Deep breath.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010 at 11:50AM Well. As many of you know, last night was a bit more eventful than we'd have liked. Our sweet Asher...our poor most accident prone of the three boys...broke his arm. And, he didn't just fracture it a little (like last time...when he was almost 3 and I was hugely pregnant and he scared the begeezers out of me)...he, um, *broke* it. I'll convey the story first...then the pictures. Be warned, if you have a weak stomach.
So. The boys were playing the Wii...nothing hugely strange about it. Nathan had just gotten home from work. Asher (as is completely normal for him) jumped/stumbled off the couch where he'd been taking his turn at bowling. In landing, he collapsed to the ground screaming. After the briefest of inspections, we could tell why. His left forearm had snapped. Both bones. It was, um, dangling. (Fortunately, though, there was no blood or puncture.)
Allow me to interject here that the boy leaps off that couch numerous times every single day (despite my protests which are largely due to my not wanting them to jump on the furniture and not so much about any belief that they would hurt themselves). It's a big, cushy, sectional...not dangerous or anything. Honest. He just happened to land wrong and, in bracing himself, managed to break his arm.
Anyhow. So. We surprisingly calmly (but hurriedly) readied ourselves to take him to the doctor. We got the other boys ready and in the van, wrapped Asher's arm in a towel for support and grabbed his shoes for later. I called our neighbor (thank goodness for awesome neighbors!) to come over and deal with the dinner that was in the oven and (since her husband works for the hospital administration) asked whether they thought we should head to Urgent Care (which is nearer to us) or the ER. They advised us to go to Urgent Care (where treatment would likely be the same but cost would be less), and off we headed.
Small back story here to say that we're not unfamiliar with Urgent Care. When we arrived, they drew up Asher's chart almost immediately. We've been there before for significant head lacerations (when he rolled off the couch and landed on a snow globe, breaking it open with his head and requiring significant irrigation and stitches...that was almost exactly 6 years ago) and the last time he broke his arm (in the summer of 2005, just before Micah was born...that also happened in the family room when he rolled down the two (carpeted) steps from the hallway into the family room...again, something he'd done numerous times before but just happened to land wrong). In any case, the doctor at Urgent Care was able to tell immediately that they wouldn't be able to deal with the level of break there and sent us on to the ER.
At the ER, we waited for a bit then were finally taken to a room where they proceeded to get Asher hooked up to various machines (to monitor his breathing) and get an IV in so they could administer morphine. As we waited for the morphine to take effect (which, um, it never did), Nathan took the other two boys home so they could eat and asked our awesome neighbor to stay with them (she'd offered initially but we were already all in the van at that point). He came back about the time we'd decided to switch to a different medication to put Asher to sleep so they could set the arm (the morphine wasn't helping with the pain at all and he really didn't want any more shots, which was the other alternative). They got him under, set the arm (which was honestly amazing...horrible to watch but amazing all the same) and got him splinted. We then stayed at the ER for another hour or two so they could keep an eye on Asher as the medication wore off and make sure he was good to go before releasing him. It took that long before he could take a couple steps on his own and he still wasn't really walking a straight line. When we were finally ready, though, Nathan came back with Noah and Micah and picked us up (Nathan had headed home again to relieve our neighbor after the setting, when it was just a waiting game).
Now. Let me just tell you what a champ my sweet Asher was. After the initial shock of it all, he didn't cry much at all (it helped that we explained that crying made him move his arm which made it hurt more). He was *such* a good patient, making comments about how he wished we already had medical tricorders (like on Star Trek) and how it was a good thing that it was his left arm and not his right (since he's right handed). After settling him in the bed and getting the x-rays and all (fortunately they brought the mobile unit to him...a couple different times), he continuously insisted that the IV in his right arm bothered him more than his broken left arm. Basically, he was just such a trooper. At the end of the night, the thing that bothered him most was that we'd had to cut his shirt off of him (it was his favorite shirt...no worries, I've already promised him a new one).
(Insert here a little Public Service Announcement. It's a *good* thing to always keep a book in your purse. Asher and I made it about half way through the chapter book I keep in my purse to read to the boys when we find ourselves waiting. I'd recently put this one in, so it was new. He thinks it's cool that he's heard it and his brothers haven't.)
Anyhow, to wrap up this long story, we stopped at the Wendy's drive through about 12:30 am and then headed home...having been in the ER for about 5 hours. Food was Asher's request...we'd been just about to eat dinner when this all happened and they wouldn't let him eat anything in the ER (due to the medications and fear of vomiting), so he was hungry. (I was, too, lol.) After he finished off his chicken and fries, we put him to bed. We'll take him in on Friday to get the cast (once the swelling has gone down). Whew.
So. Here are the pictures. (My phone wasn't working once we were in the ER, btw (and I was a wee bit distracted, lol), but Nathan managed to snap a few shots for "the record.")
;)
(Yes, really. This is in the ER before things really got underway.)
;)
This is after they'd set it. Ash was still pretty loopy.
;)
He was collected enough, though, to later ask for copies of his x-ray pictures...he was curious. These are the before and after. The doctors and nurses were so impressed by my boy. :)
And that, my friends, is that. Thank you all so very much for your well wishes and kind thoughts! It's so wonderful to have that support! We feel so blessed that this seems to have been a clean break and was "easily" set...that we live in a time and place where this kind of treatment is readily available to us. Now that I can breathe again, it's back to normal for us...or as normal as we can get. :)
Reader Comments (10)
HOLY MOLY! Glad that he's okay. And wowzers on the number of times you've already been to urgent care for him.
Jacob launches himself off of the couch arm rest ALL of the time. The only thing like you that I'm worried about is him landing on something else. Guess I know better now.
Do you get to keep the x-rays?
I have never seen an arm THAT broken - it looks like that green cartoon character that you can wiggle all around and stretch...what was that called? Anyway, glad to hear you are doing better, and that your son is taken care of. Imagine if we lived in another country and did not have access to healthcare. Take care. I hope you all get to sleep in this weekend.
Oh. My. That is such a STORY!! Way to go clam parents, neighbors, brothers! Good luck on an uneventful recovery - he'll be jumping off the couch again before you know it..
OMGOSH! THat looks awful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Prayers are going up and I am sending gentle hugs your way. :o(
oh dear! poor boy! poor momma.
Oh man, Amanda. I'm so sorry.
And. I'm totally going to show my boys these pictures!
Oh my! So sorry for little Asher- but it seems like he handled it really well. How brave :)
Here's praying for a speedy recovery :)
Bless his little heart; I feel so bad for him. I hope he gets better soon.
GULP---------------unbelievable. Hope he has one cool cast to show off!
OUCH!! Wow that's a nasty break! Glad he's thru the worst of it!!