My Freak Accident
 

Okay...so the x-ray below shows the kind of day I've had. :(

To celebrate Father's Day, my sons and I took my husband and his dad bowling this morning. "Ladies first', they said. So up I stepped.

Now, friends, I'm no pro bowler. But I was taught by my dad...years and years ago...and though I don't always score well...I have beautiful form. In my youth, I once won an award for being "the most graceful bowler".

I stepped up to the approach line. I stood ready...started to move...reach out, pull back, release, glide...and then my foot caught on some kind of debris that was stuck to the flooring. I flew forward...head first...put my other foot down to catch my balance, only to discover that the lanes are freshly oiled on Sunday morning. My foot went flying. My hand went down to break my fall. My head hit the floor. Twice.

I'm told, that it was quite spectacular to watch. Frightening...but spectacularly so.

I was stunned, but not unconscious. People rushed from several lanes away in each direction. Then, many of them rushed away just as quickly when they saw the angle at which my hand rested.

As my husband, father-in-law, and two sons all rushed forward to come to my rescue, I waved them off. I could just see the mayhem that would have ensued if any, or all of them tried to walk on that oily floor. I sat up slowly, without benefit of my hands for support. Then, with as much dignity as I could muster, I slid on my butt, forever ruining the shorts I was wearing, until I got off the oily, messy part of the floor.

It wasn't until I tried to stand up that I realized how much pain I was in and the desire to faint became overwhelming. Anyone looking at my arm could see that something was terribly wrong. I, could feel the wrongness too.

Anyway...
short ambulance ride...
long wait in ER...
lecture from ER nurse because I don't have a port (so inconsiderate of me/so inconvenient for him)...
x-rays...
surgery pep talk-must have surgery to fix "shattered ulna and radius" by end of week...
many Percocet...
splint...
resting at home...
much pain...
hoping for a plan by Tuesday.

Never a dull moment. Still secretly hoping this is a bad dream, and I'm going to wake up any minute. I'm battling cancer. I just had my breasts reconstructed, I shouldn't be having my wrist reconstructed. Someone is very confused!

I know...things could be MUCH worse. But really...was this necessary? :)

Denise

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Oh no! Poor Denise! and you mean they sent you home without taking you in surgery right away? You sure didn't need that. I hope they gave you strong pain killers. I am sending hugs. Michka

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Oh, Denise. So sorry.

But you are an excellent story teller, I must say.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

A BIG OUCH !! I hope you have the surgery asap and heal well. Stay away from the bowling alley on Sundays.
Take good care of yourself. Better yet I think the men in your life should take care of you for a few days. Smile.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Ughh - poor you but what a vision! Keep us informed of your upcoming surgery. Uggh - poor you.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

This is horrible. A Fathers Day that will never be forgotten. How on earth did you type all that??

Percocet is my new pain killer of choice. Take as perscribed and rest....I too can't believe they didn't do surgery immediately.

Rest my friend, I am thinking of you.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

oh Denise - ouchie! May your recovery be speedy and painless.
Amanda x

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Rest up and wait for the plan - what shocking bad luck and yes how did you type all of that story???

Jenny

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Denise,
That stinks- I never thought lightening could strike twice, but then it must because we're all here fighting this beast. So sorry to hear this new turn of events. I can't believe the nerve of the ER nurse who complained that you didn't have a port- what an ass. There are bigger issues with ports than just convenience for some random nurse.
God bless and hang in there, I guess be thankful it wasn't worse- like a hip.
Kristin

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Denise,
So sorry for this accident. I, too, can not believe you need to "wait on" surgery. I must tell you that you are a very good story teller as MtnGrl mentioned. I could picture it all................in great detail. Hope you are feeling better soon.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Oh Denise I am so sorry to hear about this accident. Who would have thought that an innocent outing what end up like that! I dont understand how they would let the public use the lanes it they were oily. That must have been such a fright for your family. I hope you are not in too much pain and get this surgery done ASAP. Take care Denise best wishes Lois

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Oh dear, Denise - how awful for you. Take every Percoset they give you. Keep us posted... hope you are not in too much pain.

all the best
caya

Re: My Freak Accident
 

My goodness...Denise! That looks like a nasty break. Who would have thought...bowling! ((hugs)) Im so sorry. Like you don't have enough on your plate. I sure hope it feels better real soon.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

So sorry to hear about this. These things alaways seem to come out of the blue and just when things are looking good.Hopefully it will get sorted soon and then you'll be back on track.
Hugs
Ellie

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Forgot to ask in my last post if the break is on the arm you had lymphoedema?
Ellie

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Oh Denise - what a story... you poor thing! You certainly did that injury in style. I think it's great that even though you have cancer, you are out there living a full and enjoyable (!) life. Hope you heal well and don't have too much pain. (I ended up in hospital for two months a year after my Stage IV diagnosis with a badly broken leg and arm after a car hit me whilst riding my motorcycle!)
Best wishes
Marie

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Blessings to you Denise! I do hope you have a quick recovery!

