposed to be fully weight bearing. It may be tempting but it is not the recommended approach.

Good luck. Update us when you can.
 

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