UKC

So I was climbing. Crimping. There was a crunch. Now one of my fingers doesn't quite work properly. It's not that bad really - I've got full movement of the finger, no swelling, no odd lumps of scar tissue appeared - I think it's lucky that I was bouldering at the time so could instantly drop off the rock and hunt down some ice.

But it's been two weeks now and there's still pain in the finger (more like dull ache) which is brought about / intensified by putting pressure through the pad in any sort of position (open hand, full crimp, half crimp etc). I've been following the advice as best I can from here ( http://www.climbinginjuries.com/fingers-pulleys ) which recommends a return to easy climbing in the third week, but obviously you should take this as guidance not gospel.

So I was wondering, from anyone else out there who's had a moderate finger injury, when did they return to easy climbing? How did the finger feel at the time? how long did it take to return to full strength? I'd really rather not make this worse...

Thanks in advance

In reply to Phoebus:

6 weeks no climbing at all. Still a bit weak after a year... good luck

In reply to Phoebus:
I had an A2 pulley injury last year. It was still slightly swollen two months or more after the injury occured, and not pain free and back to normal until four months. I did climb on it though, but obviously tried to avoid holds which were likely to cause pain, which meant sticking to very easy routes. There's quite a bit of advice on UKC on this if you search back through.

In reply to wurzelinzummerset:

Yeah I've been going through the old threads - mostly looking for rehabilitation advice - for example the use of putty or ice, seeing what's worked for people.

In reply to Phoebus:
I'm just about recovered from an A1 injury that occurred 6 weeks ago. Progression went something like this:

First week - icing only
2nd week - very easy climbing (mostly soloing grit vdiff-VS)
3rd week - similar (limited to E3/6b)
4th week - good volume of routes upto E5/6c
5th week - reintroduced sport climbing upto 7c
6th week - 8a+ redpoint; nearly back to full strength

In reply to Ally Smith:


Thanks for the info Ally.

If you don't mind me asking, with regards to the second and third week - how much discomfort did you experience in the finger when climbing / not climbing? Given you were initially on Grit VS', I'm assuming the was mostly using 'open' hand positions (as opposed to crimps)? Did you tape up the finger?

In reply to Phoebus:

Yes - mostly open hand grips and hand jamming. I didn't bother taping the finger, but have done for the last couple of weeks sport climbing as there are obvious increases in load.

There was a fair level of discomfort at the start of a some of the sessions, but this dissipated quickly once warmed up. Also, some discomfort the morning after climbing, which eased with icing. Anything that felt tweaky or painful was avoided like the plague to prevent re-injury; i.e. I still won't use any combination of 2 finger pockets with the recovering finger

In reply to Phoebus:

I have climbed through a few finger injuries usually returning to climbing within 2 weeks of the 'pop'. I just switched to stamina related work following 2 weeks of icing gentle massage etc, mainly open handed holds focussing on footwork and technique and definitely no crimping for over 6 weeks, maybe even 8? Injury can be used as a way to train something you can't normally be bothered with.

I have taped up in the past after injury , but that was mainly to remind myself that I'm still recovering and not to crimp. From what I read, taping up too much could give you false confidence, stop the tendon from recovering to full strength and also if taped too tightly restrict blood flow. Hope the responses help you plan your recovery.

In reply to Phoebus:

Get yourslef a copy of one move too many. Yes its pricey but if you climb 30 more routes rather than wait for months doing no climbing then its only £1 per route. And it supports people publishing research to small groups where there is going to be limited profit.

In reply to Phoebus:

I've had three pulleys go - all of them making a sound like a gun going off - the ring and middle finger on one hand and the ring of the other - really can't remember which. The first time I went to a physio for ultrasound treatment (she was impressed when I told her it happened climbing, but a lot less so when she asked me where and I said Redditch) I then rested it for several weeks and it just got better. The second time was in Buoux and I was on holiday so I just rested it for a week or two and it got better. The third time was in Rocklands in South Africa and I really couldn't afford not to climb so just carried on with the injured finger stuck up in the air... and it got better.

In reply to luke obrien:

Thanks again, and they do help plan.

First night back on plastic was Wednesday then again yesterday. Would have preferred real rock but it keeps raining. Taped up the second time for exactly the reason you mentioned - to remind myself the finger was injured. I found if I didn't tape, the dangerous muscle memory was of crimping was there.

It's not got worse so far, although I am terrible at stamina training. So this could be a positive

Thanks for the advise all. On that book, do you happen to have a UK link for it? The only one I found was for amazon, where it's 99 quid.