broken leg report (was: another introduction )
[email protected]
In a message dated 12/29/02 6:40:42 PM, Leslie530@... writes:
<< My name is
Leslie and I met some of you at the conference in SC, except Sandra, of
course. (Hope you are feeling better, Sandra!) >>
Thanks.
Here's the progress, some not interesting at all, and some gross:
Tuesday morning I "get the brace off."
I've slept without it for five nights. VERY nice. Then I was putting it on
when I would get up in the morning, but yesterday morning Keith (who HAD been
encouraging caution) talked me into trying to walk without it, just to the
toilet (not far, and on carpet). It was scary but worked okay. So this
morning I walked a long way before I found a warm place to sit and put the
brace on.
There are two incision-scars (I don't know what they're called at this stage
of healing). The one on the outside is straight and healed up quietly and
nicely. The one on the inside of the ankle is curved (like an arc around the
heel) and doesn't feel good. It's sensitive and for a while it was opened a
little and oozy/yucky.
The brace doesn't hurt at all anymore. I can zip around pretty well, and
walk on uneven ground. I walked to Hollywood Video Thursday, a few hundred
yards. I stayed on pavement, though. The half-a-dozen kids who walked with
me only got ahead of me once.
When I first got the brace I thought I'd be walking quicker and better. So
when they say "take it off" on Tuesday (which I figure they will, after they
see the x-rays), then I will probably put it right back on to walk out to the
car, and build up to walking without it gradually.
I don't know when I'll be able to drive. Pushing the gas would be fine, but
the possibility of having to slam the brake on would not seem safe to me
right now. I'll talk to them about that Tuesday.
Right now, my two boys are entrapped at Walmart with their friend Bret. They
went to get an antenna for a radio, and Bret locked the keys in his truck.
That wouldn't be so bad, except two other teens were waiting here at the
house to surprise Marty with a Playstation game one had bought used for him.
(It's the same one Keith and I bought NEW for him, last night, but we have
the receipt--it's already giftwrapped, but Marty can open it tonight and then
we can take it back and get him a different game before his birthday on the
14th.)
So... a few phone calls back and forth, and the two here decided to go on to
another house and not wait. That's good, because not only was Bret's mom
bringing extra keys from Stanley, NM (40 miles to the east). The boys
decided to wait in Wendy's where it was warmer instead of getting my husband
to pick them up. But before Bret's mom got there, somehow and for some
reason Kirby doesn't know (bomb threat, he thought he heard maybe) the entire
Walmart parking lot was closed. This is a 24-hour super walmart, and Kirby
said there are police cars at every exit, not letting any cars in or out.
Bret's mom walked in. I asked if they wanted to walk out and get Keith to
pick them up, but they said they're having fun besieged at Wendy's.
Bret will take them by Eric's house and Marty can get the happy surprise
gift, IF the police open the parking lot before long. It's already 9:25 p.m.
Unplanned adventures make the best memories.
I hope the police barricade doesn't have to do with any real harm to anyone,
though.
Sandra
<< My name is
Leslie and I met some of you at the conference in SC, except Sandra, of
course. (Hope you are feeling better, Sandra!) >>
Thanks.
Here's the progress, some not interesting at all, and some gross:
Tuesday morning I "get the brace off."
I've slept without it for five nights. VERY nice. Then I was putting it on
when I would get up in the morning, but yesterday morning Keith (who HAD been
encouraging caution) talked me into trying to walk without it, just to the
toilet (not far, and on carpet). It was scary but worked okay. So this
morning I walked a long way before I found a warm place to sit and put the
brace on.
There are two incision-scars (I don't know what they're called at this stage
of healing). The one on the outside is straight and healed up quietly and
nicely. The one on the inside of the ankle is curved (like an arc around the
heel) and doesn't feel good. It's sensitive and for a while it was opened a
little and oozy/yucky.
