Anyone here playing with a disability?

[Done like dinner 0]

First off, huge thanks to mod squad. I have Multiple Sclerosis yet have started playing hockey again (3 mos). The eqiup I use is important to me as I have enough pain without needless break-in time and bad equip so this forum has helped me gear up pretty damn successfully. Nice work guys and girls.

So I wanna know, is there anyone else out there playing with MS, or chronic conditions or what-have-you? Did people tell you you were crazy to play and then after playing for the first 3 months you found yourself feeling better than you had for years, like me? Feels good I can tell you. I'd love to hear all about it if anyone feels like sharing. You can always PM me too if you like with questions.

I'm in my mid thirties and last played as a 16 year-old-midget. I played travel teams, basically a 2nd line centreman who would have struggled to find a place in Jr. A even if I hadn't got MS. I didn't know I had MS until I was 32, but Doctors tell me it probably kicked in around 16 because I sure lost my game quickly that year. It's tough to diagnose and is a different experience for everyone who gets it.

Anyway, I play alright but haven't had that "it's just like riding a bike" feeling. I have to really try hard to redevelop both my skill and hockey sense. Yet I'm playing 5 days a week with high level players and am very motivated. It's coming back a little more every week and some of the modern gear is a big help.

I love hockey. I mean, I really, really love this game and always have. But I got sick of watching it on TV and being just a fan when I had to be literally dragged home by my dad from the outdoor rink when I was a kid and then have a hairdryer applied to my feet just to get my skates off. I don't feel sorry for having MS, instead I feel chuffed to be able to get on the ice 5 days a week and play the fastest, toughest, best team sport on the planet. We're hockey players, man, that means something.

[fatwabbit 93]

Dunno if you can consider it, but got scholiosis (?) & reconstucted ACL, strained MCL, dislocated shoulder.

[cris8 0]

There is a whole gamut of people with disabilities who play hockey. Check usahockey.com - under the Players tab, there is a Disabled section. There are hockey players with developmental disabilities, in sleds, etc. Like you, they all share a passion for hockey and don't let their disabilities stop them.

[Doctor Hook 0]

There's a beer league goalie in my area with one arm.

[sdcopp 1]

it's great the you're out there playing. though I don't have any disability, my dad has Cerebral Palsy. I wonder sometimes if he doesn't like coming to my games because he was never able to have that father-son bonding of sports outside of TV. Enjoy the sport as long as you can, though it sounds like you'll have no regrets of not trying

[Done like dinner 0]

Dunno if you can consider it, but got scholiosis (?) & reconstucted ACL, strained MCL, dislocated shoulder.

I approach dealing with the various problems that my MS serves up similar to dealing with injury. Anyway, I figure that a lot of pros probably play in about as much pain as I do. OK, I'm no pro skill-wise or money-wise but motivation comes from whatever you choose really. MY MS isn't so bad that I can't skate decently and my skills are still getting better so long as I don't overdo it and admittedly, play no-hit. So yeah, I consider serious injuries kinda the same, even if you'll eventually get better instead of potentially worse.

[cbj05 0]

I coach my younger brother's team, which is a special needs hockey team consisted of various kids aged 4-20 with physical and mental disabilities. My brother is autistic, and even though he can't communicate very well, you can see how happy he is whenever he is out on the ice. And the same can be said for almost all his teammates. As cris8 said, it's just the passion for hockey. I love seeing the kids out there with smiles on their faces, playing a game that they love.

Check out our team's site. (It's not very up to date, though.)

Cooksville Crusaders Special Needs Hockey

[N!! 0]

DLD,

First off, terrific post. I personally have suffered from a sensory neuropathy, albeit without any motor nerve problem. Of course, this means that no one has any idea what was wrong with me. It lingered for a little over a year, during which time the nerves were apparently demyelinating, before stagnating and then repairing. It wasn't fun to have my face and tongue go numb and/or burn like crazy for hours at a time, to say nothing of pretty much every part of the extremities. Although I'm not a neurologist, I did notice a marked improvement personally after getting my hands on some good quality fish oil; I don't know if it falls into the "strictly anecdotal" category, but it might be worth discussing with your doctors if the pain and discomfort worsens.

