SLAP tear - career ending?

**Janusdog** · Posted On: 7/21/2012 11:25am

I'm hoping someone has some brilliant idea for me because I am just super depressed about this.

I got a severe SLAP tear from a BJJ armbar two years ago now. The surgeon gave me a 50% chance of recovery with no surgery. I took that challenge and have spent the last two years regaining strength into my shoulder through PT and personal training. And it took that long. I couldn't even raise my arm when I started and the radiated pain was excruciating. I now have no pain day to day.

I tried to return to Kali sticks and my shoulder ached. Silat... pretty much forget about all upper body with all the torque. I can box, but the bottom line is I really just like hitting pads and hate no-holds barred sparring. I really do not enjoy getting punched in the head.

Bottom line is I am now overweight, and forgetting what I know. I had a great body when I was in shape... :FemaleRage2: What is the honest situation with these kind of tears? Am I done? If I do MA am I going to hurt myself again? Or is there some kind of MA I can do that won't hurt my shoulder?

**jspeedy** · Posted On: 7/21/2012 12:19pm

I can't comment on the SLAP tear. But as for MA that is easy on your shoulder, you might have to look at something very different. An art that focuses less on upper body techniques might be worth a try. TKD immediately comes to mind, it gets a bad rap around here but if you want to stay active it might be one of your only options. Perhaps if you could find an olympic style group you could get the conditioning benefits of TKD. Maybe a soft style CMA like Tai Chi? I don't know much about CMA but there are plenty here who do.

**goodlun** · Posted On: 7/21/2012 6:00pm

I would for one consult with a Dr. that does sports medicine (right like we all have that type of money).

If your not having day to day pain I would say go back and give BJJ another try and see how it feels. Just pay close attention to the arm and shoulder that got hurt.
I tore my rotator cuff doing Judo and let it heal with out surgery I still from time to time have issues with it normally on the mat it doesn't give me to much in the ways of issues and is far from "career ending"

**erezb** · Posted On: 7/22/2012 5:46am

Buy a face saver head gear, and go do some sort of a kicking striking art. I stopped judo because of a dislocated shoulder, and though i am thinking of starting some BJJ i have reservations because bjj is all about testing your joints, it will bound to happen again this time for who knows how long. It can make you disabled,and it is better to be in shape with no MA background than a crippled MAtist. Swim, lift weights and maybe add a little TKD for your sole.

**Janusdog** · Posted On: 7/22/2012 9:42am

I've been lifting weights, biking...I'm just so bored. What I really liked about MA was that I was working out but I never felt like it was work, or that I was dragging myself to the gym.

**hungryjoe** · Posted On: 7/22/2012 11:12am

Reconsider the surgery option.

After years of constant pain, surgery had me back to near normal within months.

Can't speak to the SLAP tear itself, but an orthopedic surgeon is probably where you'll get your best hope.

I'll add that as we get older, old injuries tend to play hell on the body. Do yourself a favor and do what you can now to be healthier later.

**Janusdog** · Posted On: 7/22/2012 11:13am

I guess I should probably fess up and say I'm 41.

**hungryjoe** · Posted On: 7/22/2012 11:17am

Originally Posted by Janusdog

I guess I should probably fess up and say I'm 41.

Youngster (-;

Seriously, you're at the age where it all starts to come back and haunt you. Speaking from experience here. If you can, go see a specialist. Your body will thank you now and more so later.

**Janusdog** · Posted On: 7/22/2012 11:19am

Thanks.

I don't really see myself getting surgery at this point given how much I've gone through to get strength back. I don't have any pain usually (unless it's tired or I'm bending it strangely) so I'm not really sure what I would gain.

Maybe I'm just whining that I'm not 20 anymore, ultimately. There's got to be a line between being tough/refusing to accept limitations and being a jackass for not being realistic. I'm not good at the latter.

**No.1_Son** · Posted On: 7/22/2012 1:12pm

It probably can't hurt to get checked out, although we are probably talking about an MRI. Depending on your insurance situation that could be a big out of pocket expense.

I think you could go back to BJJ but you need to communicate to your coaches and partners about your issue, be ready to tap early, and probably not train in as competitive a way as maybe you'd like to. Maybe you'll find a few training partners who you can trust and who don't seem to mind a slower paced, more technical type of rolling. Stay away from white belts, they are the greatest danger as far as accidental injury. I think this should work fine as long as you're realistic with yourself about your limitations and don't overdo it.