The brace doesn't hurt at all anymore. I can zip around pretty well, and
walk on uneven ground. I walked to Hollywood Video Thursday, a few hundred
yards. I stayed on pavement, though. The half-a-dozen kids who walked with
me only got ahead of me once.
When I first got the brace I thought I'd be walking quicker and better. So
when they say "take it off" on Tuesday (which I figure they will, after they
see the x-rays), then I will probably put it right back on to walk out to the
car, and build up to walking without it gradually.
I don't know when I'll be able to drive. Pushing the gas would be fine, but
the possibility of having to slam the brake on would not seem safe to me
right now. I'll talk to them about that Tuesday.
Right now, my two boys are entrapped at Walmart with their friend Bret. They
went to get an antenna for a radio, and Bret locked the keys in his truck.
That wouldn't be so bad, except two other teens were waiting here at the
house to surprise Marty with a Playstation game one had bought used for him.
(It's the same one Keith and I bought NEW for him, last night, but we have
the receipt--it's already giftwrapped, but Marty can open it tonight and then
we can take it back and get him a different game before his birthday on the
14th.)
So... a few phone calls back and forth, and the two here decided to go on to
another house and not wait. That's good, because not only was Bret's mom
bringing extra keys from Stanley, NM (40 miles to the east). The boys
decided to wait in Wendy's where it was warmer instead of getting my husband
to pick them up. But before Bret's mom got there, somehow and for some
reason Kirby doesn't know (bomb threat, he thought he heard maybe) the entire
Walmart parking lot was closed. This is a 24-hour super walmart, and Kirby
said there are police cars at every exit, not letting any cars in or out.
Bret's mom walked in. I asked if they wanted to walk out and get Keith to
pick them up, but they said they're having fun besieged at Wendy's.
Bret will take them by Eric's house and Marty can get the happy surprise
gift, IF the police open the parking lot before long. It's already 9:25 p.m.
Unplanned adventures make the best memories.
I hope the police barricade doesn't have to do with any real harm to anyone,
though.
Sandra
[email protected]
Sandra -
Congrats on your mobility. Are you going to physical therapy after the brace
is gone?
The oozing, by the way, cost me a couple rounds of antibiotics. I had an
enormous blister under the cast and it's still healing. But it got infected
and oozed. The first scab came off on Boxing Day - Holly would have loved
it, based on your description. So, be prepared for that.
And therapy is definately a yin-yang thing for me. It hurts like hell and
then I get an ice pack with electrodes to reduce the swelling. That part is
great. I can be up half an hour now before needed to elevate. And I can
walk fairly well without the crutches. But I need them for stairs and scary
icy driveways. My parents built their house on top of a sand dune. It's
very steep and was very icy Christmas morning. My sister broke her arm on
it. I made it up on crutches with a few panic attacks. Cars got stuck. It
was ugly. But it's amazing what you can do when you have to do it.
I've been driving short bits. Two miles to therapy or grocery store. One of
our cars is a stick, it will be a long while before I can use a clutch.
I'll be thinking of you on Tuesday.
Elizabeth
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Congrats on your mobility. Are you going to physical therapy after the brace
is gone?
The oozing, by the way, cost me a couple rounds of antibiotics. I had an
enormous blister under the cast and it's still healing. But it got infected
and oozed. The first scab came off on Boxing Day - Holly would have loved
it, based on your description. So, be prepared for that.
And therapy is definately a yin-yang thing for me. It hurts like hell and
then I get an ice pack with electrodes to reduce the swelling. That part is
great. I can be up half an hour now before needed to elevate. And I can
walk fairly well without the crutches. But I need them for stairs and scary
icy driveways. My parents built their house on top of a sand dune. It's
very steep and was very icy Christmas morning. My sister broke her arm on
it. I made it up on crutches with a few panic attacks. Cars got stuck. It
was ugly. But it's amazing what you can do when you have to do it.
