UKC

Hi, I've been climbing for a while, mainly outdoors but some indoors too, and my sister is wanting to have a go too. She's wanting to start out having a go indoor bouldering to get a feel for it, problem is she doesn't have very good joints. Apparently her joints arnt hypermobile but they do dislocate quite easily, this is something she's gotten used to and generally isn't a problem, as if something dislocated she can put it back in herself and carry on as normal. However, were unsure how she'll be with climbing, her feet should be fine as climbing shoes should be tight enough to hold everything in place and support it, and she reckons as long as she's aware of how she is moving, she can avoid anything coming out (normally if she dislocate something it's because she moves in an odd way when she's not paying attention).

Long story short, I was basically wondering if anyone has any advice or experience they can share about this? 

Thanks

I'm no expert but I reckon indoor bouldering isn't the best if you have a tendency to dislocate joints.  I've seen quite a few sprains and dislocation from people falling awkwardly onto mats.  I'd start with a bit of top roping, much less chance of an impact injury. 

Agree with the above and would add that a top rope can be useful in a situation where the dislocation occurs off the ground.

I've had 2 shoulder dislocations while climbing on top rope and was grateful to be lowered to the ground immediately to address the rather inconvenient situation. Not sure how you'd downclimb from the top of a boulder problem without the functionality of all your extremities.

I'd agree that climbing on a rope would be better than bouldering.  

I'm not sure if wrist supports might be a good idea?  If her fingers are bad she might need to stick to using bigger holds.  

Yeah I considered that, however I think she wants to start with bouldering as it's a bit less daunting. Was going to start her on easy stuff, so I don't think falling on to the crash matt and dislocating something will be a problem. The possibility of dislocating something on the wall could maybe be a problem as the likelihood is that it would happen when pulling on a hold and lead to a fall, that said, in my experience with bouldering as long as your paying attention, if you do fall you can make sure you land in a safe way. Was thinking of doing an easy session bouldering to give her a feel for climbing, then before she moves on the problems requiring awkward moves, suggest that she tries out some indoor top roping. 

I should maybe mention this isnt something I'm talking her into, she said she wanted to try bouldering, and that although she knows she might not be able to do it, she'll never know unless she tries.

At the end of the day, although I've got experience climbing, she knows what she can do better than I do, so I'll give her my advice and pass on good points from here and let her make an informed decision. That said, I appreciate you all giving advice, keep it coming and I'll keep it all in mind👍🏻. 

No sweat, happy to give my thoughts!