i just graduated nursing school may 10th. started working as rn-
eligible until i take the boards in june and then on may 25th. i had been working 1 week, really loving my department and then... i fell down the stairs and broke my ankle (lateral malleolus of my fibula and medial malleolus of my tibia).
it's going to take a minimum of 4 weeks before i can even dream of walking on it.
i was so excited to start working as a nurse and now i'm bummed out. i just want to cry. i can't even walk, work, or do anything. the good news is i will most likely be licensed by the time i get to go back, and they are being very understanding about it. but man, i really need the money now, and i totally want to start using my skills.
i'm so sad. i need some moral support. any words of advice to help facilitate a speedy recovery?
oh, just cause i want to share my heartache. some pictures of my sad ankle for your viewing pleasure, oh and the death stairs...
Elevate,wiggle, check capillary refill every couple of hours, call STAT for any sign of compartment syndrome, 5 Ps. pain, paraesthesia, pallor, poikilothermia, pulselessness are not necessarily totally diagnostic.
Ok trying to put the silver lining on your dark cloud here.....but think of all the time you now have to prepare for NClex---you did say you take it this month right??? Best of luck!!!
Hi Sorry you broke your ankle. I broke my ankle and heel had surgery to set and repair. I have a removeable boot /cast, my doctor tells me of possible problems with the heel as it connects to the ankle. It may have to be fused. I am Very depressed and have been a prisoner to my ankle since the 13th of may08. I won't know if the surgerey is successfull untill my stiches are removed. The stiches are very painful and make walking with crutches with the boot device very hard. I am sick of crutches and pain. I am tired of sitting on my butt. I try to be positive and keep my self busy. Please keep me informed of your progress. I hope to hear that you are up and running soon. It will be a great day when we freed of the captivity or our ankles. Good luck God bless. Please keep in touch. Mark, a fellow ankle prisoner
went for my follow up appointment on Friday... was hoping and praying he would take this stupid smelly thing off... he didn't.
Said he wanted to leave this cast on for 4 more weeks... and I broke down in tears. "Do you have any idea how long I have been waiting to work a nurse? I just graduated and I can't work?" and more sobbing... I am a bit embarrassed of myself, but gosh this thing has been such an emotional roller-coaster. I tell myself that this has happened for a reason. That maybe God needs me to wait a little bit before I get started, but its hard to accept that. Surely he does have some sort of reason for this.
The doctor looked down at the floor, told me he felt sorry for me and said he would meet in the middle and let me come back in 2 weeks to take off the fiberglass cast and put me in a boot. I still can't bare no weight for at least 2 weeks.
I feel dirty. I feel smelly. I feel like a dependent slob. I haven't had a decent shower in 2 weeks. The calluses are falling off my toes. The ankle in the cast I know is developing a pressure ulcer, and there's not a darn thing I can do about it.
I will be so glad to get this thing off if for nothing else to get a decent night of restful sleep.
Thank you guys for your kind words and support.
Ankle prisoner, I am glad you found this post and replied. I am comforted to know that I am not alone in the torment. I am sorry that you had to have the surgery, I can't imagine the pain and torment that must be.
We'll get through this! I hope this makes a better nurse. I can surely empathize with my patients alot better now, that is for sure.
Re: the dirty feeling. No need to go without a shower. Even if it's for "only" two weeks, you can still have the pleasure of a good shower every day for less than it would cost for a day at a water park.
Buy a shower head with a hose. Preferably something that has flow control on the part you hold. Have some kind person hook it up for you.
Get a shower chair (rent, beg, borrow, or buy) and put it into your shower, facing out of the shower.
Cover your cast with a plastic bag and tape it really well so it won't get water in it. Sit in the shower in such a way that your cast is outside of the shower. Some places like Walmart, actually sell cast covers. Have all your supplies in the shower and in reach. Get a few extra towels ready and reachable from within the shower, dry off while sitting. Remember, the floor will probably get wet so you'll need to be able to put something dry down to stand on.
We can have a sob party together. I'm off of work for at least 4 weeks....at least...possibly more with a stress fx in one of the toes of my L foot. I've got one of these lovely ski boot/Frankenstein looking things. I'm bored, getting antsy. But at least I can walk around...although not very effectively.
Hey, I am sorry to hear the doctor didn't put you in a boot. I was supposed to be completely off my crutches and walking by now but bearing weight is still excruiciating, so i called my doctor and he thinks i might have gotten a stress fx in my heel from non weightbearing. He told me that the bone weakens when you don't walk on it and can cause fractures.
I start my job in July so i am just hoping to god that i can walk by then. Hang in there. as for the shower i would definiltey recommend the chair, i have one and i would tuck towels into my cast and then put a trash bag over it then i would actually face away from the shower head so it hit my hair and put my foot on a stool outside of the shower. I hope your foot gets better soon and hang in there.
I know how you feel! I graduated in December 07 then in January of 08 I sustained a Jones Fracture to my left foot. I hate to get your hopes down but they told me 6-8 weeks but it was actually more than 20 weeks before I was back to work. I was in a cast for 16 weeks (12 of which were non-weightbearing weeks) and I still have pain and problems with it although I can work. I took my boards in Feb. and got hired for a May position. I am now about 6 weeks into being a new grad with a recent injury and its tough but I am so glad to be back at work!!
I suggest that you have someone take you out at least every three days or you will go nuts not being able to do anything. I read a lot of books, bought Rosetta Stone French, watched a lot of TV and went online a lot in the 20 weeks...its TOUGH to be so laid up....I also treated myself to Accupuncture and massages to help relieve some of the stress and depression from being immobile.
Lets all hope I passed so I can work as soon as I'm outta this thing!
Just so you know...you can't quite go to work "as soon as you get outta this thing". It'll be a few more weeks before you begin to walk properly again. The natural thing will be to want to walk stump legged, but you'll have to concentrate hard on walking heel-toe for awhile. Don't neglect that. Flexibility exercises are also extremely important. You're not all done healing just because the cast comes off.
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Preferably something that has flow control on the part you hold. Have some kind person hook it up for you.
P_RN, ADN, RN
6,011 Posts
Elevate,wiggle, check capillary refill every couple of hours, call STAT for any sign of compartment syndrome, 5 Ps. pain, paraesthesia, pallor, poikilothermia, pulselessness are not necessarily totally diagnostic.
http://www.emedicine.com/EMERG/topic739.htm
Try to check that tiny pulse between the great toe and the second toe. It's there.
ELEVATE!