Image taken from http://www.allsportprotection.com/How_to_Choose_Roller_Derby_Wrist_Guards_s/726.htm
At roller derby practice with my team the Black Rose Rollers, I usually fall quite a bit. I do four-point star falls, double and single knee falls and there’s usually a couple of falls on my rear, too. At my last practice, I had a particularly special fall. I fell on an outstretched hand while my wrist was bent at a 90-degree angle or greater.
Sometime between sprinting, scrimmaging and hitting drills, I registered that my wrist felt strange. There was a creeping numbness that I couldn’t quite shake off but I kept skating.
After practice, I was distracted. I had to peel layers of sweaty gear off. I had to stretch sore, taut muscles and cramped feet. A teammate (one I’ve personally witnessed facing off rows of tough blockers) mentioned she saw a spider in her car and was worried about it. I grabbed a flashlight from my car to help her find it.
My left wrist and hand began to hurt more intensely. I held it close to my side, cradling it. The thought crossed my mind that it was broken. But it couldn’t be, right? I still had to drive back to York from the Hanover Magic Elm Skate Rink.
Four hours later, at 5 a.m., I awoke in bed to a sharp pain in my wrist. It felt like someone had pulled my thumb away from my hand. After a quick shower in which I couldn’t even grip my loofah with my sore hand, I headed to OSS to confirm or debunk my suspicions.
It turned out that a fall at practice, and I still can’t remember which, broke my scaphoid bone. The scaphoid bone is a tiny, cashew-shaped bone on the thumb side of your wrist. It’s one of the toughest bones to break, yet accounts for nearly 60 percent of all wrist fractures. According to the website of Dr. David Hildreth, a hand, wrist and elbow specialist, men are much more likely to fracture the scaphoid bone than a woman, because of the forceful activities in which they are often involved and the larger weight ultimately falling or pushing against joint. In fact, twice as much force is required to break the scaphoid bone than one of the bigger forearm bones.
Scaphoid fractures generally occur in men between the ages of 20 and 40 years. It is a common injury in traditional as well as extreme sports though can also occur as a result of an automobile accident.
I’m feeling that with the rising popularity of roller derby, doctors might also be seeing an increase of women of all ages with scaphoid fractures. I was even wearing wrist guards during practice.
I’ve got at least a month left in my cast if healing goes well. While I miss skating, I also pine for simpler tasks such as push-ups and shaving my right armpit. The truth is injuries are a grim reality for any athletes engaged in a contact sport. I can only hope I will be healed good enough to put my Riedell skates on once again, and soon!
