I'm so sorry about your fall, Donaleen. We're all just a moment's inattention from your situation.

When I was 20 I fractured my radius. I only wore a cast for a few weeks (half way up my upper arm). I remember the doctor telling me that a longer time would make it harder to straighten my arm back out. Even so, it was quite a while before I could straighten it out, so be ready for that. I was fortunate that it wasn't my dominant side.

Don't feel bad about suing for damages. That's what homeowner's insurance is for. If I were you, I'd make a claim for the lenses and well as frames since the lenses can't be in great shape after that. Chances are excellent that their insurance will just pay up and not make you go through actual filing of anything involving a court. For them, this is a pittance. Once the homeowner gets over the shock, they may offer to file a claim. Just document everything as described above.

I'm pretty sure that in CA the homeowner isn't responsible for the sidewalk. On the other hand, we haven't had property on a public street, much less one with a sidewalk, so I'm not positive. Certainly the sidewalks in LA near my daughter's rental were amazingly buckled from tree roots and maintenance issues and I never saw any homeowners taking down trees or otherwise fixing the sidewalks. Making a claim against a city has to be much harder than an individual's insurance.

photo for bellsmom.. thank you so much pentimento for that specific portlnand info. one of my goals in life is to never sue anybody but i would like a little help with the bills. trying to figure out what to do.

break is worse than i thought. there is more than one. bones are displaced. they tried to pull it into place today and put a cast on then will xray in 10 days and may need to put in pins. i saw a great woman today so that was one bright spot.

i was so frustrated with dressing today that i cried. big baby.

I'm so sorry for your fall Donaleen! I just want to second the homeopathic remedy Arnica for pain from injury. You can find it now in many grocery stores and pharmacies and it is very inexpensive and safe. You don't need a prescription..just off the shelf.

Also, take lots of vitamin D3...it will help your bones to heal.
I hope you have a speedy and full recovery!

Thanks, I think. Yep, the bruise is movin' on, and so will you. It really does look better.

The pain and the cast are a great PIA in dressing at first, but you'll get the hang of it. And pretty soon the pain will be gone, and just the cast is the PIA. And it really won't be long before the cast is behind you, too. Then you'll be stiff a while, and that will be gone. Piece of cake. One thing at a time.

Can you put your bra on by yourself? Major milestone!

FWIW, I had a wrist pinned once with a thing that looked like it belonged in Frankenstein's head. Made a great hit with my seventh graders. "Can I touch it, MsV? Will it hurt if I wiggle it?" I was a hit at the airport scanners, too, in more ways than one.

Have some comfort food, watch a good movie, and marvel at the resilience of us Human Beans.

So sorry to hear. Sometimes the worst pain is the bills. I understand. We have the same insurance as you. With what has gone on with my health in the past couple of years I now just say...it is what it is and keep on going. Take care and heal. Let the rest go. It is what it is.

thanks everybody again. i knocked on the woman's door and she was really nice and agreed her insurance should pay. it's always nice when people are good to deal with.

i just got back from a nice walk. boy am i wary of sidewalks!

oh, and my whitehaven sink came. so cool. dh hasn't had any time for cabinet work though.

So glad that the homeowner was nice, and that your sink arrived.

Hope the healing goes well for you.

Double great news!
Hope you continue to heal quickly!

Oh no! I am so sorry this happened to you. I fell on a neighbor's sidewalk (wasn't their fault, I was stupid) and broke my ulna also. I remember the pain being so bad I thought I was going to throw up afterward. You being able to go pound on a door is impressive.

I wish I had read this Thursday, I would have told you to have them put a long strand of yarn in the cast and tie it on the outside, so you could scratch those itchies. Chop sticks work too but those are not recommended.

oh, marti8a, i wish it, too... already itching.

Oh, donaleen, I feel your pain. I fell UP the concrete stairs on Oct 27th--carrying a big bag of potting soil. I tripped on a garden hose (which should not have been draped across the sidewalk at the bottom of the stairs) and then my other foot caught in the next step. Although I managed to release my interlocked wrists (to keep the bag from slipping), I lurched forward and did a face plant on top step. I broke my nose and had two black eyes which are just finally invisible. I scraped my forehead and skinned the nose on the brick edging. What a mess. Ice is your friend. I applied ice 20 minutes on and off for two days and whenever it hurt after than--but no more than 20 minutes at a time.
At 63 it was the first fall where I didn't roll with it and come out fine. So I felt the indignity of aging on top of the injury.
It affects one's confidence, too. I am wary of falling whenever I walk now.
Heal well. Rest. Take care.

