Life with two broken arms
It’s amazing how many things you do with your hands each day. So much in fact, it’s easy to take it for granted. Mike and I found out quickly after he broke both his arms.
How did it happen? Mike and his friend, Eugene, went on a motorcycle adventure weekend to the coast while I was traveling in Europe. They made a last minute decision to explore the Oregon sand dunes by renting 4 wheelers. The company required them to watch safety videos before they hit the sand.
15 minutes into the ride Mike was traveling at a responsible speed and bam - he fell 4 ft down a sand dune. From previous experiences he knew right away he had broken his wrist. The other glaring evidence was how the wrist looked itself. Mike was taken to the hospital in Florence, OR. With a break like this the nurse put him in the chinese finger lock and placed a 10 pound sand back on the arm hoping the bones would snap back into place. These efforts did not work and the next option was surgery.
Mike’s right wrist had a distalled fracture in his radius and ulna. His left arm had a closed intra-articular fracture of the distal end of the left radius.
We opted to have surgery right away. A few hours later, Mike had a new shiny metal plate and 10 screws that placed his right wrist back together. The left wrist needed a cast for 6-8 weeks.
At the time of the accident I was in Lysekil, Sweden. I missed multiple calls and text messages from Eugene. It was a painstaking 10 mins trying to connect through WhatsApp. Finally at 3am my time we connected via video chat and I saw Mike in the hospital bed. I was able to see and hear the surgeon go over our options. Technology is amazing. I immediately booked an early flight home.
Two broken arms make for challenging logistics. Mike and Eugene had rode their motorcycles to the coast so obviously Mike was in no shape or even able to ride home. The location of the accident, Florence OR is about a 3 hour drive from Portland. Eugene was a saint and rented a car to get Mike back home. Later that week he drove a trailer back to the coast to pick up both motorcycles.
At the time I was in between jobs which made the timing as best as it could be. We learned quickly how much our daily lives depend on one's hands.
Below is a short list of what Mike could NOT do in the beginning on his own::
Use the bathroom
Feed himself
Drink from a cup, straws were needed for everything (coffee and beer from a straw was adorable)
Dress himself
Open doors
Open car doors or even buckle himself in
Drive
Bathe or any washing
Read a physical book
Open a laptop
Type or text - voice commands only gets you so far
Pet our dog
About 2 weeks after the accident Mike had his stitches removed and we started to see small improvements. Mike now had the ability to carry his cell phone around the house if he used both hands or flushing the toilet with his big toe.
Through all of this Mike stayed positive which helped my mental health tremendously. I recall leaving for lunch with a friend and Mike texted asking how soon I’d be back because he needed water. He was unable to turn facets on himself.
Every few weeks we took a trip to Florence for Mike to have his follow up appointment with his surgeon. These trips to the coast were a nice escape from our tiny place in Portland. It was entertaining seeing people's reactions to Mike’s two broken arms. Mike would have fun with it and tell crazy stories of how he broke them. At the hotel Mike ordered a steak and asked the waitress if the cook could cut it for him. She commented, we don’t do that here. I asked politely if they’d be willing to cut to give me a break. Mike held up his arms and she immediately said yes.
During Mike’s recovery Portland had one of the hottest summers with days over 100. We had to buy additional AC units to keep our place cool. Another blessing was Mike’s family bought us a bidet which is by far the best gift in the world. I sometimes wonder if the bidet is what saved us both!
Through this journey I was, in a way, forced to step up and take the lead on everything. I learned how to meal plan like a champ, multi-task like a boss and split wood when camping. The best part was how much this experience deepen my relationship with Mike. We know we can do anything together.