In which I inadvertently try to cut off my foot...
Since I've posted vague things on twitter and facebook, I thought I'd post the whole of what happened here, yay!
Quick warning. There are GRAPHIC DESCRIPTIONS AND PICTURES. The pictures will be linked, but if you have a weak stomach, please don't read this!
I was getting out of the shower on Sunday and went to shake water off my foot, when I felt an impact and heard a huge crash. I had managed to kick the wall-mounted ceramic soap dish hard enough to break it. Thinking I had only bruised my foot, I brought it around to look at the damage and there was suddenly blood everywhere. I started shaking and crying for Rob, who came rushing in. He got a towel for me, which I tried to get under my foot to stop the blood from going everywhere, but it was a bit futile. It was around this point that I noticed half of the skin on the bottom of my foot moved independently from the rest. I think this is the point I went in to shock. I started crying hysterically and hyperventilating, more out of panic than pain. Somehow I managed to get my foot cleaned off enough to get four or five gauze pads on the cut and a wrap on it as well. Rob helped me get dried off and in clothes, and I made a shaky, panicked phone call to Jason. I was supposed to pick my parents up from the airport around 6:30 that night, so I needed him to do it. Rob helped me to the car and drove me as quickly and nicely as he could to the hospital. He helped me into a wheel chair, wheeled me in line, then ran and parked the car.
There were about 4 people in front of me, and at least two were talking to the nurse in a very animated matter, one smiling and rolling her eyes and going "I know! Crazy, yeah?" and I couldn't help thinking "I'm bleeding from a gash in my foot. What the FUCK are you doing here if you're smiling and laughing?" I managed to not snap at anyone (mostly due to being a bit woozy at this point) and we were finally registered. The nurse asked for my primary care physician, and I said I didn't really have one, but I'd list my dad and gave her his name. She was suddenly all sweetness. "Oh, you're Dr. Call's daughter? He's so great to us down here, we just love him." I nodded while Rob answered as many of the questions as he could. She finally got around to asking if I'd had my MMR and DPT booster shots in high school. I shook my head and said no. She stopped typing, looked at me and went "You never got them, are you anti-vaccine?" and I went "No... I just didn't know I was supposed to get them and never did. I had whooping cough a few years ago in Australia, so I know I at least didn't get the DPT." She rolled her eyes and muttered "Stupid, stupid" under her breath. Rob almost said something, but decided to not cause a scene. We were finally rolled into a room where the real torture began.
A nurse came in and took off my wrap and I experienced the first sharp pain when he pulled the gauze off of my wound. "Yeah, that's impressive, I've got to admit. What on earth did you do? We rarely see them this deep." I related the story while thinking it was not a good sign that I was impressing a triage nurse. He gave me a tetanus shot - didn't hurt then, but still hurts now :P The ER doctor walked in, introduced himself and I mentioned I was familiar with the name. He looked a bit surprised, I mentioned my dad, and then he asked, "And isn't he supposed to be doing this?" with a grin. I managed a little laugh and said he was on his way home from Spain and that I was frankly very glad he wasn't there so I could cry if need be. This is when the numbing started. Holy shit, you think your foot hurts when you step on a spiky plant, I thought I was going to die when he started. I had my reflexes contributing to this, so I'd get a needle in my open cut, a jerk from my leg, then the additional pain of the numbing medication slowly being pushed in. I kept grinding my teeth and about crushed Rob's hand in an effort to not jerk my foot away. I still hadn't gotten over the initial shock of everything and was shaking and a complete mess. I remember when he said he had two more to go I started crying and had to beg him to give me a break. When he did I just sobbed and sobbed to try and get it out. I finally calmed down and he got the last two areas with minimal response from me. Another nurse came in and cleaned things up, which felt amazing. My foot was covered in sticky, congealed blood at this point and it was getting a bit gross to watch. He had me lie on my stomach so he could wash it more easily. When he had it washed out (seriously, getting something cleaned has NEVER felt that amazing!) he asked Rob if he wanted to take a picture. Rob whipped out my camera phone and snapped a shot. I asked to see it and even on the tiny screen of my phone I could tell it was pretty big.