Ouch. Hope you're doing a bit better. Keep on top of the pain meds - don't try to be a hero and wait. It works best if you can get the pain under control and then do a pre-emptive strike. I would stagger the pain meds - ibuprofen and then a few hours later a different pain med (aspirin or acetaminophen)- I found that staggering it helps to keep things under control a bit better.

Also, for itches, when I was a little girl, I had a broken arm twice...my mom took a straw and filled it with baby powder and blew it into the cast - it really, really helped with the itchiness. We also used a fork to scratch (VERY carefully), but if we would have had chopsticks, I bet those might have worked better...regardless as to what instrument you try to use, be very careful.

Hope you're feeling better and it's great to know that the neighbor is turning it into her homeowners...health insurance is such a horrible thing for so many of us now.

it comforts me to hear your stories. mornings are the worst. swelling, pain. today is the first day it feels like bone pain, deep.

feel better....you will....just recently,over an 18 month period,5 family members fell and had: fracture tibia/fibia requiring titanium rod....broken back....2 broken wrists requiring plates and screws...and another broken tibia requiring plate and screws. things are just strange and weird sometimes...be thankful for your good doctor[get the best you can find-there's a lot of technique with hardware placement]...As so often said, and it sounds trite,but it could have been worse. All the best in your healing.

Donaleen, I'm so sorry to hear about your fall. Thank heavens the homeowner was pleasant and seems to have accepted responsibility. I hope you take it easy and heal quickly. It sounds like you have a great DH who will help you with all those tasks which are suddenly so difficult due to your injury.

On the plus side, at least you had cause to trip. I will share my last fall for your entertainment.

I was home alone getting ready to leave for vacation the next day. I was headed down to the basement to change out the laundry. Since I was in a good mood, I was just bopping along to a song in my head, happy as a clam. Then I missed a stair just before the bottom. I swear it was just like when people describe time standing still. I can clearly remember making and abandoning several plans to catch myself, then resigning to just landing where I may. It went kind if like "crap! Maybe if I get my foot...nope, not gonna happen...oh! I can grab the...nope...what about landing on...nope...oh hell, just gotta let it happen, too late"

The worst part was we had just cleaned out the furnace storage area, so there was stuff piled everywhere waiting to be discarded or moved. And of course I fell into a big pile of stuff. I did pretty well, considering how close I ca,e to whacking my head on the door jamb. Just a wrenched hip and a very nasty bruise on my thigh. That bruise must have been very deep, it hurt just to touch and was raised for over a week. This was July, and I can still see a faint dark spot where it was.

Guess I should pay more attention given how clumsy I tend to be! Looking back, it is a bit funny. Hope you get a smile reconstructing that ridiculous chain of events in your head, it must have been quite a scene to see!

well at least you have a sense of humor about it... i don't.... not yet anyway.

DH fell off the top of a 6 ft ladder... Standing on the part that says "This is NOT a step," he turned to reach something while up top, then forgot he'd turned, and stepped down where there was no rungs. He fell on his face on the concrete, and knocked his shoulder out of the socket. It was 10 days before he went to the dr and found out he'd broken his shoulder socket and needed surgery, including screws. They gave him quite the combo of pain meds he was happy to have for the first week or so. It seems outrageous and negligent to have sent you home without reading the X-ray and treating you, including a prescription for pain help.

Great that the woman is so easy to deal with regarding the insurance and help with your bills. Take care of yourself!

i think a lot of you have had worse accidents than mine, and worse pain. i didn't even think it was so bad when they realigned my wrist before they put the cast on. i am lucky that way.

the worst bits for me are 1)how limited i am in what i can do and 2) i really hate dealing with the medical establishment. they treat you like a criminal and are way more invasive than the situation merits. for example, even though we were paying on the spot they were very concerned that i didn't have my id. why...it was just an xray.

i take absolute responsibility for my health. that means i want advice from experts but i want to make the decisions, not just do whatever they say. my body, my money, my decisions. but they get indignant when i question why they need the information they ask for. i don't accept that they need it just because it's on the form. i need a clear reason before i am willing to supply what i consider to be private and sensitive information. they think they are entitled to anything they ask for. so it's always a fight because i do not see it that way.

