Still Participate
So there’s a couple things I’ve learned about having a VERY active kid in a cast. Perhaps I can mention a few and then be done with this segment.
First, life goes on.Let them participate. Let them go cheer on their sports teams. Let them go to practice. If they go to practice they may not be able to do everything but they are still learning the dynamics of the team and can listen to the coach. Nathan can’t run down the field, but he can move around a bit and left kick and do some drills. Hecan learn from watching his teammates play. He still feels like a part of the team. This helps assuage the pain of not being able to play during the games.
Second, let friends sign the cast. Especially teammates and close friends. Don’t take a sharpie to school and let EVERYONE write all over the cast. I mean really, a nine-year old’s leg is only so big. Hopefully they will write better comments than Nathan’s sisters did. One wrote, “I guess you really weren’t faking.” The other wrote, “Get well, soon, punk wad.” So much for sisterly love in our family.
One last thing, don’t wear your soccer cleats and shin guards in to the doctor. I noticed Nathan was wearing this as we were getting into the car to go get a second x-ray to see if the leg was healing properly. He reasoned that since we were on our way to practice afer the doctor, that he wanted to be ready! I told him to take them off until after the doctor. I didn’t want the doctor to know he was still playing quasi-forward at practices. So he wore flip flops into the doctor, then changed into cleats and shinguards, since that’s what his real life is.
Leave a Reply