The surgeon I'd met earlier finally came in at this point and started stitching me. Three stitches in I feel the needle clearly and gasp. He numbs that part of my foot quickly and rather delicately, then continues on, talking on me to keep my mind off of things. I appreciated this more than I could express at the time. I could feel the pressure of the needle, but not the prick, and the tug as he pulled the stitches through my foot, but it wasn't painful at all, just strange. The second nurse came in and washed my foot off again, and he and the surgeon both looked at it and went "wow... Still can't believe you managed that!" They did a feel-test on my toes, and it seems like I managed to miss nerves and tendons, so I have full feeling in my toes. Second nurse got a boot used mostly for bunion patients or those with broken toes and padded it really well so it would be gentle on my foot. He put in on carefully and asked how it felt. I almost started crying again because I was so grateful that he had been as careful as he was, even with my entire foot numb as it's ever been. While waiting for some care instructions and antibiotics, Jason called me back (finally). He asked if I was okay, then tried to see if Rob could go pick up my parents. Rob 1) wanted to stay home with me, 2) had never driven to the airport and 3) and never driven anything as large as the truck, which was needed to pick up my parents, the other couple and their luggage. I was surprised Jason was putting up a (rather lame) fight, and then I heard Haley in the background. "Have Rob drive and Cherie sit in the passenger seat!" Jason passed this on, and I mentioned there was no way I was sitting in a car for 2 hours and that still didn't solve Rob never having driven the truck. I heard her again. "But we have dinner at my parents!" and Jason just said, "I'll take care of it Cherie, don't worry." I wanted to punch Haley right then - fuck your dinner with parents that live 5 minutes away and will completely understand, I didn't plan this >.< I hung up and first nurse walked in with a prescription for lortab, but I requested a non-narcotic to help. They switched it out for ultram, grabbed some crutches and sent me on my way.
The first night was bad, head was spinning thanks to the ultram, but I'm just on ibuprofen now and that's working wonders I didn't think possible. I missed all of my classes but one yesterday, and Rob drove and helped me to that one. He's going to be helping me to classes until I'm strong enough to manage. I'm hoping I'll be able to start putting a little pressure on it in a few days, but I'm not sure how it's going to feel before I get the stitches out a week from tomorrow. He's at work today, and will help me shower when he's home for lunch. I can't imagine what I would have done if he wouldn't have been there or been home at the time. I was such a mess and didn't fully calm down until that evening. I called my mom to make sure they got home okay, but apparently Jason was late. Haley had kept him from leaving on time and he didn't leave until 10 minutes before their flight was due to arrive. My mother was VERY unhappy with Haley over the whole thing. I felt a bit of anger, then realized it's just sad to put something as trivial as dinner (which they do every other week, religiously) over the needs of other people (my parents couldn't drive themselves home!)
All in all, I'm doing well and hope I can get things done and taken care of. I'm slightly behind on homework, but the professor where that's happening is completely fine and said to get things turned in within a week. I can (sorta :look) take care of myself and do at least basic things, though showering/bathing is still out of my abilities. Yay for caring husbands ^^ Mom is also having us over for dinner tonight, so that will take some of the burden off of Rob :)
The end :P
Pictures: http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v420/bluestarchic/Pictures%20of%20Me/Foot%20Pictures/
Quick warning. There are GRAPHIC DESCRIPTIONS AND PICTURES. The pictures will be linked, but if you have a weak stomach, please don't read this!
I was getting out of the shower on Sunday and went to shake water off my foot, when I felt an impact and heard a huge crash. I had managed to kick the wall-mounted ceramic soap dish hard enough to break it. Thinking I had only bruised my foot, I brought it around to look at the damage and there was suddenly blood everywhere. I started shaking and crying for Rob, who came rushing in. He got a towel for me, which I tried to get under my foot to stop the blood from going everywhere, but it was a bit futile. It was around this point that I noticed half of the skin on the bottom of my foot moved independently from the rest. I think this is the point I went in to shock. I started crying hysterically and hyperventilating, more out of panic than pain. Somehow I managed to get my foot cleaned off enough to get four or five gauze pads on the cut and a wrap on it as well. Rob helped me get dried off and in clothes, and I made a shaky, panicked phone call to Jason. I was supposed to pick my parents up from the airport around 6:30 that night, so I needed him to do it. Rob helped me to the car and drove me as quickly and nicely as he could to the hospital. He helped me into a wheel chair, wheeled me in line, then ran and parked the car.
There were about 4 people in front of me, and at least two were talking to the nurse in a very animated matter, one smiling and rolling her eyes and going "I know! Crazy, yeah?" and I couldn't help thinking "I'm bleeding from a gash in my foot. What the FUCK are you doing here if you're smiling and laughing?" I managed to not snap at anyone (mostly due to being a bit woozy at this point) and we were finally registered. The nurse asked for my primary care physician, and I said I didn't really have one, but I'd list my dad and gave her his name. She was suddenly all sweetness. "Oh, you're Dr. Call's daughter? He's so great to us down here, we just love him." I nodded while Rob answered as many of the questions as he could. She finally got around to asking if I'd had my MMR and DPT booster shots in high school. I shook my head and said no. She stopped typing, looked at me and went "You never got them, are you anti-vaccine?" and I went "No... I just didn't know I was supposed to get them and never did. I had whooping cough a few years ago in Australia, so I know I at least didn't get the DPT." She rolled her eyes and muttered "Stupid, stupid" under her breath. Rob almost said something, but decided to not cause a scene. We were finally rolled into a room where the real torture began.