Hi donaleen,

I agree with williamsem... at least you have a good excuse for the injuries. And maybe a good story to go with the cast once the pain and frustration have settled down a bit and you can laugh about it.

For comparison, I managed to break my toe 3 weeks ago and have no excuse at all. I was walking from the bathroom back to my bed in the middle of the night and bonked my toe into the corner of the bedpost. Crunch. My podiatrist said: "Damn, you don't even have a good story. Make up a better one!"

I had a cast on my lower leg for 6 weeks last fall for a broken foot. (Bad bike accident.) It was awful for the first week or so, but I got used to it and got frustrated. I think you will too.

One bit of unsolicited advice: If the pain gets bad and tylenol isn't doing the trick, don't be afraid to ask for something stronger like vicodin until it settles down. Especially if you need surgery to put pins in!

I hope it stops hurting soon!

Laura

Oh, oh! Stories for when you get tired of telling people what happened when they ask about the cast. (This will be after the eye returns to normal, because at the moment that is much more spectacular.):

My MIL had polio in 1949 and lost the use of her left arm (also a lot of muscle in her torso, but that didn't show). Her arm was in a molded plastic cradle thing and hung around her neck with a web strap. It really didn't look like a cast and sling, but many people assumed she'd broken her arm and felt the need to ask about it. I heard her tell any number of stories, but my favorite was that she fell out of a tree. She was in her 70s!

My teenage son slammed his finger in a door and had this monster bandage wrapped around the finger and anchored around his wrist. He was really embarrassed to say he'd slammed it in a door. As it was oozing blood on that first day back from the ER he told a couple of people that he'd been shot vs being a klutz who couldn't get a door closed without smashing his finger. We told him he couldn't say that!! That one only works if you're a teenage boy with like-minded friends.

And finally, did you know you can remove your own cast? Not that I recommend it, you understand. When I was a teacher in a private school, I had an 8th grade girl who aspired to being a doctor. When it was time for her cast to come off (like yours), for whatever reason her parents didn't get her to the doctor in a timely fashion. One day she just borrowed a pair of scissors (not from me!) and hacked it off. I didn't even know that was possible!

It's never too early to come up with a much more interesting story than tripping over a crack in the sidewalk. ;-)

My daughter's cast finally just fell off from her activities. Your student may not have had much to cut through. We have removed stitches before too, on ourselves, not the kids. Mom was an RN and had the tools/knowledge.

RN/Trailrunner....my doc gave me a similar cocktail, it does work. IB and tylenol though wthout the aspirin. Actually aspirin works great for me on it's own. And yes on a regular schedule rather than waiting til any pain shows up.

Don....wishing you fast healing. Are they still considering pins?

Been there and know how disconnected you can feel in all that was normal. As for stories, when 3/4 of my face looked like yours, there were a couple of occasions that perfect strangers felt the need to discuss domestic abuse with me. They were darn serious. I just let them ramble, thinking they had their own problems/needs to deal with. Didn't even try to explain the real event.

I completely understand your reluctance to give sensitive information. The part that's hard to understand unless you are "behind the scenes" in the medical field is there is all sorts of fraud that can occur, and if at any point medical insurance, homeowners insurance, lawyers, or other officialdom might get involved, that sort of documentation can become important, or the lack of that information can really muck things up. It's hard to predict at the onset, and in some cases might be very hard to do after the fact (could be frustrating). And from experience I can attest that even a simple piece of missing information is sometimes very hard to get after the fact for a variety of reasons, such as disconnected phone number, inability to leave a message at the number provided, refusal to return calls, etc. Plus if you are a new patient somewhere, collecting the information up front makes future visits easier, especially if they might involve surgery or be on an emergency basis where you cannot provide needed info.

Any place providing medical care must protect any information you provide. Disclosing it to anyone other than for payment (insurance), treatment (medical staff) or operations (required reporting, generally de-identified to government or quality agencies) needs your permission. Any use not outlined in their notice of privacy practices (required to be provided the first time you go there) is not allowed.

