To prevent himself from falling forward, he jumps......with said crate in hand.
Height of jump: aproximately 3m.
He did a great job actually - only breaking 3 cups. But alas, the same cannot be said for his heel.
Fast forward 1 day.
X-rays and CT scan later, we learn he has shattered his heel bone, (calcaneous), and will need reconstructive surgery.
Right then.......a minor(ish) setback, but we'll get the surgery out the way & give a few weeks, we'll be back on track.
If I had a buzzer, this is the point at which I'd probably buzz myself out........
Turns out a calcaneal fracture is one of the most debilitating fractures one can incur, and the surgery that follows is extremely intricate and complex. In my man's case, this op beckoned the expertise of an orthopaedic specialist, and a professor.
Not so quick and easy after all.
So here's what I've learnt to date:
This surgery is a lot about getting all the angles and dimensions right when reconstructing the heel, since this is a huge weight bearing bone.
Most - if not all - left/right movement of the foot is affected.
Arthritis & heel pain is almost inevitable in the long term.
Trying to be a hero by walking too soon could result in broken plates & pins, sending you back to square one (and this is NOT an option!).
Recovery time is anything from 3-6 months - just to start walking.
And considering what I've learnt, my hubby's actually very fortunate, as many people suffer spinal fractures when fracturing their heel..
Its now 2 weeks since his surgery. The pain is becoming more tolerable, (and I dont use the word "tolerable" lightly) - considering that for 2 days following surgery, morphine didn't even touch sides.
SO..........if you're thinking of doing any ridiculous jumping tricks any time soon, consider your calcaneous!!
And if reading this isn't enough, maybe the picture of his foot will make one tread a little more carefully.
Its not the unbreakable hardware you may think it is.
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