I greatly admire your determination to play through this condition and wish you the best.

[Done like dinner 0]

I coach my younger brother's team, which is a special needs hockey team consisted of various kids aged 4-20 with physical and mental disabilities. My brother is autistic, and even though he can't communicate very well, you can see how happy he is whenever he is out on the ice. And the same can be said for almost all his teammates. As cris8 said, it's just the passion for hockey. I love seeing the kids out there with smiles on their faces, playing a game that they love.

Check out our team's site. (It's not very up to date, though.)

Cooksville Crusaders Special Needs Hockey

Great site CBJ05. Not long ago I woulnd't have understood the appeal of your coaching work to you nor the real benefit the players on those teams gain. I might have even scoffed, albiet on the inside. Though I'm still the gear whore I was at 16, still the competitive "corner man" I was at 16 and still awed by skills displayed by the likes of Datsyuk and the dominance of the Prongers out there, I now put a guy like Iginla on the top of my respect list. The constant smile on his face seems derived from the pleasure he takes in playing as a member of a team, and the knowledge that he plays the world's best game for a living. I think he's able to strap that team on his back most nights because he loves doing it, not because he just signed a big contract, or because Keenan will rip him a new one if he doesn't, or because he's trying to win the Art Ross. If you can find that sort of motivation, the kind your players probably have, then the goals will come and it's a whole different game.

[Done like dinner 0]

There's a beer league goalie in my area with one arm.

Oh wow. That just reminded me that when I was 12 (I think) there was a guy in my league with one arm as well. He shot right as I recall and his missing left arm had a prosthetic with a dedicated hockey stick thingy that attached right on to the end of his adapted stick. He stuck out of course and so was talked about and feared in a way, but he could play just fine. We were young and stupid. I feel badly for having kept my distance. I think shooting was an issue but he didn't stick out for poor play.

How does the beer leaguer you mentioned adapt?

[ean 0]

I agree...great topic. Major props to all of you playing with disabilities. Never played against anyone with a disability, but even worse, I do remember having a teammate who died very suddenly of cancer when I was in Mites. Probably the type of thing you don't grasp when youre 7 or 8 years old, but as you become older begin to understand more. I guess this isn't very related to the original topic, but the above poster mentioning how he regrets keeping his distance from a disabled teammate when he was younger, but as an older person recognizing the courage to overcome that just got me thinking about my teammate who died.

[masterpeice_patrice 4]

im deaf in both ears. it all happend when i was a 7 year old kid in calgary alberta due to that cold weather. i had some kind of fever and ended up in the hospital but everyone has their horror stories right? i just suck it in and accept the fact i cant hear and try to make up for it on the ice by keeping my head up and trying to "feel" the game.

[Stampede#11 0]

Again not really a disability as such, but I am type 1 diabetic. Only impact to hockey is having to check blood sugars are OK so I don't flake out mid/post game and ensure I eat the right thing after hockey.

[chk hrd 164]

im deaf in both ears. it all happend when i was a 7 year old kid in calgary alberta due to that cold weather. i had some kind of fever and ended up in the hospital but everyone has their horror stories right? i just suck it in and accept the fact i cant hear and try to make up for it on the ice by keeping my head up and trying to "feel" the game.

I have a friend who is a goalie that is completely deaf and mute. Great guy to play with, you just have to learn to comunicate with him a little differently. The team manager on my son's team is a deaf interpretter, so when she is around we get to have a good conversation (watching them use sign language is incredible). He has really befriended my son, who now wants to take ASL as a second language when he goes to high school.

One thing that always amazes me about people with disabilities that play sports. They NEVER use it as an excuse. I've seen way to many able body people piss and moan about the stupidest things, they should take some lessons.

[Fury of One 6]

Again not really a disability as such, but I am type 1 diabetic. Only impact to hockey is having to check blood sugars are OK so I don't flake out mid/post game and ensure I eat the right thing after hockey.

Ditto on that. I've bottomed out and it's not a good feeling.

[Methane 0]

Depends on your definition. As mentioned in the back pain thread, I broke my back while in Iraq and am now retired from the Military with a 40% disability rating. I still play, lots of folks think I'm stupid to do so, but I love my sport and don't play "contact."