Often the front end staff may not realize why some things are needed. They are far removed from where insurance is processed, legal requests are reviewed and handled, and law enforcement actions. Often problems come back to them as "remember you MUST do this" without nessicarily explaining why it's important.

Ok, so last week I was climbing on a stool in the garage to get a very heavy STBX container off a top shelf. I misbalanced and fell backwards. I also freaked in slow motion. Luckily, I just landed backwards on my workbench, with the container on top of me. After the mental check of broken? bleeding? can I move? I realized I'd "just" landed on a hammer, so I have a bull's eye bruise on my bummy. Someday I'll tell you about a yoga move where I broke my middle toe. THAT takes skill.

However, today I was thinking about you and just popped in to see how you were doing? I'm sure you're achy and feeling a bit stiff, still.
Hang in there and get your bills covered.

thank you all for continuing to have an interest in my situation. mornings continue to be the worst... stiff and achy. i guess that aspirin and arnica does help quite a bit because it gets much better after they kick in.

I am searching for things i can do. i can walk, though it is quite rainy this weekend. still, it is nice to get out. i can watch videos and i can read. however, i am a person who likes to work with my hands so i am missing that a lot. even typing has to be one handed. although i can move my fingers on my injured arm, it causes me pain.

i found a show called 1900 house on youtube which is a reality show where a family lives the life of that time. it was a hard life for women living a life of drudgery in very restrictive clothing...corsets and long skirts. men had it much better. of course they don't have to endure the terrible pollution of that time.

my dh continues to take good care of me. i hate that my care takes so much of his time away from the kitchen cabinet building.

in about a week they will check my wrist to see if the cast is sufficient or if it will require pins. i hope i won't need pins because that would mean a longer time in the cast, more expense, and more of the hated interaction with western medicine.

my eye today

I had also wanted to tell you, mostly, but forgot, that my dh was completely scared and convinced his shoulder would never be the same again... that it would always hurt, or worse, always be weak and have far less range of motion. We are only 5 months after he broke it and he's already back to full speed, and because of physical therapy, probably has better range of motion than before.

rhome410, that is awfully nice to hear. i am worried about full recovery.

my wrist is really hurting right now...just when i thought i was so lucky not to have much pain.

rhome410, that is awfully nice to hear. i am worried about full recovery.

my wrist is really hurting right now...just when i thought i was so lucky not to have much pain.

Yep, I'll second Rhome's message. Recovery will come. Just takes a while.

My last break was a wrist when I was blown over by a gust of wind at Canyon de Chelly in Arizona. The whole incident was a wonderful experience (well, sort of.) I was taken to the Navaho Indian Reservation Hospital by a Navaho ambulance that served something like a 200 mile radius of tiny secondary roads. Lovely women driving the ambulance. The only doctor, who was from Maine and was flown in for two weeks on, two weeks off duty, set the wrist as well as he could. The main nurse was from New Zealand!! on a short stint in the US, and the second nurse was a nice young man from Ohio or some place in his first week there.

As I was waiting for the doctor to return to check the X-rays after setting my wrist when he looked in, apologized, and said, "I'm sorry for the delay, but we have a baby here trying real hard to die. I'll be back as soon as I can." We could see a cluster of people around a stretcher down the hall.

As I waited I talked to the NZ nurse--wonderful to hear her reason for being there and her take on the desert and the reservation--and to the Ohio (or wherever he was from) nurse who was so astounded by everything.

The doctor returned, smiled happily at the x-ray, and wanted to send me to the nearest full service hospital (in Gallup) to have them double check it. We decided to just drive on home--near Louisville, KY.

I got home, saw my physician, then a surgeon, then got the wrist reset (the bones had slipped) and pinned. It hurt a good bit for longer than I expected, and was weaker than I expected when the cast came off. But now, three years or so after, there is NO difference between one and the other.

And I wouldn't trade you my wonderful experience for anything. If I had to break a wrist, it was an eye-opener. I strongly recommend a strong wind gust in Canyon de Chelly instead of of crumby sidewalk!

Anyway, it will be fine. Like yours, the ends of the ulna had slipped past each other and the other bone's joint was stressed.

