In which Elizabeth serves cheese with that whine...

Nope, not talking about the KKK "outing" that should have caused waves of shame across the internet, but the internet is shameless. Or my annual rant about Guy Fawkes masks, though I'll probably be unable to resist reposting my column yet again. Not even whining that Halloween is over and I am officially in Holiday Mode, but everyone else is still in Grinch Mode, so I have no one with whom to sing Christmas carols.

No, I'm going to complain because my wrists hurt.

Yeah, somebody toss a fiver to Joshua Hart with the X-ray eyes, because last week I gave in and went to the ortho clinic in Chesterfield. There is a tiny fracture in the right wrist and there is serious tendon damage in both, thanks to my graceful pratfall in front of the Doubletree Hotel during Archon. So I'm supposed to spend four to six weeks in matching wrist braces and undergo physical therapy twice a week.

There are a few problems with this plan. One: I find it damn near impossible to type in the braces. Yes, I know if I just keep doing it I'm supposed to get used to it. I don't think so. I type as much as 12 hours a day in a heavy work day, between day job and night job (not to mention whiny blogs). It's not actually that I can't type - I can't type quickly and accurately, both of which are rather essential for a reporter. Oh, the typos.

Two: The braces force me to use my hands in different ways, and they make it hurt more. I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to feel worse using the damn things than when I fling them off in frustration and let my hands roll free. If I had to strap such things onto my wrists, they could at least look like Wonder Woman's bracelets.

Three: PT is during the work day. I cannot express what a pain in the ass that is. Whine whine whine. My first appointment is tomorrow - er, today, by the time you read this. I intend to ask them about exercises I can do at home without coming in too often.

It's weird. I didn't remember how much I use my hands until they were limited. I should have remembered from Arm-ageddon in 2007* when I threw a blood clot in my right arm and lost the use of it for three weeks. Talk about crappy typing (and household chores were pretty much out the window).

I have an easy out: Jim's insurance is hella better than the crap insurance I had before we got married, but it's still health insurance and by definition sucks. Physical therapy is $30 a visit. Multiply that by 12 visits and the answer is hell no. Jim's FSA is almost empty and mine's been empty for months (which definitely means we need to increase our contributions next year). I can't possibly afford that, so it'll have to be fewer visits or for a shorter period of time.

Did I mention I'm working on a book? But I had to call it quits early tonight, because it was getting too painful. Pass the cheese.

If the PT doesn't help, doc says they'll try an MRI, but I can't imagine the bill for that one. So if you have good thoughts to spare, send a few healing vibes my way, and maybe I'll spare you the Christmas carols for a few more weeks.

Maybe.

* You better believe I made all the puns. "First, do no arm." "Mostly armless." Stop looking at me like that.

Comments

  1. Sometimes, you just have to sit down and rest. Also, you have a Mac. Why aren't you using dictation? You already know this, too, that if you'd gotten yourself checked out when you were first injured, you would probably not be in as bad a shape as now. Do your exercises, rest those hands, and wait it out. You'll be better for it later. :)

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  2. It's funny to me how occupations like PT try to operate on the same schedule as every other profession. It seems to me that certain occupations should have hours that offset them from "normal" hours.

    PT clinics, for example, could begin operations at 3pm and go later, because hey, people work for a living and can't always just take all the time off they need to do PT.

    Or, PT clinics could operate on a near-24 hour schedule.

    Or they could be open on weekends.

    I see no reason why PT (and other clinics, and other similar professions) couldn't do these things, other than that people "expect" to work between 8-5 Mon-Fri.

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  3. In their defense, many people who need PT are older people or people with injuries severe enough that they can't work. So I can see the daytime thing. It just annoys me. :)

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