It's Just a Broken Ankle- Part One
Wednesday June 4th started out like any other Wednesday except it was my 37th birthday. I was a little slow getting out of bed from working a 12.5 hour day the day before and then meeting colleagues at Ponte for a birthday glass of wine after work but I was excited and I had coffee and birthdays are fun. My birthday plan was to get out and ride Jake after work and then make sushi with my hubby for dinner. Also we have an ongoing tradition in the Events Office of taking the birthday person out to lunch and it was my turn to pick the place. The coordinators treated me to The Public House and surprised me with a cool gift from World Market. At 3:30pm it was still 93 degrees out so I decided to change my plans and ride Jake the next day when it would be cooler and instead of making sushi, hike to the Santa Margarita River for dinner and a swim to cool off. Perfect plan for my birthday afternoon.
When I got home I loaded up my big backpack with the following (not in order of importance) for our dinner:
Cheese, Salami, and Crackers
Bottle of Wine
Shrimp Cocktail
Sushi Roll
Veggie Salad
Beer
Two Coconut Waters
3 Liters of Water
Utensils, Plates, and Wine Opener
Ice
Total Weight- 35lbs
I threw on a pair of shorts, my Fallbrook Brewing Company tank (represent!), my Brooks trail runners and grabbed the dogs and headed for the trail with Tony. Of course I insisted to carry the backpack and walk Phurba Love Dog.
Little did I know the universe was already working all around me. Tony suggested we stop at the first swimming hole 200 yards in. Strange request coming from a man who would never stop 200 yards into a trail. I wanted to go another 1.25 miles to our normal swimming hole so I could lay on the huge granite rock in the sun. Tony continued out in front of me walking Opie. Opie was being Opie and was giving Tony a little trouble going up some rocks in front of me. I was focused on them, not where my feet were, where Phurba Love Dog was, how the backpack's weight was pulling on me etc. What about the mindfulness I had been diligently practicing? Nope, it was mindfully gone. I lost my balance a little, slipped on some DG, put my foot back to catch myself and SNAP! Ever break a branch over your knee for a campfire? Uh,yeah like that.
"Call 9-1-1, my ankle is broken. CALL 9-1-1!" Tony being the amazing outdoorsman that he is wanted to make sure it was just my ankle and I didn't crack open my head or something too. Luckily for me, the backpack of food padded my fall so he called 9-1-1. They could see where we were on their GPS and had EMT's on the way. The next 15 minutes were the worst 15 minutes of my life. Drenched in "pain sweat" I tried to stay conscious and not vomit.
"Smile. You'll be happier with a smiling picture than a pain face picture." Tony was documenting my accident. I smiled in between groans. A neighbor walked by and chatted with Tony about an upcoming backpacking trip. I tried to keep myself composed and limit my use of the word "fuck". I'm not sure why but I guess my Mom's good manners stayed with me even with a broken bone. Then I saw yellow through the trees. The EMT's were there to save me.They quickly assessed my broken ankle and gave me a little morpheme to "take the edge off." They put me in a person sized basket and carried me out. One of the EMT's, Rob, asked me what song I wanted him to sing to me on the way out. I felt Rock Me Baby Like a Wagon Wheel was fitting. He sang to me all the way to their rig. 14mg of morpheme later and a short ride in the ambulance I was at Fallbrook Hospital's emergency room getting x-rays, iv's, and love. I thanked Rob and he invited me to come to the fire station once I have my cast and they would all sign it.
The ER Doctor diagnosed me with a severe Bimalleolar Fracture. He explained the type of break and that I would need surgery to put plates and pins in to hold everything together which they could not do there. He called Kaiser to set up my consultation with the Orthopedic Surgeon. The earliest appointment they had was Monday. He put a splint on my ankle, wrote me a pain killer prescription, told me to keep my foot elevated and sent me home.
The hazy days over the weekend included a second emergency room visit for excessive pain and re-wrapping the splint which had become too tight because of swelling. I was in and out all weekend counting the minutes between pain killers. I couldn't wait for my appointment on Monday to see how and when they could do surgery.