[Ti-girl 0]

Again not really a disability as such, but I am type 1 diabetic. Only impact to hockey is having to check blood sugars are OK so I don't flake out mid/post game and ensure I eat the right thing after hockey.

Same here.

Actually had to stop the game for a medical Time Out. Triple OT and we had to change on the fly. Kept getting pinned in our end...

[GoHawks 0]

Wow, great thread! We need more new posters like you DLD (I know I'm not really an experienced poster, but the 'OMG the new XXXX is 3 grams lighter than the S17' posters get a little old. Hearing your stories really motivates me to give it my best. I'm lucky enough to not have any health problems so far in life, but I'm just beginning to play hockey. Keep it up, hopefully I'll get to see someone like you guys out on the ice sometime, and I'll have nothing but respect for them, and you. Play on!

[McDougalfaschnitzer 32]

It's not quite on the level, but can barely see anything out of my left eye. Been that way since birth I believe.

[thefelixculpa 0]

Not a disability, but it disables me sometimes. My vision is pretty jobby without my glasses. I have one extremely near sighted eye and one far sighted eye and when I wear a cage my vision gets kinda crazy. Can't stand wearing contacts. I can see well out of both eyes individually, but together without glasses they totally screw me up. A few times i see two pucks instead of one and i'll try to recieve the fake puck. I play at a semi-high level, but I really feel like this issue holds me back a bit.

[skeeter14 0]

I don't know if it could be classed as a disability, but my asthma is so severe that i have been on high dose steroids for over a year now, have undergone 3 surgeries, and at times, can barely walk 500 feet without wheezing like an deflated balloon.

Unfortunately nothing has worked yet (i start with my 5th specialist in a few weeks) but i went away with a band i worked with to Jersey for one weekend in 2004, and I come back and its been hell. Like others say, it's all about the passion for the game. I get out when i can, rather when my breathing allows me too, but hopefully this year will be better, and I can get things under control and into a league soon.

[Done like dinner 0]

Since finding out I had MS my life has been a lot better than it was before I knew what was wrong. I would have thought that'd be the opposite, as it's a heavy diagnosis, but instead it put me in touch with people who are more grateful for what they have and tend to be very positive. It's changed how I look at things 180 deg. Anyway, point is, I don't think anyone I play with knows I have this illness, and I was pretty hesitant to say something here feeling like maybe I was being a p#ssy or something. But it's cool to hear about others who get out there no matter what because sometimes my motivation and confidence can ebb away. Some days I'm pretty good and some days my coordination is completely screwed I don't always feel great about my game and neither do my teammates. Today a breakaway pass went right through my stick and I was PO'd about it but we all struggle with something, and I appreciate anyone brave enough to talk about it here. Thanks guys (and girls).

[Done like dinner 0]

I seriously can't believe some of these guys are out there playing with previously broken backs, one near and one far sighted eye, brutal asthma... damn. Pain I have learned to deal with and spotty coordination just is what it is but phantom pucks? No air? And, dude, welcome back from Iraq -- looks like a difference is being made over there (if you wanted to militarily overthrow the Bettman regime you'd have my full support.)

[Fletch 219]

I'm legally blind in my right eye....my brother shot me in the eye with a rubber-tipped dart when I was 5 years old, I developed a blood clot in the eye later that night and had to undergo emergency surgery to save the eye. I ended up having another surgery a few years later but it didn't do anything to restore the sight.

The eye is permanently dilated (like how Heatley's looks) and when I look out of it it basically looks like how it would look if you were looking out of a fogged-up window.

[lotus 2]

I've played with a goalie for a while now who has Cerebral palsy.

Also I've had Arthritis my whole life. And a serious needle phobia I developed at age 7 (long story) so I can't take any real medication as it would require blood work, which I always avoid if possible. So I just pop Advil or Aleve every so often if it gets real bad. But a day has never gone by where I'm not in pain.

Get a lot of pain while playing sometimes, but I've played through pain all my life so it's just normal now. Don't even notice it half the time. It could be worse. Lots of pros with arthritis. I just started with the arthritis instead of developing it, and missed out on the whole pro part >.<