Toe's Up!

You know how they say if your big toe hurts, you might as well hurt all over? Well, I am living proof of that! A little over a week ago, while walking in the woods behind our home, a stick was shoved into my sandal and out the other side. In the process, I injured my big toe. I thought it was just bruised. It hurt, but it wasn't the end of the world. But a few days later, a pretty big bump started growing on the side of my foot, and a pin-dot black spot showed up. Then a bright idea came to me-I must have a splinter from that stick! No biggie, I've had tons of splinters before (I go barefoot as often as I can!). Problem was, the splinter was too deep to get out. I called a podiatrist for an appointment, knowing that with my neuropathy I'm not supposed to fiddle around with injuries to my feet (due to slow wound healing problems).

I picked a podiatrist the closest to my home, allowed by my insurance. I looked up information about her, and found out she is the podiatrist for all of the Cincinnati professional teams, including the Reds. She also won the American Diabetes Association Person of the Year, and other honors. So I was going to a near-famous doctor! That made me seem so silly-to bother her with a splinter!

In the meantime, the tissue around the splinter started getting dark. I was glad I had the appointment to see the doctor, because it looked like the splinter was not going to fester its way to the surface, and it was getting inflamed.

Well, today I went to the doctor. She said I was smart to come in because it was very deeply embedded. She used various surgical tools to remove the skin and tissue above the splinter until she visualized it. Then she used a piece of clear medical tape to pick up the splinter, and actually adhered the tape to a piece of paper with my name and the date to put it in my chart (talk about thorough!). Then she debrided the area around where she removed the splinter, until she got down to healthy tissue. After that she rinsed out the area, put on antibacterial ointment and a large dressing that ended up covering my entire big toe as well as part of my foot. I can't remove the dressing for 3 72 hours, and can't get it wet. She said no showers or baths, but surely I can figure out a way to bag the dressing so I can get cleaned up. If not, I guess I can wash my hair in the sink and do a sponge bath for the rest.

She said wood splinters produce some of the worst foot infections, so I have to go back in 2 weeks to make sure I have no lingering infection or inflammation. She warned me that I needed suitable shoes, and told me this was not something I could have taken care of at home. Then I felt better about bugging her with what I thought was such a minuscule problem.

I should be fine now that the splinter is out.

Anyway, just had to share my crazy day!