I've been driving short bits. Two miles to therapy or grocery store. One of
our cars is a stick, it will be a long while before I can use a clutch.
I'll be thinking of you on Tuesday.
Elizabeth
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[email protected]
In a message dated 12/30/02 8:09:22 AM, ejcrewe@... writes:
<< Are you going to physical therapy after the brace
is gone?
also whether it can be done closer to my house than all the way at the main
hospital.
<< My parents built their house on top of a sand dune. It's
very steep and was very icy Christmas morning. >>
Ice and sand dunes would be mutually exclusive if the world were fair.
-=- I made it up on crutches with a few panic attacks. Cars got stuck. It
was ugly. But it's amazing what you can do when you have to do it.-=-
Yeah? I would have "had to" get someone else to carry me up or just go back
home!
Sorry for the educational soap opera here, folks, but thanks for the kind
thoughts.
Keith reminds me that I was really afraid to walk in the dark for a year or
so after I broke my leg in my pre-children days. But before long I was
tromping along dangerously in the dark.
The bad follow-on to that is that after a year or so, he expects I'll be
blithely and thoughtlessly heading down wet ramps. Luckily, wet ramps are
way rarer than dark is.
Sandra
<< Are you going to physical therapy after the brace
is gone?
>>I'll ask them tomorrow if the HMO wants to spring for therapy for me, and
also whether it can be done closer to my house than all the way at the main
hospital.
<< My parents built their house on top of a sand dune. It's
very steep and was very icy Christmas morning. >>
Ice and sand dunes would be mutually exclusive if the world were fair.
-=- I made it up on crutches with a few panic attacks. Cars got stuck. It
was ugly. But it's amazing what you can do when you have to do it.-=-
Yeah? I would have "had to" get someone else to carry me up or just go back
home!
Sorry for the educational soap opera here, folks, but thanks for the kind
thoughts.
Keith reminds me that I was really afraid to walk in the dark for a year or
so after I broke my leg in my pre-children days. But before long I was
tromping along dangerously in the dark.
The bad follow-on to that is that after a year or so, he expects I'll be
blithely and thoughtlessly heading down wet ramps. Luckily, wet ramps are
way rarer than dark is.
Sandra
Peggy
Sandra wrote:
Glad you are getting around better and keeping up with young bloods. You might
need some OT. How's your back feeling with all the stress?
Peggy
> There are two incision-scars (I don't know what they're called at this stageSandra, these sound like concerns that need to be addressed by professionals.
> of healing). The one on the outside is straight and healed up quietly and
> nicely. The one on the inside of the ankle is curved (like an arc around the
> heel) and doesn't feel good. It's sensitive and for a while it was opened a
> little and oozy/yucky.
>
> The brace doesn't hurt at all anymore. I can zip around pretty well, and
> walk on uneven ground. I walked to Hollywood Video Thursday, a few hundred
> yards. I stayed on pavement, though. The half-a-dozen kids who walked with
> me only got ahead of me once.
>
Glad you are getting around better and keeping up with young bloods. You might
need some OT. How's your back feeling with all the stress?
Peggy
[email protected]
In a message dated 12/30/2002 9:27:49 AM Central Standard Time,
SandraDodd@... writes:
but I felt strongly that if I were going to break my ankle again it would be
on my own power. I'm pretty big, the dune is pretty steep (You can't see the
top from the bottom) and there are trees all around. Carrying me is not an
option. But I did consider crawling up.
Four kids between 3 and 5, by the way, calmly watched the new and old
Rudolph's while we were struggling with the dune. Santa's gifts waited until
well after lunch time.
My HMO make me go to the hospital for therapy, but it's only two miles from
my house. All the therapists are really young and most of the patients are
not. It's an interesting place. I still have minimal calf muscle...
I hope you get therapy. They have already corrected some things I was doing
that could have brought on greater problems later.
