Well midterms are about to start again and what do I do to prepare for them? Break my leg. Smart idea right? I don't really recommend it.
Probably the first question that popped into your head is "How?" Well, last night I had an intramural soccer game. During one of our kickoffs I was dribbling up the middle. I kicked a little too far forward on one touch and the ball got ahead of me pretty close to a defender. I started to run as fast as I could to catch up to it and keep possession. The defender also started running towards the ball. We got there pretty much at the same time and we both took a swift right foot kick towards the ball. I don't know who hit the ball first or even if the ball got hit at all, but our shins definitely collided. From where the injury took place, I think the other guy must have kicked me right under the side edge of my shinguard or right above where it ended on my leg. I took two steps after the collision and let out two or three uncontrollable screams, then I kind of rolled onto the ground. I immediately shut my eyes tight because all I knew about my leg was that it really really really hurt. I even said "It really really really hurts!" I didn't know what it looked like and didn't want to see it if it was graphic. I was thinking that seeing my leg might make me go into shock. If that was one of my first thoughts, that kind of shows you how much I was hurting.
I feel like that last paragraph was getting long, so I'll start a new one. As I laid on the ground, the soccer game got put on hold and the EMS people were called. I did some yoga breathing and got calmed down but my eyes were still tightly shut. Once I finally opened my eyes I saw that I was surrounded by the referees and my teammates. We had to wait like 10 minutes for the EMS to arrive so I just kept still on the field in a sort of fetal position. Eventually, I realized that my shorts were riding way up and I was giving the people on the sidelines, or really anyone within sight of me, a good show. I made a comment about how its not fair to tease all the girls on the sidelines and adjusted to be a little more modest. Then I just tried to talk about other things and not think about my leg. I told Preston that in Environmental Health that day we had talked about hermaphrodite polar bears. There's a long story as to why I felt a need to tell him that. Haha.
Once EMS arrived people started asking me questions. I said my name and address like 4 times. They took my blood pressure and did some tests on my leg to see if they thought it was broken. The first few tests were fine. There was just a little surface pain, but then he did some things to my leg that felt like I was giving birth out of my shin. He advised that I go get an x-ray, which I kind of figured I should do. Then I realized that I was going to have to get up. Uh oh. On try one with assistance from two EMS guys I got a few feet off the ground, but then it hurt so much. Next we tried propping me up from my side to standing. This took like 4 people, but it worked. But then I had to get across the field to the parking lot to drive to the hospital. I tried to hop across with the two EMS guys acting as crutches but it was shooting pain up my leg so I stopped after two hops. Then we had to get 4 people together again to carry me. They did it using the locked arm seat formation. You know, the one you learn in Boy Scouts? haha. I got to the car and I was off to the hospital.
At the hospital, they did the initial exam and the guy that checked me out said that he thought it was just superficial. He seemed kind of annoyed that I came into the ER with a "superficial" injury. However, I knew that the EMS found ways to cause me great pain and I had such difficulty getting off the field, so I was pretty sure it was broken. After several periods of waiting by myself in my exam room I went to get x-rays. In my x-ray I had to lie down on this table. I sat down on the edge of it, but I could not lift my hurt leg onto the table. The x-ray technician had to help me. The first x-ray was fine, but then she wanted me to rotate my leg so that she could get a side shot. I had another baby out of my shin. It took some great self-control to not make a loud noise and keep still. This was probably the time I was closest to tears.
Shortly after the x-rays, it was identified that I indeed had a broken leg, my Tibia to be precise. It looks like my bone is still aligned well, but I have to go back to the hospital on Friday to see if I need surgery or not. They would put a rod in my leg if I did. If I don't, I would get a cast on Friday. I hope I get to choose the color of cast. I am thinking green right now. I got some prescriptions for some drugs and some crutches and headed home. They prescribed Loritab, which is like Vicodin, and also a stool softener. Apparently Loritab can make you constipated. Too much info? haha.
Well that is pretty much the story of my broken leg. I'll post an update in a little bit. If you feel so inclined, come visit me! I am going to be pretty bored while I am immobile. :)
