Have you ever injured a student?

I was training our kids class last night and working Tuite with the advanced belts I accidentally hurt one of our Blue belts. He is 12 yrs old and I put him in a wrist lock and made him cry. I dotn think I have ever felt so bad about anything in my life. He is a great kid who is going to be a fantastic Martial Artist and I hope I didnt do anything to drive him away. He finished class and his wrist wasnt swollen when he left so I will take that as a good sign but I still feel horrible. I feel like the big bully trying to impress people by beating up on a weaker kid. It wasnt my intention to hurt him outside the normal pain of the lock. Anyone else accidentally hurt a student? :cry: :bang:

 

Not sure about kids but some adults over the years but more experienced students. In which case though not planned does have to be taken as part of the game. I have never taught children purely because a lot of what i teach is not really suitable for children.

 

Ive been told to ease of in sparring before which I suppose is fair enough but the contact level wasnt that great at the time so I was annoyed at that one as I was really only hitting the guy with enough force to let hi know he had been hit whereas he insisted on no cotact.

Also I've caught a guy when practiscing control drills to the face, he played it up and said that his lip was bleeding and at the time I felt bad abd believed him even though I suspected the shot had done nothing more than touch him. I found out later I hadnt actually hurt him, he was just worried if we carried on that I might have hit him so he played up on the touch contact because he didnt trust me. That royally ****ed me off.

On the flip side I have been on the receiving end of some quite nasty shots when doing conditioning work so I do try to appreciate where other people are coming from when they complain but normally I find that although I will back off I am annoyed with the other person, iuve certainly never hit anyone hard enough to actually bruise them (Except on purpose).

 

I broke someone's wrist , but it was so ridiculous. I was maybe 14, she was maybe late 20's, and we were point sparring (kempo) I kicked and her hand went down to block, her hand got caught in my shin guard, I pulled my leg back, and pow, broken wrist. I felt so bad, but then she kept getting broken bones after that, so I think she just had bad bones.

 

Yes, I threw a push kick at a fellow class mate during sparring. He fell back, and it broke one of his ribs. I felt horrible...

But then again, I've been dealt quite a bit too. I've had my feet swept up from under me and landed on my tail bone. I've also been kicked in the head by a cresent kick and nearly knocked out.

 

Never anything major...

One has got some nice scars from one of my tiger claws.

Another has a small scar on his chin from a snake strike.

One girl slipped when practicing brooms, fortunately she didn't injure her wrist too badly. She's a great kid, swore she could breakfall, but couldn't. I don't take her down anymore, safe to say.

And lastly a cut lip from a bad toss.

Nothing major, nothing other students haven't done to me (like the bloody nose I got practicing escapes with a SiHing!). We're pretty good. I think the worst any student ever got was a separated muscle.

 

Yeah I once did pretty much exactly the same thing I've been very careful since!

There was another time when I had a couple of kids doing some light sparring at the end of a class. All the parents were waiting to pick them up. One went in with a beauty of a roundhouse. The other, unfortunately ducked. I saw him spin round as the foot made contact with the side of his head and he dropped like a brick! He was lying on the floor with his hands over his face so I bent down over him and asked him if he was ok (this kid is what, 11 or 12). He answered by opening his hands and spitting blood all over the place. The thing is, as he did it, one of his teeth bounced across the floor too! All this of course under the full gaze of about 40 odd parents. He did come back. He thinks it was funny now... which is fortunate!

Martial arts training is tough, it has to be. I hope the parents of these kids realise that too. I'm sure that the same thing happens when they do rugby etc too.

EDIT: Nice sig BaiKaiGuy

 

I was doing light sparring with a girl a few years ago, flicked up a roundhouse kick and stuck my big toe right in her eye.

 

Thats just bad luck!

I think I sustained a cracked rib in training, and have a bit of a lump on one side of my nose.

I've only ever given fat lips by accident, when Im training. Never hurt a student, hit them maybe a bit too much for them, ask if they are okay, they always are, and you carry on.

The more fuss you make, the harder it is to hit/be hit the next time...

 

Heck yes. Oh, you mean Martial Arts student. Never mind.

 

it happens, sometimes you just aren't sure what a young student can take. that's why you've got to be extra careful in a situation like that... give them barely anything in the pain range...


one time i was working this summer camp as the martial arts guy, and they were a pretty rough group of kids. This kid didn't know what he was doing but i was looking away and he tried to kick me in the groin for fun. Unfortunately for the kid as soon as i felt the leg get above my calf I instictively threw a Thai straight knee at his stomach... i lightened it up before it got to him, but it still sent him to the floor. We mended our situation, I just had a talk with him.

Anytime someone gets hurt, give them the antidote. IF you don't want that student to give up, let him/her know how much they mean to you, and how you made a mistake. That's best done immediately after, so just do your best in the future. For instance in my class if a kid hurts his wrist I'll give him some wrist stretches to do or breathwork. If anything it distracts from the pain!


take it easy,
joe

 

what martial art do you take?

Sounds like you need to brush up on your ukemi.....

 

accidents happen especially in such a hobbie *shrugs* you didn't mean to do it i'm sure he won't hold it against you - well for too long

One of our sensis had his knee cap kicked out of place by a student during a simple rear leg sweep (student did it to sensi) 2 operations later it's pretty much finished his MA life but he's pretty nice guy who doesn't blame the student

personally i've only done the accidental punches to noses eyes etc - but i still feel seriously guilty i think if i did hurt anyone really badly i'd be crying more than them for hurting them!!

 

Thanks

I appreciate all the advice. This really sucked. Equally as painfull will be explaining to my instructors what happened. They go away fro a week and I hurt one of their students

 

Totally unintentionally...

A girl I was sparring with (fast and strong and very agile). I stepped into an axe kick and I pushed her knee into her face.

She was a dancer and had to perform later in the week and I was totally worried I mightve bruised her or something.

I sat out the rest of the sparring with others because I just felt so bad. Not because I hit a girl..heck they hit harder than me most times, but it was because I worried I might have ruined her chances in her dance.

 

The most I've done is given someone a bloody nose in a competition. (She just happened to be my clubmate...)
Usually I'm the one on the receiving end of silly little injuries from yellow belts and their elbows. I was sparring the smallest girl in the club 3 days before my black belt grading, she decided to block my kick with her elbow, and I got a very bad muscle bruise... All I can say is that painkillers are God's gift to MAists...

 

I broke a couple of ribs on a bloke 10 years ago while we were practicing for a tournament. He step straight into a turning side kick(Back kick) and the chest guard didn't stop much power at all.

 

Not long goes by without someone in class injuring someone else in class. Sometimes they can't train for a week or four, sometimes they can continue by favouring the injury.

I've given and taken injuries of lesser and greater effect.

Rgds,
David

 

Medi, you're a classic! Just laughed out loud in my office.