Elizabeth
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
SandraDodd@... writes:
> Yeah? I would have "had to" get someone else to carry me up or just go backYou are funny! My brother brought a kid's saucer to drag me up the hill on,
>
> home!
but I felt strongly that if I were going to break my ankle again it would be
on my own power. I'm pretty big, the dune is pretty steep (You can't see the
top from the bottom) and there are trees all around. Carrying me is not an
option. But I did consider crawling up.
Four kids between 3 and 5, by the way, calmly watched the new and old
Rudolph's while we were struggling with the dune. Santa's gifts waited until
well after lunch time.
My HMO make me go to the hospital for therapy, but it's only two miles from
my house. All the therapists are really young and most of the patients are
not. It's an interesting place. I still have minimal calf muscle...
I hope you get therapy. They have already corrected some things I was doing
that could have brought on greater problems later.
Elizabeth
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[email protected]
In a message dated 12/30/02 12:40:20 PM, peggy@... writes:
<< How's your back feeling with all the stress? >>
The only time my back has hurt was when I tried politely to be quiet for at
least eight hours when sleeping in my own real bed with Keith (as opposed to
on the couch, where I could get up and move around in the middle of the
night, or turn the light on and read a while).
Sandra
<< How's your back feeling with all the stress? >>
The only time my back has hurt was when I tried politely to be quiet for at
least eight hours when sleeping in my own real bed with Keith (as opposed to
on the couch, where I could get up and move around in the middle of the
night, or turn the light on and read a while).
Sandra
[email protected]
In a message dated 12/30/02 2:00:35 PM, ejcrewe@... writes:
<< I still have minimal calf muscle... >>
I have a scrawny leg.
If the rest of me were matchingly "scrawny," I'd be kinda cute! <bwg>
<< I still have minimal calf muscle... >>
I have a scrawny leg.
If the rest of me were matchingly "scrawny," I'd be kinda cute! <bwg>
[email protected]
In a message dated 12/30/2002 4:55:12 PM Eastern Standard Time,
SandraDodd@... writes:
took the casts off, the doctor was amazed at how fit her arms were. Seems
that the only two things she could do were to play the piano
constantly---which I don't particularly remember---and to bonk me and Johnny
(5) on the heads (because she couldn't use a belt or a switch on our behinds
or legs)---which I remember vividly.
She was anything but cute!
Kelly
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
SandraDodd@... writes:
> I have a scrawny leg.When I was seven, my mother fell down the stairs and broke both arms. When he
> If the rest of me were matchingly "scrawny," I'd be kinda cute! <bwg>
took the casts off, the doctor was amazed at how fit her arms were. Seems
that the only two things she could do were to play the piano
constantly---which I don't particularly remember---and to bonk me and Johnny
(5) on the heads (because she couldn't use a belt or a switch on our behinds
or legs)---which I remember vividly.
She was anything but cute!
Kelly
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[email protected]
In a message dated 12/30/02 3:16:58 PM, kbcdlovejo@... writes:
<< Seems
that the only two things she could do were to play the piano
constantly---which I don't particularly remember---and to bonk me and Johnny
(5) on the heads (because she couldn't use a belt or a switch on our behinds
or legs)---which I remember vividly. >>
I have a pump organ. No go with a broken leg.
But I have a couple of times instructed Marty to "Come over here and whack
your ass against my cast." He declined to do so.
One day I farted, when I was in the wheelchair, and said to Holly, "You have
the right to leave the room." She said formally, "I waive that right."
Sandra
<< Seems
that the only two things she could do were to play the piano
constantly---which I don't particularly remember---and to bonk me and Johnny
(5) on the heads (because she couldn't use a belt or a switch on our behinds
or legs)---which I remember vividly. >>
I have a pump organ. No go with a broken leg.
But I have a couple of times instructed Marty to "Come over here and whack
your ass against my cast." He declined to do so.
One day I farted, when I was in the wheelchair, and said to Holly, "You have
the right to leave the room." She said formally, "I waive that right."
Sandra