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Please let us know when your surgery is and how long your recovery will be.
kz

Re: My Freak Accident
 

That totally stinks, what a bad weekned for you. Good thing is bones heal, just be patient. Life is never dule when we want it to be.
Suzanne

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Denise,
I feel for you, dear friend! Hope you are out of pain and on the mend soon.
Why was there oil on the floor of a bowling lane? This sounds ludicrous and I'm mad that my friend was hurt!
Love
Karen
PS When Yasmin was four, she went to a bowling alley party. They gave the little ones the 8 lb. bowling ball. Yasmin dropped hers, her hand stayed in the ball, she went down with it, and split her chin on it, exposing the bone. Yes, we left party and went into plastic surgery.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Well Denise,well it's better than more cancer but horrible to have happened. Loved the way you told it! hope the pain pills work well.
hugs
Sarah

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Wishing you a speedy recovery.

Take care of yourself,

Cienna

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Well, although I am SO sorry you had to be the victim of this freak accident, at least you did it spectacularly. I'd expect nothing less from you.

I hope the pain meds are doing their job and that you can get into surgery and healing mode soon.

I'm also dealing with a freak accident but am embarrassed to say it was nearly invisible to the outside world when I stepped off a curb and ended up with a ruptured tendon in my calf. This was in April and it's only last week I started physical therapy to be able to walk again!

Hope your rehab is unglamorous, dull, and speedy,

Chris

Re: My Freak Accident
 

If I were you, I might be having a conversation with a lawyer regarding the liability the bowling alley has regarding that oily floor. That is a real hazard.Their insurance should at least pay for it.
Keep the faith.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Denise,

How awful. As if you don't have enough to deal with! Now just get though your surgery and take care of yourself!

Estelle

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Denise, I am truly sorry, you didn't need that. The one thing that gives me comfort, when things go awry, is that we have bad surprises AND good surprises. You are definently in need of a good surprise. Hoping you can keep a positive attitude and know we are all thinking about you and wish we could give you a big comforting hug.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Denise,

So sorry to hear about your accident. Like so many before me I can not believe they sent you home without surgery. WOW. The nerve of the nurse to whine about you not having a port. Please keep us informed of your surgery and recovery. Hoping for a speedy recovery.
Take care of yourself..
Tracy

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Oh Denise!
I'm so sorry that happened. How frightening for you and your family! You mentioned that you hit your head twice, so I hope they paid close attention to that too.
Rest easy, heal quickly & please keep us posted if you're able to type!
Keep the Faith~

Jml

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Ouch!! Sorry to read this Denise but could'nt help a sly smile on reading your story lol, I know it was'nt funny and do wish you well and please keep us posted!:)

Re: My Freak Accident
 

OMG you poor thing. I slightly chuckled at your candor and picturing it but then as I read further I thought WOW. Really, a lecture for no port. People amaze me. You my friend need to take care of yourself. I wish I was close so that I could help you. And if I am not mistaking, didn't you just go back to work or are getting ready to. I hope things go well with the surgery, will you need physical therapy? Did the bowling alley have you file an incident report? Please keep us posted if you are able to type after surgery. I am always here for you sista. God Bless. Darlene

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Any update? (You mentioned about possibly hearing something Tuesday...)

Reminded me of your own motto: "“ Life is a grindstone, and whether it grinds you down or polishes you up is for you, and you alone, to decide. ”
– Cavett Robert

Take care and be sure to keep us updated...

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Is it any wonder I love you guys!?
With everything else you have going on...you still reach out to me. If someone had told me 2 years ago that I would feel genuine love and friendship for a group of people I'd never actually met...I'd have rolled my eyes, and thought, "Yeah, right...and tomorrow night, the sun's gonna set in my back pocket.
But, here we are...and once again, I find myself feeling cyberhugs coming at me from my HER2 friends all over the world.
God is certainly good.
And I love my life!

