Update-11.5 Weeks Post Injury

On the way to my appointment on Monday, I was talking to one of my friends who asked if I was nervous or excited about my appointment. "Excited of course! I'm getting this stupid cast off and then I can go swimming!!!" This Friday will be 12 weeks since I broke my wrist. I went for my appointment on Monday and my radius and ulna are healed. My scaphoid looked like it was in good position with the screw which has not moved. My doctor was happy with both of those things. The cast came off. Yay! right? Not so fast...

During his assessment, we discovered that I have a little (and I mean little) tenderness in my radius area, but it is also near my scaphoid...In assessing my range of motion, I'm a little stiff in my hand as is to be expected, however, I now have a pronation contracture. So if you put both of your arms at your side and bend your elbows at a 90 degree angle and put your palms facing up, that is pronation. Put your palms facing the floor, and that is supination. Basically with my left arm, I can supinate, and I can get my hand turned far enough that my palm faces my right hand, but I cannot (nor can the doctor) push it further than that. My arm being frozen from that point on is this contracture.

So, the new plan (much to my dismay), is to start physical therapy with passive range of motion, biofeedback, etc, to get the movement back in my wrist and hand. I am still not allowed to lift anything heavier than a coffee cup. I am not to start resistive physical therapy or weight bearing until I see him again...my next appointment is in A MONTH !!!! I left crying with my first PT appointment this Friday, and a removable brace on my arm.

Seriously, I've lived without my shift differential for 3 months now, but it's getting harder to keep going financially. I am worried I will run out of my vacation time to supplement my short term disability (which pays 60% of my base pay weekly). We kicked around the idea of taking Jack out of school for the summer if I'm staying at home anyway and probably not going back to work at this point until late-July or early-August. I hate to do it, for all of us. I think it's really important as a change of scenery for Jack, for his socialization, and for what he might be learning (this month they are working on the body, well, he's pretty knowledgeable about what happens with the body and handwashing, etc., so what's he missing). Archie and I were worried his 3 year old lack of listening, and whining would make us want to run away if we had to deal with it 24/7, LOL. At this point I'm thinking of either taking him from 3 days a week to two, or just sending him 3 days a week for morning only (afternoon consists of lunch, nap and a half hour of playtime outside). And let's be honest, I look forward to my 3 days a week of an all day break.

I did call my boss yesterday in tears and left her a message, and she did call me back today. I explained that my doctor was willing to release me for light duty if I wanted it. Until this point I hadn't taken it because everyone, including my supervisors thought I would have to do something during the day. The problem with this is that with no shift differential and working 5 days a week, Jack would have to be in school 5 days a week which would be more expensive, and we'd actually be in more of a bind, so it made sense for me to stay out. If you think about it, probably with physical therapy and all it makes more sense for me to have my days free for those appointments anyway. I explained this to my manager today, and told her that if she could find something for me in the evening or during nightshift, I could absolutely do it and had childcare. So she is checking into it for me. It may not be on my unit or have anything to do with nursing, but it would be a job for me to go back to. I could stop using my vacation time (and save it for if we EVER have another child), stop being so stressed out financially, and I wouldn't be as bored.

In January we put a deposit on a condo in Myrtle Beach for a week in late August. My friend was going to go with us and bring her son (Jack's best friend) and split it with us. This is now in jeopardy if I don't go back to work soon. We don't owe alot on our condo, but between that and spending money, gas, etc., it may have to be nixed. We were all really looking forward to it, and it's not the end of the world if it gets cancelled, but it would be disappointing.

Please pray that my boss finds a position for me in the evening or night, that my pay be the same (not a decrease if I get a position with a lower pay grade), and that my physical therapy helps loosen me up. My next appoinment with my doc is on July 2nd-my 30th birthday. Please pray that that appoinment goes well, because I feel like at least one of the appointments should bring good news, and if it can only be one, it should be on my birthday. LOL