Yo
How goes it? As my luck would have it, I am now injured again. It seems that this summer I just attract injury like a magnet attracts iron shavings. The second I move past one injury, the next is waiting for me. xP
Long story short: bruised rib, badly sprained ankle, re-bruised rib, twice re-sprained ankle, and to top off the summer: stitches and a broken ulna.
In some ways, it's a really dumb story. haha. I had biked to softball in light rain and so a friend drove me home. To do so, I removed the quick release front tire. The following day my friend and I were going to go for a long bike ride just for fun. About 15 minutes into the bike ride I was lying on the ground bleeding.
It seems I hadn't tightened the front wheel very well when I put it back on and as I went to hop over a bump on the bike path, it popped off. The forks of the frame hit the ground, I flew over head first into the pavement (as I watched by friend bike behind me. xP // note to self / everyone: wear a helmet!) and presumably did a roll right, hitting my right shoulder and left elbow (as it came around). I got up (without my glasses), felt my forehead, saw blood drip, felt a bit faint, so I lay down off the bike path. My buddy calmly asked (well, maybe a little nervous. I couldn't see his face, but his voice sounded a little urgent) if he should call 911. He did and, knowing the area better than he did, I calmly answered all of the operator's questions whenever he repeated them aloud (y'know, that thing you do to both fully understand the question and buy an extra second to think about it? I don't think he was actually asking me). We were actually only about 5 blocks from a hospital. Some joggers came by and helped direct the ambulance to us. I asked my buddy to find my glasses while we waited.
The two in the ambulance were extremely nice, funny, and calm. Andrew and Amanda. So nice! They patched me up, gave me a neck brace, put me on that plastic board thing, got me into the ambulance, asked me a bunch of questions, took my vitals, got my bike, and drove me to the hospital. On the way I found out that Andrew knows all about my thesis supervisor and what I'm working on. haha. My supervisor has "god status" when it comes to aptamers, in his words (but pretty true), and his friend did her PhD in her lab. xP Small world!
Got right into the hospital and saw a doctor not too long after. Had a guy in training do most of the preliminary screening, 'irrigate' and numb my forehead, and most of my stitches after observing a few by the main doctor on duty. Based on my ability to move and that I didn't go unconscious and my general lack of pain in my neck they determined my neck was ok and I hadn't had a concussion (thank God!). I managed to convince him I should still get a neck xray done. They also xray'd my left elbow, which really hurt and I couldn't move too much.
A while later a guy in a blue jumpsuit (is how it seemed) came in, assessed my motion of my left elbow again, said I had a fractured ulna (one of the two forearm bones) at the head (where it connects to the elbow joint), but he'd need to consult his seniors because it was right on the edge of maybe being a lot worse and the xray's angles was inconclusive. Later he came back and said I'd need a CT scan. I got a CT scan (and tetanus shot) and later he came back and broke the news to me: the ulna was fractured in a few places and broken such that the two pieces were not aligned and would need to be corrected surgically with a metal plate (and maybe have the head replaced with a fake if it is too small to attach the plate to). He got me to sign off on the procedure (after telling me the pros and cons of the procedure) as well as potential blood transfusion. He made me a plaster cast and sent me on my way with a prescription for moderate pain killer medication.
A number of thoughts crossed my mind during this whole thing. I'll tell you more tomorrow (my hand is tired of typing. lolllllll).
Ttyl.
D.Fa
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