As near as I can remember, it was about 6:30pm, approx. 2 hours after my accident, when we arrived at the ER. Luckily, there were few people ahead of us, unusual for this Regional Trauma Center. They checked us in and we were quickly taken to the examination areas. I was taken to an area, Kaitlin in tow, where a young male nurse evaluated my situation. He quickly gave me a shot of morphine in my left arm and a tetanus shot in my right arm. I was feeling very chilled and he gave me a warmed blanket to wrap around myself until they came to get me and take me for xrays. Xrays confirmed a double dislocated distal radial fracture. Great!!
By this time I realized that we had not eaten dinner and Kaitlin was probably starving. When I mentioned to her about being hungry she proceeded to show my what she had packed in her backpack while waiting for the arrival of Lisa and Ken. In the bag were bottles of water, yogurt (with spoons), granola bars and lots of change for vending machines! Also in the bag was a jacket for her and a pair of sweatpants to change into from her shorts. She's amazing.
The ER proceeded to put a "sugar tongue" cast on my wrist/arm and wrap it with an ace bandage, basically what I had done at home with a rolled up newspaper and ace bandage. They sent me home with a prescription and orders to see my regular doctor.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
The Accident
It was a beautiful late Sunday afternoon about 4:30pm, 4/11/10, and my daughter, Kaitlin, and I had been outside in the driveway shooting hoops, riding her Razor, and just hanging out. We were finishing up what had been a great weekend. The weather was turning chilly and windy and as I turned to say to Kaitlin that I was feeling chilled and I was going inside I found myself heading towards the ground in the middle of the street. It seemed to happen in slow-motion, slow enough for me to think, "this is not going to be good"! Within seconds I found myself sitting on the asphalt holding my left wrist and yelling to Kaitlin to help me up. Thank God there were no cars driving down our very quiet street.
Kaitlin helped me up and we headed up the driveway to sit on the front porch. I was feeling a little light headed and new that a trip to the ER would follow. She quickly got ice to put on my swelling wrist and hand and then 600mg of Ibuprofen. I could tell by the disfiguration of my wrist that it was broken and the pain increased each time it was moved. I knew that I had to immobilize it and help stabilize it, but with what. Rolled up newspaper and an ace bandage was all I could come up with but it worked. None of our neighbors were home so a call to a friend from church was the next option. When Lisa and her husband, Ken, arrived they quickly loaded me into their SUV and proceeded to Northridge Hospital ER.
Kaitlin helped me up and we headed up the driveway to sit on the front porch. I was feeling a little light headed and new that a trip to the ER would follow. She quickly got ice to put on my swelling wrist and hand and then 600mg of Ibuprofen. I could tell by the disfiguration of my wrist that it was broken and the pain increased each time it was moved. I knew that I had to immobilize it and help stabilize it, but with what. Rolled up newspaper and an ace bandage was all I could come up with but it worked. None of our neighbors were home so a call to a friend from church was the next option. When Lisa and her husband, Ken, arrived they quickly loaded me into their SUV and proceeded to Northridge Hospital ER.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
The Purpose of this blog
This blog has been created to document my day-to-day issues with a newly diagnosed neurological disorder that my sympathetic nervous system has created as a result of breaking my left wrist and consequently having to have surgery to put things back in place. Essentially... putting Humpty Dumpty back together again. In no way is it intended for anything else except for documentation of the frustration, progression and treatment of this disorder.
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