A nurse came in and took off my wrap and I experienced the first sharp pain when he pulled the gauze off of my wound. "Yeah, that's impressive, I've got to admit. What on earth did you do? We rarely see them this deep." I related the story while thinking it was not a good sign that I was impressing a triage nurse. He gave me a tetanus shot - didn't hurt then, but still hurts now :P The ER doctor walked in, introduced himself and I mentioned I was familiar with the name. He looked a bit surprised, I mentioned my dad, and then he asked, "And isn't he supposed to be doing this?" with a grin. I managed a little laugh and said he was on his way home from Spain and that I was frankly very glad he wasn't there so I could cry if need be. This is when the numbing started. Holy shit, you think your foot hurts when you step on a spiky plant, I thought I was going to die when he started. I had my reflexes contributing to this, so I'd get a needle in my open cut, a jerk from my leg, then the additional pain of the numbing medication slowly being pushed in. I kept grinding my teeth and about crushed Rob's hand in an effort to not jerk my foot away. I still hadn't gotten over the initial shock of everything and was shaking and a complete mess. I remember when he said he had two more to go I started crying and had to beg him to give me a break. When he did I just sobbed and sobbed to try and get it out. I finally calmed down and he got the last two areas with minimal response from me. Another nurse came in and cleaned things up, which felt amazing. My foot was covered in sticky, congealed blood at this point and it was getting a bit gross to watch. He had me lie on my stomach so he could wash it more easily. When he had it washed out (seriously, getting something cleaned has NEVER felt that amazing!) he asked Rob if he wanted to take a picture. Rob whipped out my camera phone and snapped a shot. I asked to see it and even on the tiny screen of my phone I could tell it was pretty big.
The surgeon I'd met earlier finally came in at this point and started stitching me. Three stitches in I feel the needle clearly and gasp. He numbs that part of my foot quickly and rather delicately, then continues on, talking on me to keep my mind off of things. I appreciated this more than I could express at the time. I could feel the pressure of the needle, but not the prick, and the tug as he pulled the stitches through my foot, but it wasn't painful at all, just strange. The second nurse came in and washed my foot off again, and he and the surgeon both looked at it and went "wow... Still can't believe you managed that!" They did a feel-test on my toes, and it seems like I managed to miss nerves and tendons, so I have full feeling in my toes. Second nurse got a boot used mostly for bunion patients or those with broken toes and padded it really well so it would be gentle on my foot. He put in on carefully and asked how it felt. I almost started crying again because I was so grateful that he had been as careful as he was, even with my entire foot numb as it's ever been. While waiting for some care instructions and antibiotics, Jason called me back (finally). He asked if I was okay, then tried to see if Rob could go pick up my parents. Rob 1) wanted to stay home with me, 2) had never driven to the airport and 3) and never driven anything as large as the truck, which was needed to pick up my parents, the other couple and their luggage. I was surprised Jason was putting up a (rather lame) fight, and then I heard Haley in the background. "Have Rob drive and Cherie sit in the passenger seat!" Jason passed this on, and I mentioned there was no way I was sitting in a car for 2 hours and that still didn't solve Rob never having driven the truck. I heard her again. "But we have dinner at my parents!" and Jason just said, "I'll take care of it Cherie, don't worry." I wanted to punch Haley right then - fuck your dinner with parents that live 5 minutes away and will completely understand, I didn't plan this >.< I hung up and first nurse walked in with a prescription for lortab, but I requested a non-narcotic to help. They switched it out for ultram, grabbed some crutches and sent me on my way.
The first night was bad, head was spinning thanks to the ultram, but I'm just on ibuprofen now and that's working wonders I didn't think possible. I missed all of my classes but one yesterday, and Rob drove and helped me to that one. He's going to be helping me to classes until I'm strong enough to manage. I'm hoping I'll be able to start putting a little pressure on it in a few days, but I'm not sure how it's going to feel before I get the stitches out a week from tomorrow. He's at work today, and will help me shower when he's home for lunch. I can't imagine what I would have done if he wouldn't have been there or been home at the time. I was such a mess and didn't fully calm down until that evening. I called my mom to make sure they got home okay, but apparently Jason was late. Haley had kept him from leaving on time and he didn't leave until 10 minutes before their flight was due to arrive. My mother was VERY unhappy with Haley over the whole thing. I felt a bit of anger, then realized it's just sad to put something as trivial as dinner (which they do every other week, religiously) over the needs of other people (my parents couldn't drive themselves home!)
All in all, I'm doing well and hope I can get things done and taken care of. I'm slightly behind on homework, but the professor where that's happening is completely fine and said to get things turned in within a week. I can (sorta :look) take care of myself and do at least basic things, though showering/bathing is still out of my abilities. Yay for caring husbands ^^ Mom is also having us over for dinner tonight, so that will take some of the burden off of Rob :)
The end :P
Pictures: http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v420/bluestarchic/Pictures%20of%20Me/Foot%20Pictures/