Comedy of Errors

August 1-30 were good days for me.

I finally felt like I was getting my running groove back, and even started incorporating some trails into my running to be able to increase my mileage and time on my feet.  My longest run topped out at a bit over nine miles last Sunday on the trails of Millcreek.

I love Millcreek. Those Sunday miles spent with nature and without music were often therapeutic with whatever else was stressing me out during the week.

With the above being said, I am very proud that I went from over 80 miles in the month of July to over 110 miles in the month of August, with the two previous months off due to my leg injury.

...and then comes August 31...
As I was getting ready for work I ran smack into the couch.  I know, I know, we have all done this and 98% of the time it is not a big deal, and at first that is what I thought, until I realized the pain was not subsiding.  I sat down on the couch and noticed my toe was on quite an angle, all swollen, and the pinkie toe through half the outer side of my foot was already bruised.  I cussed...A LOT.  I called my mom at 6 am to see if she had athletic tape so I could tape my toes together to get through the work day.

I am lucky to work with some very knowledgeable folks in the medical world (yes, at the school I teach) who told me it was either dislocated or broken.  I was dreading the first choice, as I knew that would mean pulling it back into place.  The second option, although also not ideal, would lead to doing nothing, because, you can't really "fix" a broken toe.  Right?

My mom thought I was over-reacting a bit, again since it was a toe, and assured me after a good night's sleep a trip to the doctor wouldn't be necessary; however, when I woke up and was still in pain, had no movement in the toe and the swelling and bruising had not gone down, I knew a trip to Prima Express Care was in my future.

I went to Express Care, and had a nice Dr. who sent me for x-rays.  He was uber impressed with the amount of damage done by the couch.  After reading the x-rays he still wasn't sure on the diagnosis, but LUCKILY, the podiatrist was on duty and was willing to see me.

Side Note:  This actually was a good introduction as my old podiatrist moved and I needed a new one...and Dr. Narducci (whom I saw yesterday) is the BOMB (even if he gives me news I don't want to hear)!

After an hour and a half or longer of waiting, Dr. N finally came in.
 
When you break something there are good breaks and bad breaks.

Guess what I have?!

THE BAD KIND.  

I broke my toe at the worst angle possible, 45 degrees, and Doc said it was the worst one he has seen.

PLEASE KNOW THIS IS NOT MY FOOT 

(but it is what my toe looked like, mine had more swelling and bruising)

He gave me a walking shoe for a week...I tried not to get it because I know fixing broken toes isn't really a thing.  He did not disagree with me; however in my instance, it DOES matter. (Please note the doc's banter and mine was much more sarcastic than presented here....another reason I really liked him).  He told me if I don't wear the shoe we will just automatically schedule me for surgery...if I wear the shoe and come back I could possibly decrease my chance for surgery, although there are no guarantees.  So...no running...no biking...no swimming...as any incidental bump to my pinkie toe pretty much guarantees surgery which consists of putting a pin in my toe, being casted for three weeks, and then another six to eight weeks of recovery.  You can IMAGINE how THRILLED I was to hear all this...NOT.  I can't believe there is all this hooplah for a stinkin' pinkie toe....

As you can imagine, I am pretty bummed for many reasons.  As my running was growing stronger and my inability to lose weight remained the same, I now have no means to exercise for at least a week (I am just going to take this week by week).  I feel sad and a bit depressed, but I have to keep my chin up and do the best I can with what I have.