"I went out the front door to meet Old Buddy. He had some stuff to unload. I was looking out at the street while I was walking. The sidewalk is flat, then steps up and is flat again, then it steps up a third time. I didn't know I was at a step, and caught my feet on it. I fell right on my knees!"
Of course Hick didn't tell me about it for a day or two. I noticed he was hobbling a little. And groaning more than usual when his feet hurt.
"I think I mighta broke my kneecap!"
"I don't think so. I doubt you could walk if you broke your kneecap. A broken bone hurts all the time. It doesn't come and go. And if you bump another bone connected to it, you feel the pain at the break. It's called referred pain. It's actually a way to test for a broken bone. Tap on another bone."
"The first day after it, I was working on my knees, putting in floor trim. It hurt. But now I can't even get on my knees. I feel a tingle."
"I don't know what that could be. A nerve? Nerves tingle. Like your funny bone, the ulnar nerve in your elbow. Maybe there's swelling in your knee, pressing on a nerve, because you hurt it and then were kneeling on it, making it worse."
"I don't know. It feels like it has a hole in it! But it's not swollen." Hick pulled up his jeans. "Here. On the outer side."
"Well. I don't know why it would feel like hole. Unless it's a place not swollen. I guess you could have chipped the kneecap, but your pain doesn't sound like that. Maybe you injured the bursa."
"I only have one bursa. I think it's in the other knee, but I don't remember."
"Huh. That's odd."
"It's what they told me when I had my knees operated on."
"You might want to see a doctor if it keeps hurting."
"I've been puttin' that Voltaren on it, that they gave me for my feet."
When I told The Pony, he was worried.
"Now I'm worried about DAD. Please tell me at least he's going to a doctor about it!"
"Well. He hasn't mentioned that. He thinks he broke something, but I say he couldn't walk if he did."
"Um. We are THAT family who doesn't go to the doctor, and tries to ignore things that are wrong. If you remember, I was going to walk back to my LLV [Long Life Vehicle] when I was sitting on the sidewalk with a broken ankle. Then that neighbor drove me back to wait on my supervisor."
Yes. I DO remember that. As for Hick, he's still getting around better than I am.
I'm guessing Hick just bruised something and maybe has internal swelling, sitting with an icepack on it might help, but the Voltaren will too, he just needs to not kneel for a few days.
ReplyDeleteI hope that's all Hick has done to his knee. Dr. Val told him to stop kneeling until it feels better! I will suggest ice, now that FRIG II's icemaker is working again.
DeleteI actually saw a woman fall and break her kneecap. In her pants the kneecap had a sharp edge like the side of a box or board, a 90 degree angle. She definitely did not walk out of that grocery store. She did not walk on her leg for three months. She could not have gotten on her knees, either. I hope he gets to doctor soon. Delay could cause further damage.
ReplyDeleteAt least Hick's knee looks normal. I said he should go to the doctor, but you never know if Hick is REALLY hurt, or just feels pain. He has gone to the ER before when his head hurt, saying it must be a brain tumor, but was diagnosed with a headache. And when he was "choking to death," which turned out to be a viral sore throat. I don't doubt that his knee hurts him a lot. But he might not see a doctor.
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