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Old 09-01-18 | 07:09 PM
  #24  
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DMNHCAGrandPrix
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Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 258
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From: Northern CA
I sympathize! Went over the handlebars on a ride in September 2017, and earned a complete shoulder separation that looked a lot like your own X-ray. Really debated surgery vs. just living with it, but opted for surgery that was done about 4 weeks after the accident. Arm in sling from September to December, couldn't put on a tee-shirt for months, and slept upright in a rocking chair most of the fall. During that time my only riding was two or three sessions a week on a stationary bike for an hour each. I hated every minute of those stationary rides, but I had already registered for Eroica California and still hoped to do the ride with an old friend in April 2018. Started physical therapy in December, and going on really short real rides again around Christmas. Then started going on longer and longer rides in January, February, and March. I felt good enough to be able to really enjoy the Coastal Route at Eroica in April, though I took it easy on the gravel downhill sections because of a lingering fear of falling and re-injury. By my one year anniversary of the shoulder injury (in about two weeks), I expect to have full range of motion and almost no limitations.

Hang in there, and expect slow but steady improvement rather than instant gratification. It helped me to have a concrete riding goal to build towards in the first six months after the accident. I've done the Eroica California ride each year since it started, and it's always been inspirational. This year's Eroica was both aspirational and medicinal as well!
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