Skiing/snow boarding with spastic diplegia

LizD

hi,
just wondering if anyone has any experience skiing with Cerebral palsy? My son, aged 10 has mild spastic diplegia, his left leg is very rotated inwards, although he walks independently. I wondered if there is anything that can be adapted to help him skiing? He has had a couple of snowboarding lessons, which were ok, but he really wants to try skiing, but I don’t know how his legs would be in the correct position? I want him to have a go, as I don’t want him to feel held back, but I am concern that he might may get frustrated if his leg keeps on coming in. 
Any advice gratefully received!

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Jean_OT

Hi @LizD

I don't have any personal experience of supporting people with cp to ski but I  know that Disability Snowport does:

http://www.disabilitysnowsport.org.uk/About-Us/About-Disability-Snowsport-UK.aspx

Hope this helps

Jean

https://community.scope.org.uk/categories/ask-an-occupational-therapist

Makei

Hy! I have a mild spastic diplegia too. I think I can help you. I just randomly came to your post by googling, if somebody competed in paraolympics in alpine skiing before. I am now 26 years old and I can understand the situation of your son very well. I am a very passionate skier and even a ski instructor. I don't want to promise you or your son this fortune, because I don't know any details about the physical conditions of your son. But in my point of view skiing is a very good sport and possibility to have great fun while exercising with this circumstances. I assume that your sons spastic diplegia is strong working on the adductors of the left leg, because you wrote his legs turn inside? If this is the case, skiing would be the better option, because ski boots give him a good stability while he can concentrate on working with his knees while skiing. The problem in snowboarding is that you have to work more with moving forwards and backwards, which in my experience was a lot harder to do. And the ski poles give him a little bit more stability and more self confidence.

I would really recommend you to visit a physical therapist in any case for stretching and a better flexibility in any case for a better way of living. In my experience the most important things are a good coordination and mobility of the legs and the whole body core strength. 

But in the end the most important thing for him is - IT HAS TO BE FUN!!!
Anyway he will experience some hard moments, when he tries to learn fast and watching others doing it easily....Just keep him motivated, when he wants to achieve something. It will be some work to do, so keep fighting! ;-) 

If you have any more questions please just contact me. It would be a great honor for me to help you. 

Greets from Austria!
Markus

TJG

I have a three year old daughter with spasticity in her right leg and arm following an stroke at birth and subsequent diagnosis of CP. Any insight in learning to ski would be much appreciated- resources or experience.

Thank you!

Cheers!

Richard_Scope

Hi @TJG

Thanks, fo for posting to this discussion. I have no experience with skiing myself but the website suggested by my colleague would be a good place for you to start.

http://www.disabilitysnowsport.org.uk/About-Us/About-Disability-Snowsport-UK.aspx

I would love to know how your daughter gets on learning to ski