External Fixator

I finally got my bandages removed and got a good look at the device holding my finger together - the external fixator. As it turns out, taking a picture of my hand, particularly an in focus picture turned out to be more of an ordeal than I had planned on and this was the best I could do. Being unable to get this thing wet for the 4-6 weeks I have to have it attached is already proving to be a difficulty. Washing one hand is really a challenge. And other simple tasks like getting my keys out of my pocket are troublesome.


The good news is that the pain is mostly gone now, even after my first physical therapy session today which I had expected to leave me in tears. If I don't want to end up with significant loss of motion though, I will have to start bending it as much as possible as soon as possible. I've been trying to bend it the last 2 days and really can't move it very far without pain. Right now I'm just hoping for a little more each day. Unfortunately I'm told I can expect a 10-20% loss of range and arthritis. I'm going to push it as much as I can to get back to as close to normal as I can though.


I'm still struggling with the psychological implications a bit. Being unable to participate in my black belt test, now a little over a week away is hard to come to grips with. And the last few minutes alone in the hospital before they wheeled me into the operating room it was just really hard to believe that I was going through all of that over a broken finger. One fluke accident blocking a kick, something I've done a thousand times before, and my black belt was being taken away from me, I was in a hospital about to be put under, and I was going to have to endure weeks of pain and discomfort. I'm slowly getting over that, but I don't know how long it will take to get over it completely.


I am off the pain killers though and am hopeful for a successful recovery. And I can type reasonbly well. It seems that keeping it clean and free of infection will be one of the most important things from here on. If I get some better pictures, I'll throw them up.