And that's not the drugs talking either! As Jackie pointed out...I'm being "polished up again"!! At this point parts of me have achieved a nice high gloss...but it sets off all the bruises rather nicely, even if I do say so myself.

Since the ER doc's face went all ashen as he looked at my x-ray...and he said, "you really need someone who's dealt with a break this bad before, to fix this."
"I wouldn't mess around out here, in the suburbs", he continued, Get one of the guys in the city...and soon."
"This has to be fixed by the end of the week, or you might not ever regain full use of that hand."
...I got the idea this was not something to take lightly. Naturally, I then found the humor in it anyway...and posted the highlights for all of you to enjoy! (I know, you're all shocked by this! Since I'm usually so serious about things!) I'm sorry if I made anyone worry. I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to share the whole mess with all of you.

To those of you who sent compliments about my story telling...thank you, sincerely. I'm very flattered by your praise. To those of you who smiled, or laughed...thanks to you too...I really like to make people laugh...especially at my own goofiness.
And, for all of you who sent warm wishes and prayers...thank you, thank you, thank you!

So...here's the latest in my saga...

I saw the surgeon late yesterday afternoon...nice man, very compassionate. And, my surgery is scheduled for tomorrow morning...at his insistence. (His scheduler initially said next Tuesday was the earliest opening in his schedule. He said, "Move something, this can't wait.")
He's done many, many breaks like this one, but said the pieces of my bone have migrated into the actual wrist joint...making my case a little bit of a challenge. And, yes, if you're wondering, it's every bit as painful as it sounds...and twice as disgusting to look at!

Thank you Jesus for modern medicine! (Again!) Fifty years ago...if BC didn't finish me off before this spectacular feat of acrobatic bowling prowess occurred...I would have had to live out my days with a disfigured and virtually useless hand.

Instead, I'll be able to set off TSA alarms from 50 paces... because they'll be reinforcing my poor bone with a metal plate, and a bunch of screws.

The bad news yesterday was that the osteopenia I knew I had...has progressed to the full-blown osteoporosis I've been dreading. So, once my arm heals, I'll be looking into some fairly aggressive treatment to try to prevent more of these pesky fractures.

At least it wasn't my lymphedema arm...which is also the hand I write with...but that means for the next 6-8 weeks...I don't have a "good" arm to do things with. It also means I can't put on, or take off my compression sleeve by myself. Sheesh!

Today's conundrum is...I can't take Advil for the pain, because of the risk of bleeding during surgery tomorrow. And while Percocet makes me sleepy...it really doesn't to anything to alleviate my pain. So...
whiney,
whiney,
moan, complain,
whine some more...
my aaaaaaaarm hurts.
Thanks for letting me share that...I feel much better now.

I'll let you know how things work out tomorrow. Prayers would be most appreciated!

Denise

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Thanks for the update and good luck on your surgery. I know it will go fine. You can do this !

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Thanks for the update. Glad to "hear" your smile. Good luck with the surgery, I know you will be great. Good vibes and prayers coming your way.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Good luck hope it all goes well.

When I was young ie years ago - we had a show on telly about a storyteller called Jackanory you just reminded me of it!!

Hugs Jenny x

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Hey Denise, while I am truly sorry you had a less than graceful outing at the alley I cannot help laughing at your description of the event! So well was your story written I could picture it all right down to the oily smear on your butt!

I am very sorry you are in pain and inconvenienced, but I just want to thank you for the mental images! Here's to hopin' you heal amazingly fast!

BTW, how did you manage to type your post?

Re: My Freak Accident
 

How did I manage to type my post?

Slowly...v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y!
:) Denise

Re: My Freak Accident
 

I know everything will go fine. Also, my daughter has a metal plate in her arm (upper) and has only set off alarms once. I will be thinking of you.

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Denise, you are so right...that's what I tell myself as I go into every surgery....atleast we can be "fixed". I am glad this surgeon is getting right to things and not waiting. I'm glad for your humor, it's our best defense sometimes! I am praying for you that your surgery is successful and that you heal very quickly. We all love you and look forward to more of your descriptive, and encouraging posts!

Re: My Freak Accident
 

Gods blessings Denise! I am so sorry you have to go through all of this! Please, I do not expect you to respond to my pms. I will be thinking, hoping and praying for you tomorrow!