Broken Arm etc

Ugh... see the Daily Goals thread for details. Typing one-handed sucks.
In short, I broke my arm in 2 places and dislocated my wrist. This happened on Saturday and it's feeling a mite better.

BUT, I've not had a bowel movement since then and it's VERY hard to pee... and afterward I get the shakes and am very nauseous. I vaguely recall "straddling" the trailer hitch when I fell. But I'm not bruised down there. I have no bruising where my kidney/bladder are. There's no blood.

Could this be a normal side effect from the fall or from the meds I'm on (Lortab). How long before I should be concerned and see a doc about it?

I'm going to eat some soft-serve icecream later, which always sends me to the toilet lol. Should I be concerned if it doesn't?

Just wanting experiences or opinions. I know this isn't the place for medical advice :)

Soft Serve did the trick :D

My arm'sbeen itching like heck. I bought a cat toy (a dangly fish on a long thin wand) to scratch inside my cast. my arm still feels a little "deformed" when the wand GENTLY goes over a certain spot.
I guess I'll learn on Friday just how well it's healing.
Still in a bit of pain. I only take Lortab at night now- Tylenol and Ibuprofen throghout the day.
It's still hard to pee but not AS hard, and I no longer get the shakes.

I already cant wait for this blasted thing to come off lol!

Just got back from the Dr.'s and my arm is a lot worse than I thought. Dr. said I had multiple breaks which were in pieces. The X-Ray was okay today but he wants to see me again on Monday to take another X-Ray. He's worried that things will become out of place because I can move my fingers now.
AND the meds were causing my bathroom troubles.

I dont know how long I'll last with this blasted cast. It, in itself hurts. And I'm a chronic knuckle popper, but I cant pop the ones in the cast which is causing cramps in my fingers.
Yeah, yeah... wahhhh... I'm a big baby lol

And to think, we're moving back up to the Farm this weekend *sigh*
What fun, what fun...

We didn't move.. looked like we wouldn't but now it's back up in the air.

But more importantly- HAS NO ONE ever broken a bone here at DV?
How do I cope with this damnable cast?!
I didn't shed a single tear when I broke my arm NOR when it was being put back together.
But I've been crying over this cast.

I'm a person who wears my socks and undies inside out because I can't stand the seams. I wear loose dresses for the most part. Tight things make me feel clausterphobic.
I was waking up to sharp pains in my index finger from where the cast rubbed it in my sleep. So I sawed off the part that goes under my finger/over my thumb.
I have been keeping myself HIGHLY sedated (Valium and Seroquel cocktail) so I can sleep through the misery.

I am truly on the verge of cutting the whole thing off. Dreamed about doing so the other night though and it turned out to be a bad idea lol- in the dream, my arm was deformed because I didn't leave the cast on long enough to reset everything.

And tips on how to endure at least 3 more weeks of this thing?

Removed my cast... not my greatest idea. From the way it all feels, it must have been my wrist that I shattered and not my arm. It's a little swollen and i have partial mobility (not that I'm trying). Tomorrow I'll by a wrist brace.
I did, however find an infected, almost ulcerated sore half way down my arm that I can now treat and there's still a rather nasty bruise along the right inside of my wrist.
At least now I feel like I can breathe!

My Shrink convinced me to see my bone Dr. this afternoon... but I must live with what I've done. Bone Dr. is unavailable until Oct. 06- which is when my appointment is originally for.
Shrink got onto me about the Valium and I promised to flush half of them down the toilet (I thought I had 40 but I actually have 80)... easy come easy go. He said he could double my Seroquel safely if it would reduce my anxiety and help me sleep.

My arm/hand is doing surprisingly well (so far). I bought a carpal tunnel wrist brace for it that goes half way to my elbow, and I'm keeping it (mostly) in a sling to boot. AND I can take the bloody thing off every now and again (especially to soak in hot baths).

I saw the Bone Dr. today and it was a strange appointment.

I had X-rays taken first and when I saw him he said my arm was healing in a way he didn't like. He squeezed it here and there and said if it wasn't causing much pain we could leave it alone. It's still healing "but in a way I don't like at all". He repeated himself several times.
I go in for final X-Rays in 3 weeks.
I gave a couple of lame excuses as to why I removed my cast and he said nothing except "it was much too early". He also said I could expect arthritis at a much younger age.

