Hi Everyone- 3 months ago I hurt my foot and I believe it is a Jones fracture of the 5th metatarcil.The Dr. I saw dismissed it as tendonitis, and gave me no info or help because the fracture didn't show up on the X-ray. He was supposed to get me an MRI and that was 2 months ago. AS it got much worse from walking on it I went a bought a boot. Make a long story short, the Dr office has been dreadfully unhelpful,(different people call back, lose orders, etc) and I am in severe pain and back in the boot when I thought it was getting much better a few weeks ago,. But I was packing and moving and bending over to carry heavy boxes and twisted my foot and now the bone is painful, red and swollen again. It hurts all night when I try to sleep. I have a hard time finding a new doctor. Should I go to an Urgent care. It has been over 3 months I have been incapacitated. I am a single Mom and have no one to help me or drive me. Driving every day hurts but I have to. I cannot get motivated to go in to Urgent care but think I must. Any advice? (I had also herniated a disc in my back last fall and it took 6 months to heal) I am 49 yr old female. Some of the other Dr office I called said they aren't taking new patients...What to do? I had done this to my foot by taking a leap up into the air and landing on it (the one foot) wrong (was trying to demonstrate a dance move to my kids)It hurt for a few days before I realized something was wrong.

I was in a hard walking brace, supposedly for 6 weeks, but took it off after 2 (got tired of picking the foxtails out of it every day!!). Get a good ace bandage and wrap it. Elevate it when you can, and ice it at night. Use one of the OTC pain relief that is an anti-inflamatory. If it's at all possible, use crutches. It's a good 6 weeks healing. I happened to fracture a small bone in my ankle as well. The dr said it would have been better to break it than have such a really bad sprain, because you stretch out all the ligaments and tendons. Keep an eye out on just how purple and green it gets, it's a hoot. I hadn't seen such pretty colors since the last time I was kicked by a horse. NOTE: any imbedded ads are NOT my doing.

I guess there are certain rules that even folks who DON'T live alone should follow like not eating in the bathroom; not keeping loaded guns on the upper shelves in closets (had a friend killed that way, too), and one I'm becoming all too familiar with, don't let the kids leave their toys out on the floor (I'm always tripping over them as I become less and less agile). Last year, I fell down the front steps and broke my foot. Fortunately, I was able to get up and walk inside to call my daughter. But, what if it had been my head? I'm always falling in the garden, but at least the ground is soft..........tee hee. Still managed to bruise my tailbone which was painful for several weeks. But, so far, nothing truly serious. I broke a glass washing dishes a couple of years ago. I know my neighbors, didn't have a bandage, so I went next door to get help with bandaging. I should have had it stitched up because the cuts were very deep and numerous, from swishing around the glass in the dishwater. I didn't know I had cut it until the water began to turn pink. However, I couldn't stand the thought of sitting in the ER for 3 hours waiting for stitches. I have several scars to show it. I have broken my foot or sprained it at least 4 times in the last 4 years, but I say, never give up. I still get out and do the things I want to, and I always forget my phone. I have neighbors who are always around, so I guess I would just call out to them. I'm such a klutz! At least I quit jumping off the deck after I broke my foot that way! But, I see a butterfly when I'm sitting on the porch and I jump up to go check it out, and I'm like the kid who doesn't see the mud puddle and goes right through it. I have fallen on my steps at least 3 times now just forgetting they were there in my eagerness to get to the butterfly. It is really hard to come to terms with the things you can no longer do. I know it intellectually, but my habit of action preceding thought has not yet sunk in. Susan

I got that horrible-looking purple, too -- makes you feel even worse seeing that! Does your job require you to do a lot of walking around? I'd make sure to have a little ice pack in a freezer, even a small bag of frozen peas to give your ankle some relief. My ankle was better within a few weeks. I agree with Marie -- if ibuprofen and ice and elevation (when you're home) don't seem to be alleviating the pain and reducing the puffiness, is there a nurse's office at your job you can go to?