So, how you people manage to overcome problems of getting some injuries and still manage continue Game Development?

I managed break my right wrist (I am righthanded) and 1st my hand was in plaster some while, but surgeons had to put in two metal spikes so my right hand's basically useless for most of the things next 5 weeks or so...

How to manage keep on Game Development even if things like this happen? or have all been so lucky that no such thing happened sofar? :)

I have noticed that besides normal problems of not being very good using computer (read mouse) with left hand, this seems affect my interest on game development, really bad way that is. It feels like I am running out of all motivation to do anything just because I get frustrated to use left hand only...

Since starting work earning a living as a programmer, I've been lucky enough to avoid the kind of injury you've suffered (knock on wood), but I do have frequent lower back pain (no doubt due to all the hours spent in front of the 'puter) which forces me to take more breaks than I would like. Since your injury is (hopefully) only transient in nature, I'd recommend just accepting it with the knowledge that you'll be back to 100% capacity in a short time.

A short illustrative story: When I was 13 or so, I broke my thumb playing soccer and the doctor put it in a cast. At the time, I was fairly well addicted to my Atari 2600, so I did what any addict would do: I chipped away the part of the cast that kept my thumb immobilized so that I could continue using my thumb to press the fire button on the joystick. Fortunately, my thumb still works as it should, but ever since then it makes a clicking noise whenever I bend it. Moral: just let your body heal at its own pace; there will be plenty of time left for you to finish your game once your body is back up to speed.

Originally posted by SorrowMan

I have noticed that besides normal problems of not being very good using computer (read mouse) with left hand, this seems affect my interest on game development, really bad way that is. It feels like I am running out of all motivation to do anything just because I get frustrated to use left hand only...

Dude, that's what your toes are for! :)

'Seriously', the best way to deal with this is to keep laughing. At least you've still got one working hand. Imagine going to the toilet with two broken wrists. That's nasty!

This reminds me of a friend of mine, who broke his arm while playing flight simulator. He fell off his chair while leaning along with the plane.

I just managed to hurt my wrist muscles playing tennis this weekend.

I've been doing less developing, but on the other hand, I've been playing more tennis =) (two handed, backhand strokes mostly)

Moral: if you are a true fanatic, you will find a way to overcome it, if you can't, then allow that time for resting and maybe designing some of your code in your head so you have a better and easier experience when you get back to deving.

Good luck

Just heal. Heal, read, relax. You only get one body.

Cas :)

This reminds me of a friend of mine, who broke his arm while playing flight simulator. He fell off his chair while leaning along with the plane.

That was actually quite funny =) Just feel a bit sorry for the person who ended up with a broken arm.

I share your pain. My house mate managed to break my right hand (when I punched his hand) about 18 months ago. ;)

Fortunately I had a couple of week over Christmas to let most of the pain and swelling subside. Then I just pretty much typed one handed, occasionally using my pinky to hold shift or whatever.

My hand still hurts now and again though, so maybe the best advice is just to rest...


SC

thx, people :)

Maybe I read more or so, then again I already read very much normally. Atleast I have had time to look more closely some coding related things I earlier did'n had time to do :)

I'll let my hand rest as much as possible and heal, just that it is so frustrating when cant, but then again it could be worse :)

I thought skiers could fly so I tried it and was succesful the first few times, but I finally broke my clavicle on the left side (collar bone). I could get around 15 words per minute with my right hand, so it wasn't so awful. It sure kept me away from internet forums and got me to work on my games a lot more though.

Youch! Thankfully I've never managed anything that bad. Worst I did was sprain a wrist once - just one hand down but it was so hard to overcome my typing habits and remember to keep my other hand off the keyboard that I mostly stayed away from the computer and watched a lot of TV until it healed.

Left hand, too, so not too much trouble in school except for missing a piano quiz or two (I was a music major).

Sorrowman, have you considered investing in speech-recognition software?!

Originally posted by robleong
Sorrowman, have you considered investing in speech-recognition software?!

Nope, never even thought about it :) Oh well, luckily it do not take that long anymore when my hand is supposed to be ok

I shattered a bone in my right index finger playing basketball, but that didn't hinder me much. They had to put two screws in to hold it together, but I didn't need a cast-- just a large finger immobilizer. I had to adapt to using the mouse and keyboard with my other three fingers, and for the most part things went smoothly. I was pretty busy at the time with a project, and also with a planned move from PA to AZ. Fun!

My finger never did heal all the way back-- my 2nd knuckle joint (the middle one) is rather large and doesn't bend as far as it used to, but that has nothing to do with the break itself. I completely dislocated the joint and that probably resulted in some level of cartilage and tendon damage. But hey it works. :)

When I was at Virgin a programmer that was doing a game for us had a car crash and a steel bar punched right through his gut and out his back. It missed all his vital organs and being the caring people we were we let him have a week off then took a computer into the hospital. He was proped up on a pillow with a drip taking fluid from his gut coding two hours a day (Doctors wouldn't let him work longer).

If it were me I'd much rather be tapping away at the computer than lying there constantly thinking about how I'd just been run through with a steel bar.

Simple,

it has become a job I really enjoy, making it almost a pressured hobby.

I love it.