United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

hey,
i am suffering from a brachial plexus injury on my right arm..my arm is completly flaccid with no sensation or movement.shoulder movements movement and sensation intact
my muscolucutaneous and median nerves were ruptured (thankfully not avulsed)...
and ulnar nerve is streched..
i have already undergone surgery,wherein i underwent nerve transfer of the sural nerve from my left leg to my right arm..operation was succesful..
i am undergoing regular physiotherapy..passive movements of fingers,wrist and elbow
electrotherapy to prevent muscle atrophy..
sensory re-education
shoulder strngthin and mobilization

i was wonderin how long will it take for arm function to return and how much function will return..
will i be able to ride my bike again??cuz thats what i miss the most..

thanks..

OH THE PLITE OF THE RIDER...MY INJURY WAS ALSO A RESULT OF A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT 8 MONTHS AGO, I'VE HAD NERVE TRANSFER SURGERY BUT NO RETURN OF FUNCTION YET,AS YOU WILL LEARN FROM OTHERS ON THIS SITE WHO HAVE BEEN DOWN THE ROAD THAT WE ARE TRAVELING,IT CAN TAKE A LONG TIME BEFORE ANY FUNCTION RETURNS SOMETIMES YEARS BUT IT VARIES FROM PERSON TO PERSON,MY BEST ADVICE IS KEEP DOING WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND AS FAR AS RIDING AGAIN,IT IS POSSIBLE,THERE ARE FOLKS ON HERE WHO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GET BACK ON THEIR MOTOR BIKES AND RIDE! SO DON'T GIVE UP,BE PATIENT AND GOOD LUCK!

P.S.
I REALLY MISS RIDING TOO..

http://www.nabd.org.uk/index.htm

http://www.nabd.org.uk/adaptions/examples/index.htm
(look at the tabs at the top of the page)

Man, there really is some GREAT information coming out here
I am in AWWWW
Tom

i'm coming up on my 9 month anniv. and thought i'd chime in. one thing i have learned is my injury created the necessity for a complete rebalancing of my body. it's strange to say but at some point the shift was made to focus on everything other than the injury itself. it was a process of re-integrating the damaged region back into my body. for me it has been a fascinating experience. painful and frustrating, sure. but i never was aware of just how able the human body was in repairing itself before other than marvel at a cut on my finger getting better. i think salamanders can grow new limbs? maybe humans at some point way in the future may be able to do that based on the processes we all go through today in trying to regenerate nerves and muscles. so whatever, just keep trying to get better however you can. as far as riding again, no question a bike can be modified to fit you, big question is, do you want to? maybe closed course would be fun no doubt but to venture with the clowns in the vehicles that are on the street? for me, no way. have fun, everyone.

djk wrote:big question is, do you want to? maybe closed course would be fun no doubt but to venture with the clowns in the vehicles that are on the street? for me, no way. have fun, everyone.

I thought the exact same thing, until it came time to clean the garage and sell one of my old sweethearts ('74 Moto Guzzi Eldorado). I thought I'd give her one more go, for old times sake, and got her rigged up. Was riding the 25 miles back from the shop, feeling great and at the same time stupid, and didn't stop riding for 400 miles until I reached San Francisco. One of the best things I ever did for myself. Hard to believe. Goes against any rational cell I have in my brain, but the spirit doesn't contend with cells, it contends with itself.

Down hill skiing and getting back on a bike are the closest things that integrate my spirit back into the self. I used white water kayak, canoe, raft, mountain climb, mountain bike etc. It's a tough one. I'm still coming to terms with the risk involved and trying to pretend that I'm sane. It's a matter of true self acceptance. It's the journey, not the destination.


BTW djk, I agree about the getting a sense of the rest of the body back again. It's an interesting process!

I for one, have no desire to ever get on a motorcycle again, but the love of riding isn't in my bones like it is for many people. My dad, on the other hand, who was in the same accident, broke his legs all the way up to the hip and suffered a stroke from it, and he still is trying to either fix the bike or rig some kind of sidecar so he can go to Sturges with his riding buddies. (Can you picture a 6'4" Norwegian guy sitting in a sidecar hooked up to his 6'7" friend's bike? )
I truely believe that if there is something you feel passionte about, there's always some way to make it a part your life, even if you can't be quite as "hands on" as you used to be.

YEAH I AGREE WITH ANGELA,IT HAS TO BE IN YOU TO WANT TO RIDE AGAIN,I KNEW FROM DAY ONE IN THE HOSPITAL THAT IF I COULD, I WOULD RIDE AGAIN WITHOUT QUESTION,FOR ME IT WAS A FORM OF THERAPY AND PROBABLY ONE OF THE HAPPIEST TIMES OF MY LIFE.

i was shot in my left arm humeral shaft was shattered some radial nerve damage maybe more im out in sandiego area i was wondering if u knew any good nerve docs in my area i need help noone will help i never knew the world was so cold any advice or anything i would be etenrally grateful