Backhand Not Required: Save the Lateral Epicondyle

I have been pretty active as long as I remember. Running around outside, organized sports—I have never been afraid to sweat. I preferred sweating to dating in high school, as a matter of fact. The elimination of that particular distraction, and my love for good ol’ practice, allowed me to excel in a couple sports—volleyball being my favorite.

I developed some ambidextrous skills along the way, which was SUPER fun. Though I am dominantly right-handed, I dribble a basketball much better with my left hand. I can shoot the ball with either hand, although I am more accurate with my right. In volleyball, I can serve and hit with either hand. Hitting especially causes extreme confusion for the opposing team when they are setting up their defense to cover a right-handed hitter. Just a quick switch to the opposite hand, and everyone is left standing where they aren’t supposed to be, and the ball is hitting the floor “over there.” Makes me chuckle every time!

There ARE things that I love to try that I am not very good at. One of those things is tennis. You would think it is somewhat similar to volleyball, but there is just something about that extra 27 inches extended from my hand that throws me off (yes, I googled “how long is a tennis racket.”) You would NEVER see me swing at and miss a volleyball, for heaven’s sake. Especially the backhand. Trying to bring your arm across the front of your body while keeping the head of the racket vertical AND swinging hard. I mean, why go through ALL that when you can…just…use your ambidextrous skill and put the racket in the other hand and hit it that way?

My husband: “HEY. You can’t do that.”

Me: “Why not?”

Hubs: “Because you have to hit it backhand.”

Me: “Why?”

Hubs: “Because that’s how you are supposed to hit it.”

Me: “Is there a rule that says you MUST have a backhand? Show me the rule book. I have a right hand, and I have a left hand. I don’t have a backhand. “

Hubs: “You HAVE to have a backhand!”

Me: “Again, WHO SAYS SO?”

Hubs: “I SAY SO. There are NO tennis players that hit the ball like that, Carey.”

Me: “You’re not the boss of me.”

Hubs: “Yes I am. That’s my racket…”

Oh, how I LOVE that man of mine!

I am famous for my long intros. How does this fit into Carey’s Crazy Conditions? Well, my active lifestyle, particularly my many years of volleyball, my time in the gym, my 13 plus years as a massage therapist (did I tell you all this? I see the line of my new best friends lining up at my door…haha) and my short but distinguished tennis career created a situation where I couldn’t even spoon a cookie out on a cookie sheet without excruciating pain in my elbow. You might know where I am going with this, as it is a very common condition known as…

Lateral epicondylitis.

Say WHAT?

Ok. I will be nice and give you the layman’s term of …

Tennis elbow. Well crap. I would take volleyball elbow. Or massage elbow. Or even gym elbow, because having a condition that bears the name of the sport that I so heinously embarrassed myself with doesn’t sit well with me.  But honestly, many tennis players do suffer from this condition, as well as those individuals that overuse their forearms and wrists. If the muscles in your forearm are strained, tiny tears and inflammation can develop around the bony lump on the outside of your elbow, called the lateral epicondyle.

Treatments for tennis elbow include ice, NSAIDS like ibuprofen and naproxen, physical therapy, REST, and sometimes a brace on the elbow or even the wrist. I was able to hold things close to my body, but I was completely unable to grip anything while extending my right arm. For a year and a half, I utilized the treatments above, and I even went to an orthopedic surgeon three different times for cortisone injections, which helped temporarily. But each time the pain came ROARING back. Not gradually. When it came back, the pain was INSTANT. My right lateral epicondyle became SO tender and inflamed, I couldn’t even brush a piece of clothing up against it. I finally saw an orthopedic surgeon that specialized in wrists and elbows who immediately knew I would need surgery. Shredded tendons were removed, and more healthy ones were reattached, and with some therapy after surgery, I was able to return to massage therapy with about 90% reduction in pain. I’ll take it! I am in a different profession now, and occasionally, my right elbow will let me know when I have done too much. And believe me, I listen!

Ok. So maybe condition #2 isn’t so crazy. Maybe I just like to say, “lateral epicondylitis.” Maybe I just want to envision you trying to pronounce it. Hehe. Regardless, it’s a chance to compare some of your symptoms and maybe ask your doctor if you should be doing more for your pain. Now, surgery was the right choice for me, but there’s no rule book that says you have to make that same choice. It’s YOUR body. You don’t HAVE to have a backhand! You are the boss of you! You are brilliant in the art of helping yourself to…

Be well!