Be patient. It will mend. And meanwhile, I replied to your question on the other thread about the pull-out towel rack under the sink.
Sandra

Your eye reports make me laugh. And it looks better every time. If I ever get two or three inches eye to eye from you, I will know you in a minute, with or without bruises!

Donnaleen- it is a slow recovery but hang in there.
The colors will continue to turn lovely colors before they fade.

I fractured my hand a few years ago and did need surgery. I asked the surgeon about the precautions and he said- non weight bearing and don't fall. I skied a few cross country ski races with one pole. When I graduated from the surgeon, I gave him a picture of me skiing in the race. He still uses it as a teaching tool with his residents. The bones healed fine but it did take time!

I was fortunate that I didn't have too much pain. Also with the surgery, I was in a splint vs a cast which was nice.

that's a great story, bellsmom. those pictures make me realize something has happened to my eyebrows. they are sort of missing. i have receding eyebrows! i didn't know that could happen.

i've also become a sidewalk cop...when i walk, i notice bad sidewalks and i reported four of them today. see what i mean?

here is me when i am not banged up.

Bellsmom, I envy you your trip to Canyon de Chelly (but not the broken wrist). The photos I've seen of it are beautiful. I didn't make it there on my last trip to Arizona, though I did manage to see the Grand Canyon, Antelope Canyon, and Monument Valley, plus Bryce Canyon up in Utah. Next time.

a2gemini, that's interesting about the splint vs. cast. One of my office-mates broke his wrist a few weeks ago and had the opposite reaction. He needed surgery and pins, and came back to work a couple weeks later with an enormous splint on his forearm. He and was super-happy to get it replaced with a cast a couple of days ago. That's mostly because the cast is smaller and lighter, I think.

Laura

okay, i have to complain about my dh.

today when we were walking to the library discussing what activities i can still do, he told me he was worried about me sitting around too much since i've been hurt and that maybe i should walk around the house and dust, even if i wasn't very effective, just to give me an activity.

this didn't go over too well with me. i know he wants the best for me, but that just was not the right thing to say. esecially, as i pointed out, that he turned me down twice yesterday when i wanted to go walking.

my dh, really is wonderful, especially for a man... but then, as i tell him there is a low standard for men. men!!

If someone suggested that I do housework as exercise, I think I'd have to smack them. With the cast. :-)

Laura

I am worried the gods that be here on GW will take this off Kitchens and stick it in conversations. I promise my next post will be about kitchens. In fact, I will close this post with a reference about kitchens.
Donaleen--I KNOW you are healing. You made me laugh loudly. WHY wouldn't DH want to take you walking!!?? Especially now that, as a sidewalk cop, you'd have your notebook and phone out every twenty feet to report unsafe cracks and crevices to the powers that oversee sidewalk safety. (And everyone knows that dusting is great aerobic exercise.)

lwerner
Go to Canyon de Chelly in October, not in spring when the winds and dust storms swirl. Splurge on a private, guided trip instead of a van trip into the canyon. But bus trip is better than none. Lovely place. Good memories. I've seen the others, too and loved them. I want to spend a week in Monument Valley.
On topic:
Everyone--
did you see CEF's post about the wonderful tile? Link below:

Here is a link that might be useful: Fine Art Tileworks--click on catalog to see products

Wow...You were on a bumpy sidewalk, but DH has himself on thin ice!

bellsmom and rhome410, you are hysterical.

that tile link is for Lake Oswego, just outside Portland, where I am.

cast finally OFF...

http://spitnvinegar.blogspot.com/2012/12/my-cast-is-off.html

Here is a link that might be useful: cast off

This post was edited by donaleen on Sat, Dec 29, 12 at 12:24

Great News!

Yay! Now you can start the new year off right!

Exciting - Ask your doctor about some hand therapy to help you regain full function.
Happy New Year!

I was just thinking about you today! Thank you for posting an update on your wrist. Enjoy!

Ah, great news. I finally feel 100% recovered, too. It took way to long to get back to normal--hence, my increased awareness of the decrement of aging. Being 63 has its benefits, but falling and recovering from falls are not among the perks.

donaleen, Hooray! Glad the cast is off! I hope you will be back to your old complete self real soon!

dretutz glad you are 100%, too!

Thanks everybody... and here is the requested smile (Marcolo). It's hard to smile taking your own picture.

Glad to hear you are on the mend. You look great.