Accommodating injuries in training/practice

[bradsteen]

I slashed open the index finger on my dominant hand a few days ago and it's still recouperating. Rather than cancelling my range session, I'm going to use it as an opportunity to practice entirely with my support hand. Loading mags is going to suck, but I'll still have a good time.

What have you had to do to accommodate injuries with your firearms training or practice regimen?
How did that work out?
Knowing what you know now, what would you do differently next time?

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[TTSX]

Ibuprofen and send it. If I'm hurt so bad I can't shoot, I shouldn't really be shooting, I should be recovering.

 

[NeoBlackdog]

I can shoot pretty good with my left hand, but have never been forced to do so due to injury.
I did, however, play bass for a 3 night gig back in the day at Deschutes River Station in Bend with 5 stitches in the palm of my left hand.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

I had to walk back to friendly forward lines , carrying the Crew Chief of a Bird we were in.
Said Bird died of "lead poisoning"....we hit the ground pretty hard...my ankle was all kinds of bunged up.
However the alternatives to not working our way back ....were not interesting to say the least.

Some shooting and running were also involved.....all of us made it back , safe and sound.
Does that count...?
Andy

 

[NeoBlackdog]

I had to walk back to friendly forward lines , carrying the Crew Chief of a Bird we were in.
Said Bird died of "lead poisoning"....we hit the ground pretty hard...my ankle was all kinds of bunged up.
However the alternatives to not working our way back ....were not interesting to say the least.

Some shooting and running were also involved.....all of us made it back , safe and sound.
Does that count...?
Andy

Daammmmnnnn! That makes my measly 5 stitches while playin' bass a pretty weak story!
I'm sure glad you're here with us, Andy.

 

[1775usmc]

Water. Motrin. Change your socks.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Daammmmnnnn! That makes my measly 5 stitches while playin' bass a pretty weak story!
I'm sure glad you're here with us, Andy.

Glad to be here too....

I used to play guitar in a few bar bands.....5 stitches on the hand would not make that an easy task.
Andy

 

[nwslopoke]

I had to walk back to friendly forward lines , carrying the Crew Chief of a Bird we were in.
Said Bird died of "lead poisoning"....we hit the ground pretty hard...my ankle was all kinds of bunged up.
However the alternatives to not working our way back ....were not interesting to say the least.

Some shooting and running were also involved.....all of us made it back , safe and sound.
Does that count...?
Andy

Adrenaline is a hell of a drug.

If the OP can scare himself to death, maybe the pain will go away for a day.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Water. Motrin. Change your socks.

This , with the occasional IV , seemed to be standard GI practice to "cure what ails ya"....
Andy

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Adrenaline is a hell of a drug.

If the OP can scare himself to death, maybe the pain will go away for a day.

So very true.

It will quit hurtin'.....when the pain goes away....
Andy

 

[1775usmc]

In all seriousness I had this happen a few years ago. Ran a blade down to the bone on my trigger finger. Had to get stitches and had it in a brace because it was right across the knuckle and bending would reopen the wound. Carried RH (my non dominant side) for the entirety of the healing process. It pays to train both hands/draw strokes. Having left and right handed holsters.

 

[64MercurysRule]

View: https://youtube.com/shorts/UVFwED1ZBwA?si=cSY6KC4AGoE1E1qO

 

[64MercurysRule]

View: https://youtu.be/YoQwmOp8c0E?si=BNCwyVHQtQhVMeVr

 

[Sporting Systems]

I slashed open the index finger on my dominant hand a few days ago and it's still recouperating. Rather than cancelling my range session, I'm going to use it as an opportunity to practice entirely with my support hand. Loading mags is going to suck, but I'll still have a good time.

What have you had to do to accommodate injuries with your firearms training or practice regimen?
How did that work out?
Knowing what you know now, what would you do differently next time?

View attachment 2235766

Perfect. Training for injury is absolutely essential. Changed my truck gun from a SCAR 16 SBR tp an LWRC SBR after a couple days of trying to make the SCAR work one handed (try locking the bolt open with one hand, to clear a malfunction.)

 

[SSloan]

Dermabond, SurgiSeal, and Band-Aid Liquid are all better than superglue, but in a pinch superglue.
First three are better removed with antibiotic ointments or petroleum jelly as they can dissolve the adhesive.
"The final weapon is the brain. All else is supplemental." — Clint Smith

 

[bradsteen]

I did, however, play bass for a 3 night gig back in the day at Deschutes River Station in Bend with 5 stitches in the palm of my left hand.

Ouch! Fretting with the left hand injured is the worst! Got a nasty cut on the tip of the middle finger on my left hand when on tour, which made shredding an interesting exercise.

 

[bradsteen]

I had to walk back to friendly forward lines , carrying the Crew Chief of a Bird we were in.
Said Bird died of "lead poisoning"....we hit the ground pretty hard...my ankle was all kinds of bunged up.
However the alternatives to not working our way back ....were not interesting to say the least.

Some shooting and running were also involved.....all of us made it back , safe and sound.
Does that count...?
Andy

 

[bradsteen]

Separating training from practice (training = learning new skills, practice = reinforcing existing skills), I would be willing to cancel a training session due to injury because the objective is to learn that skill, and learning can be impaired if you're distracted or having to work around an injury. Practice is where I think there's an opportunity to test how to adapt well-established techniques to various physical limitations.

 

[Nosferatu]

Recovery time is important. You can do more damage by rushing back into service than you did with the initial injury - and delay your recovery even further.

As a former athlete who has worked with trainers and medical staff, figuring out a recovery regime was the most important part. There's lots of time and opportunity for rehab.

Doing nothing is hard for doers. I still struggle with it. I broke my foot this summer while I was in MT preparing and building a cabin. It basically wiped out 2+ good summer months that I could have spent getting trees down and preparing the build site, but now my foot is doing well and should make a full recovery because I (mostly) followed my doctors advice. I can't say I would have been as practical 10 years ago though.

It also made me more diligent about carrying everywhere I went. I could not rely on my legs to get me out of a situation quickly. I completely changed my holster and reconfigured my P365 to fit my needs a bit better and actually narrowed the scope of how it could be carried - but made that carry method absolutely perfect for me.

Downtime can be used for evaluation of your methods and future needs as you age and evolve. Don't overlook the value that not being able to physically do things can provide while forcing you to take on some of the other mental or lesser physical tasks you may have pushed off or ignored.

Sounds like you have a decent handle on the class you've planned. Do what you can with your offhand and learn what's put in front of you.

Also - let people help you. I'm horrible about this. I hate unsolicited help - and I'm horrible about asking for it. However, maybe someone in the class will offer to load some mags for you. Let them!

 

[titsonritz]

A learned a long time ago, injuries have a way of shutting down part of my body from time to time. Not being able to continue with other parts was unacceptable so I worked on being completely ambidextrous, took a long time, but I can now completely, comfortably and competently shoot and manipulate my handguns and rifles left or right handed I have left and right handed holsters, most of my rifles are set up to be ambidextrous. Typically I would prefer to carry left-handed AIWB but at the moment I have a hip injury and can't do it comfortably, so I'm going right handed at 4 o'clock. My advice is to train your opposite side now because it sucks trying to do it when you're injured become confident and competent now while you're not injured,