As the title says, I’m looking for some advice about hobbies.

I struggle with depression off and on and recently it’s been quite tough to be motivated, but I tried indoor rock climbing and I’ve been going twice a week for around a month and I love it. I like the problem solving aspect and it being mixed in with physical activity, as I have a sedentary job as a software developer so it’s good to be more active.

This is where the issue is though, I have terrible hands. I have something called Dupytren’s Contracture, which essentially is extra collagen forms around the tendons and severely limits range of movement in the hands (I’ll post pictures of my hands in the comments).

So my question is would you continue this hobby even though it’s wrecking my hands and look at having another fasciotomy to get them less painful.

Or can you suggest any other physical hobbies that would also be engaging mentally to complete.

Perhaps I should have been wiser before getting hooked on this, but I’m devastated that I might not be able to do it long term.

  • hexaflexagonbear [he/him]
    ·
    13 days ago

    Have you talked to othet climbers about whether this is an issue that sort of goes away after some experience? If it's going to cause you significant physical harm, I'd say look for other activities. If it's just discomfort or something that goes away with experience, I say keep going considering you love doing it.

    For sports with a problem solving aspect, I'm not sure whether sweeping is the most physical intensive activity, but curling is basically a sport that comes with a fun physics/geometry problem attached. Just don't become a skip if you want the exercise (they don't sweep).

    • dependencyinjection@discuss.tchncs.de
      ·
      13 days ago

      Thanks for the response.

      So generally if you had non fucked up hands to begin with then they would toughen up and build callouses in the places I currently have cuts.

      The issues is my Dupytren’s Contracture, but as the other person said I should probably see my doctor about that.

      • Kache@lemm.ee
        ·
        13 days ago

        In recreational climbing, skin calluses and surface abrasion aren't usually much of a concern compared to tendon health. Skin heals light damage quite easily.

        However, it's not uncommon for a new (or experienced) climber to develop their muscles beyond what their own tendons can take. Since it takes tendons so long to strengthen, it's common to need managing the risk of finger pulley tendon injuries in climbing.

        Also, I do not know how these nuances apply in your context of your medical condition.

    • dependencyinjection@discuss.tchncs.de
      ·
      13 days ago

      Image 1 is left hand and you can see where I had an operation on the ring finger and you can also the pinky bent at 90 degrees. As well as all my ripped skin.

      Image 2/3 is right hand and the main issue is finger 2, and the arrows are pointing at a very pronounced tendon and this is the one that is causing a lot of pain and I don’t know if climbing is exasperating the issue.

      • keepcarrot [she/her]
        ·
        13 days ago

        It probably is :( I feel like I've burned myself a lot trying to get back to doing things before things are healed

  • Sundial@lemm.ee
    ·
    13 days ago

    First off, just looking at those pictures...Ouch. I hope they don't hurt you OP.

    Some suggestions I can think of:

    1. Hiking if there are any places near you and you can get to them.
    2. Woodworking? Not sure if you can do it because of your hands.
    3. Gardening/Landscaping. I gardened this summer and while the effort was minimal since I didn't plant much it was kind of rewarding. I've done a bit of landscaping (laying interlock) and it was also rewarding.
    4. Running and/or swimming. Not exactly mentally stimulating I know but don't discount the endorphin boost.

    If you want you can try also asking this question at the !fitness@lemmy.world community.

    • dependencyinjection@discuss.tchncs.de
      ·
      13 days ago

      Thanks for the kind words.

      The pain isn’t crazy, it’s more just very tender for a few days until I go again.

      Thanks for the suggestions. Hiking is something I have been keen to do more, but that’s something I need to travel a ways to do and maybe go camping to do it.

      Woodworking is something I’d love to get into but space is a not conducive for this. Same for gardening really, sadly.

      Running is something I already do, as a former addict I need those endorphins to be happy, but I am taking it slowly getting back into it.

      I will check out the fitness instance though.

      Thanks again.

      • Sundial@lemm.ee
        ·
        13 days ago

        How about home improvement? If your living situation or someone close to you, like family, allows for it why don't you look into that? You can do things like changing lights, old doors, paunting, etc. Depending on how comfortable you are you can look into some more complex projects. They can be pretty physically demanding and you'll be active for a long time.

        Best of luck in everything, hope you find something that works for you.

  • flashgnash@lemm.ee
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    11 days ago

    Is this caused by rock climbing or a pre-existing condition made worse by it? I was considering giving climbing a go at some point (have to assume it's a pre-existing condition or nobody would rock climb right?)

    • dependencyinjection@discuss.tchncs.de
      ·
      10 days ago

      No this is a pre existing condition called Dupytren’s Contracture which is an hereditary condition.

      I would recommend climbing as a sport, or at least giving it a shot as it’s really fun, engaging and rewarding.

      • flashgnash@lemm.ee
        ·
        10 days ago

        I'm mainly looking to expand my social circle with some hobbies that aren't exclusively populated with nerdy dudes