Driving home, I felt a little depressed and asked myself why. I felt like a child being chastised, but I expected a worse reaction. I felt dejected but why. Because he offered no suggestions or advice and I didn't ask for any.
We understood each other perfectly. He's not going to offer a stupid patient advice he knows I won't listen to. And I didn't ask for any for the same reason. I know I'm an idiot and that I'll pay for it in the long run.
But I honestly could not tolerate the cast in the slightest.

I'm going to continue babying my arm for 3 weeks and then I'll start conditioning it.

Here are some bad pics. I need to get my Cannon up and working.

Here's my right, unbroken, wrist:
http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/2659/rightwrist.jpg

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And here's the broken one:
http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/8528/leftwrist.jpg

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What I'm currently curious about is a new "life line" that's appeared on the palm of my broken arm. It runs from under my ring finger in an outward curve toward the outside of my wrist. The lines on my palms have always matched for the most part. So I'm curious if this new line formed because of the trauma or because my hand now "cups" in a new way.
The line looks almost like thick broken chains but when you look closer it's more like tree branches, closely knit. And it's a thick, dark red line.

I'm not curious for any mysticism reasons, just the "why" of it's suddenly being there :D
I tried getting pics, but my poor DSi just wasn't up for the task.

I think it's because you bone placement is off.

The only thing I ever broke is a toe--not because I have not had some very nasty falls, even fell out of trees, been tossed off a motorcycle a time or two, it is just that when I am in the middle of such situations, I am constantly aware of my body position and make adjustments in mid air. Almost like time slows down.

Must be very, very upsetting to your whole system.

That may well be it, Akono. I didn't damage my palm or any of my fingers (that the X-Ray showed). But cracking my last 2 fingers is often more difficult and uncomfortable since the fall, so even if I didn't break them, perhaps I still damaged them.

Philosopher, I am usually just as careful. I used to live in the trees when I was a kid/teen. There was a huge Oak in our Park and I would run across it's 2 lowest limbs (which were still 7-10 feet above ground). I jumped from the lowest to the one above. I was amazing in trees lol
My mom couldn't watch because I'd go to the very top and sway on the branch with the breeze.
I'd never do that now-a-days lol

I hadn't slept the night before the fall, so a lot of the reason for it was simple fatigue.

Did your doc ever say anything about re-breaking the bone? Sometimes they do that depending on the situation.

No. He says it's healing nicely... just in a way he doesn't like at all. And that it's going to take longer.
I pop almost every knuckle in my body and have since I was at least 7. My wrists usually only pop once or twice a day and the broken one has "that feeling". I've been avoiding it because I am afraid of rebreaking something. But when I mentioned it to the Dr. he didn't even acknowledge I had said anything. (He's probably thinking "Go ahead, rebreak it then I can fix it properly, stupid girl" :D)
But I DO have a little common sense.

No no, I didn't mean your own chances of re-injuring your bones. Sometimes if the bone is healing awkwardly, they'll go in and break it intentionally so it can heal correctly.

Ahh yes. He didn't mention it because he knew I wouldn't agree.
Like I said, there's no reasoning with a stupid patient. He left several openings for me to ask about alternatives, but I didn't. Because I know I can't wear a cast, so it would be a waste of his skills and his time (and my pain).

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zhaylin

Ahh yes. He didn't mention it because he knew I wouldn't agree.
Like I said, there's no reasoning with a stupid stubborn patient. He left several openings for me to ask about alternatives, but I didn't. Because I know I can't wear a cast, so it would be a waste of his skills and his time (and my pain).

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Fixed. Well I hope everything turns out well for you either way.

Thanks for the fix, the well wishes and the smile that came with them :)

It'll never be quite the same, but my wrist will be good enough. It's a really good thing I'm right handed!

The other day I was unplugging the PS3 and I lost my balance. I leaned against the top of the table, with all my weight on my injured hand :doh:
I see the Bone Dr. on the 27 of this month, but I already know he's going to be very unhappy.

Here are the latest pics:
http://img829.imageshack.us/img829/426/46018802.jpg

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http://img838.imageshack.us/img838/5518/49496264.jpg

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http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/6128/17250090.jpg

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http://img837.imageshack.us/img837/249/84902962.jpg

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http://img576.imageshack.us/img576/5245/35770442.jpg

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My DSi actually did pretty good today lol.

I saw the Dr. for the final time today. He said everything has healed :)
But one of the bones in my wrist collapsed which makes the outer joint appear bigger. The catch that I feel when rotating my wrist are the bones and tendons working that newly created spot. He said it will eventually stop catching.
I can start using my arm as I normally would.