United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

Hi everyone,
My 6 year old daughter, Savannah, loves sports. I want to sign her up for either tee-ball or karate. She does not have any functional use of her left arm/hand. (She can't hold a bat or lift her arm) What do you guys think? Which sport do I go for, she is interested in both equally. I don't want her to feel so different because of her injury.

Which sport do you think she would be able to accomadate better in? I'm too emoitionally involved to make a decision today.! Help!

Thanks,
Stephanie

well with no functional use....how about soccer? karate sounds good too!

can't wait to see whav everyone else says because we'll be asking the same questions next year...

-francine

I think she could do either with practice. You may need to check with the coach and see if she can bat one handed...Some leagues may frown on it but I really don't see why. With the ball on a T she should be able to hit pretty good if you get a light bat. My son did Karate and it was hard to watch because they all line up and do their routines in unison and it's obvious when one kid stands out. I liked baseball lots better!
One toy we used a lot when my son was younger(and still do) is the velcro paddle ball set. It was a great therapy toy. I saw one yesterday at Wal-mart called "Magic Mitts" it was only 3.97.
It may help build up coordination in catching.
Good luck to you!
T.

We've used the magic mitts with Michaela, just tossing back and forth. I bought 2 sets so my husband and I could both play with her and then bought 2 more so at picnics we could play with friends in a circle and Michaela doesn't feel left out. I always thought she'd want soccer but last summer volleyball was the game of choice. She threw the ball up enough one handed to serve, and she could hold her left BPI hand in a fist to hit it over the net. We lowered the net for her but that was because of her age and height, but she played on the regular ones at the park after she played awhile. She also wanted basketball, so we got her a GROW TO PRO basketball set which adjust from 4 to 6 feet and comes with a smaller ball and even with the SOL splint on she's out there shooting hoops one handed.
Karate's movements are so synchronized and this could lead to frustration. My mother is deaf and teaching Michaela sign language has been hard one handed. If you've ever seen deaf people sign they do it so fluidly and so fast and need both hands and the movements in Karate remind me of that.
We've thought about T-ball but haven't got to it yet. Seems since the ball is still it would be easier to accommadate one handedness. Hope I helped! LeeAnne