Yesterday was my son Brian's post op Trauma Clinic appointment following his motorcycle crash, and subsequent rehab. OMG. It was like an Ex-Fix Convention. For the uninitiated, an ex-fix is an external fixator, used to immobilize a fractured bone so it can heal properly--especially if it's a complicated fracture. It works much better than a cast for some cases, and resembles a shish-ka-bob a little too much for my stomach. Or an erector set. Or scaffolding--that's bolted in to your bone. That said, it is also the device from Hell, from a pain & "gross out" standpoint.
Yesterday, the Clinic was full and s-l-o-w....you can imagine a lot of these people are not just the "in & out" sort of appointment. They are major banged up and the #1 uniting factor and conversation starter? Yep, an ex-fix. It was quite an education....some were on legs--some were on arms--some were very newly acquired--others had been on for longer. One lady who sat next to us had had hers for nine months, having had every complication known to mankind. She was assaulted, but I did hear the word motorcycle w-a-y too many times --even from people who didn't have an ex-fix. Their's had already been removed.
One man whose ex-fix was only a week old, was saying everything almost verbatim that Brian had said prior to his being removed. His poor wife looked like she'd been run over by a bus, having to take care of him, and herself. Even in pain, he was pretty hilarious, though. After an extensive visit with him prior to being seen by Brian's doctor, we saw him again as we were both leaving. He was laughing saying he was going to go home and tell his family and friends that it was "too late...gotta amputate" so they'd all feel sorry for him. This was the same guy that when asked by a nurse if he'd ever been to Parkland before, responded "well....I was born here 46 years ago but I ain't been back since". The entire waiting room cracked up and LOL for the next 10 minutes.
Just goes to show you there's a laugh in just about everything.
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