Hey kids, I need to bitch for a minute. Some of you might remember that I was in a really bad accident in October 2007 when a woman driving a large SUV ran a red light and hit me on my bicycle. I survived thanks to my helmet, but my leg was broken in seven pieces (tibia and fibula) with open fractures. Originally, my doc put everything back together with a rod and four screws, and everything was healing very nicely. But, the worst of the breaks just wouldn't heal for some reason. Everything seemed ok, though, until the weather started getting cold. I started having a lot of pain issues and things, so my doctor finally ordered some tests. The bloodwork came back negative. There were no signs of anything visible. Yet, as a final precautionary measure before we started bone-grafting to fix the leg, we did a biopsy. The biopsy revealed three different infections growing in my leg-MRSA, E-Coli, and Staph-H. Amazingly, my body has been keeping them totally under control for almost a year and a half. Tuesday, I went in for surgery. Surgery went well. We pulled out the old rod and screws... Well, most of them. Apparently of the over 500 patients my doctor has done such procedures with, I'm the first that ever managed to break a Titanium screw into three pieces inside his leg. So, I still have a bit of screw in my leg. The old rod was replaced with an antibiotic rod, which is basically a medical coathanger with two different antibiotics cemented onto it. I was in the hospital for three days. And here's the beginning of my bitching. Of course, the new rod is non-weight-bearing, so I'm on crutches. It has to stay in for at least six weeks, so I'm on crutches for AT LEAST six weeks. But wait, there's more. I also have to administer antibiotics to myself intraveneously for six weeks. And, I get to take a small fistfull of antibiotics several times per day as pills. The IV thing is easy enough to do, but it takes a ton of time. The actual run of the drug can't be less than 30 minutes, plus there's setup time, flushing the picc line, and the like. The worst part, though, is having to remember to take the meds out of the refrigerator at least 30 minutes beforehand so that it can warm up and not make my veins spasm. And there's more. I drive a newer car with a stick-shift normally. Of course, my clutch leg is non-weight-bearing, so I can't drive my own car for two or three months. I'm missing time off of work here and there, and I have no sick leave or anything, so money's been really tight too, especially since I bought a van so that I can still drive. The upsides-my boyfriend has been wonderful through all of this, and he actually took last week off and drove up from Chicago to be with me. And, the van I bought turned out to be a brilliant purchase. It's a 1992 GMC Safari (twin to the Chevy Astro vans) for which I paid $800. It still runs and drives decent enough, and I'll definitely get not only the use out of it, but I'll save a bunch of money over getting a rent-a-car. Bottom line, though, is that I'll be really happy when this leg is finally healed!
jeeeez! this sucks dude! I hope it heals sooner rather than later. What happened to SUV lady? Is she paying your medical costs? Best wishes to you (*hug*)
well i wish you a fast and painless recoery...not alot can go through what you are going. your tougth .
woah.... i hope your leg turns out alright. good thing you have a great boyfriend, your lucky. If you need to more bitching, you know where to find us.
(*hug*) Get well soon. It sounds like a rough time but when you're at rock bottom the only way is up.
I sympathize with you! What you're going through is hard. I had a staph infection and it settled in my back, causing my spine to fracture. I have 2 rods ,8 screws and titanium holding my spine together. While I was in the hospital,I got MRSA,too. I was in the hospital for 7 1/2 months. All I can say is,it takes a lot of time and patience. It wears on you and even angers you. But,once you're up and walking more,you'll be much more positive. I'll be honest,I go through a lot,still,6 years later. It gets easier, in some ways,not so easy ,in others. I hope the best for you. Hang in there. Don't always try to be brave,if you feel like yelling,do it. The emotions you're going through are certainly normal. I'm glad you have such a great b/f,that helps!
I'm so sorry about your leg! At least you can say you were the first to do something... But, (*hug*) (*hug*) (*hug*)
That's crazy :/ I'm just wondering what the medical bill is like.. I'm sure the woman didn't get away clean.. but knowing how things are done in America, how much are you under?
hi xequar hang on in thereand give it time.i am in a similar situation myself right now,ihad an accident in march 2007and after 2 ops i still have a broken femur and my leg is 40 mm short. the docs now want me to go have bone grafts and a lengthening process and say we are looking at about another 2 years to get right again! this sucks after 9 months on crutches and having to start over again. you are not alone in this and i wish you all the best.
Fortunately, the woman stuck around (and there were witnesses), and she actually got a ticket for running the red light. Mind you, that's just a traffic violation, but with the police citing her, that opened a lot of legal avenues. Under Michigan law, I'm covered 100 percent. My health insurance pays as normal, then my auto insurance (because it was legally an auto accident) pays anything the health insurance doesn't. At some point, I'm sure those two companies will be suing the insurance company of the woman who hit me, as well. I also have a lawsuit in play over this whole matter. Being fully covered is the very fortunate part, since I've now easily blown past $100,000 in medical bills. Thank you all for the love, and big hugs to my injured brethren (*hug*)