Monday came along with my consultation, new ex-rays, and a new upgraded more serious diagnosis. I am sure thankful for my insurance. I'm going to definitely use the shit out of it in the next couple months. Oh, and my doc took me off work for the next month "to start with".
When I got home I loaded up my big backpack with the following (not in order of importance) for our dinner:
Cheese, Salami, and Crackers
Bottle of Wine
Shrimp Cocktail
Sushi Roll
Veggie Salad
Beer
Two Coconut Waters
3 Liters of Water
Utensils, Plates, and Wine Opener
Ice
Total Weight- 35lbs
I threw on a pair of shorts, my Fallbrook Brewing Company tank (represent!), my Brooks trail runners and grabbed the dogs and headed for the trail with Tony. Of course I insisted to carry the backpack and walk Phurba Love Dog.
Little did I know the universe was already working all around me. Tony suggested we stop at the first swimming hole 200 yards in. Strange request coming from a man who would never stop 200 yards into a trail. I wanted to go another 1.25 miles to our normal swimming hole so I could lay on the huge granite rock in the sun. Tony continued out in front of me walking Opie. Opie was being Opie and was giving Tony a little trouble going up some rocks in front of me. I was focused on them, not where my feet were, where Phurba Love Dog was, how the backpack's weight was pulling on me etc. What about the mindfulness I had been diligently practicing? Nope, it was mindfully gone. I lost my balance a little, slipped on some DG, put my foot back to catch myself and SNAP! Ever break a branch over your knee for a campfire? Uh,yeah like that.
"Call 9-1-1, my ankle is broken. CALL 9-1-1!" Tony being the amazing outdoorsman that he is wanted to make sure it was just my ankle and I didn't crack open my head or something too. Luckily for me, the backpack of food padded my fall so he called 9-1-1. They could see where we were on their GPS and had EMT's on the way. The next 15 minutes were the worst 15 minutes of my life. Drenched in "pain sweat" I tried to stay conscious and not vomit.
"Smile. You'll be happier with a smiling picture than a pain face picture." Tony was documenting my accident. I smiled in between groans. A neighbor walked by and chatted with Tony about an upcoming backpacking trip. I tried to keep myself composed and limit my use of the word "fuck". I'm not sure why but I guess my Mom's good manners stayed with me even with a broken bone. Then I saw yellow through the trees. The EMT's were there to save me.They quickly assessed my broken ankle and gave me a little morpheme to "take the edge off." They put me in a person sized basket and carried me out. One of the EMT's, Rob, asked me what song I wanted him to sing to me on the way out. I felt Rock Me Baby Like a Wagon Wheel was fitting. He sang to me all the way to their rig. 14mg of morpheme later and a short ride in the ambulance I was at Fallbrook Hospital's emergency room getting x-rays, iv's, and love. I thanked Rob and he invited me to come to the fire station once I have my cast and they would all sign it.
The ER Doctor diagnosed me with a severe Bimalleolar Fracture. He explained the type of break and that I would need surgery to put plates and pins in to hold everything together which they could not do there. He called Kaiser to set up my consultation with the Orthopedic Surgeon. The earliest appointment they had was Monday. He put a splint on my ankle, wrote me a pain killer prescription, told me to keep my foot elevated and sent me home.
The hazy days over the weekend included a second emergency room visit for excessive pain and re-wrapping the splint which had become too tight because of swelling. I was in and out all weekend counting the minutes between pain killers. I couldn't wait for my appointment on Monday to see how and when they could do surgery.
Monday came along with my consultation, new ex-rays, and a new upgraded more serious diagnosis. I am sure thankful for my insurance. I'm going to definitely use the shit out of it in the next couple months. Oh, and my doc took me off work for the next month "to start with".
How rad that they sang to you, some in good in the bad. Hang in there, hoping your surgery will come soon.
ReplyDeleteI really should proof read lol *some good in the bad..
ReplyDelete