I must preface this post by saying, if you don't like to see goorey, nasty ish, DO NOT look at this! It's pretty nasty. However, I do love that ish and wanted to document this moment in our lives. So, on July 11th, I got a call from my dear hubs at 8:15 am. My phone was still my bag, I had just gotten to work so didn't hear it. I received his voicemail, which said something like, "hey babe, just wanted to tell you I just hurt myself at work, nothing to be worried about, but a few of the safety guys are just going with me to get it checked out." Ok, I though. I called him back and he's calm as a cucumber, he was in the car with the 2 guys, heading to medimerge. I asked what the heck happened and he just said he hurt his finger at work and he's just going to get it checked out. I joked, saying, "don't be a wimp, get your a$$ back to work!" We laughed and he said he'd call me when he got any more info. This was around 8:45. I didn't think it was a big deal, plus I asked him if he wanted me to come and he said, no it's not a big deal, I'll be fine.
About 30 minutes later, he called me telling me that they're talking about amputating it! WHAT THE $(%&$(%&???????? This goes from, no big deal, to a possible need to amputate it! STELLAR wife here, working while her poor hubs is in the ER with a huge injury! Needless to say, when I got that call, I left work immediately. By the time I got to Robert Wood Johnson in Rahway, they had taken XRays and determined that there was no bone broken, score. However, this was already the 2nd stop in his 3 stop journey and the tip of his finger was just sitting on ice. When losing skin like he did, or any piece of skin or body part for that matter, my understanding that there is a serious time crunch to get it reattached if it's going to happen at all. Since the injury happened at 7:30 and it was already 10:30, we were losing lots of precious time. The surgeon (who was a freaking moron if you ask me), told us that our best bet was to go somewhere else, but wasn't specific. Finally he came back and said that our best bet was to go to UMDNJ in Newark, because they had micro surgeons. If there was any chance of re-attaching a pinkie, that you can see if you scroll down, we needed that specific surgeon.
So we leave RWJ, with his pinkie in my handbag, never thought I'd see that day. We get to UMDNJ, around noon. We got in pretty fast, the second the Dr looks at his finger (the one that was in my bag), he said, there's no way we can reattach this, I can already confirm that. It had been way too long, the blood vessels were already dead (or whatever happens to them). After being there ALL DAY, having about 1000000 people look at it, bothering it, making my poor boo go through so much pain (although THANK GOD for pain meds), they just wrapped it up and sent us to a surgeons office for Monday morning. SO FRUSTRATING! Poor Ry was just so miserable, and hungry but not from all the pain meds he had been on all day. We went to the surgeons office on Monday morning and Ryan was at the point of just asking them to cut it down to wherever they could to wrap the remaining skin over the bone. He just wanted to start healing. However, the surgeon felt strongly about keeping the length, since no bone or tendons were exposed. He convinced Ry to do a cross finger flap surgery as well as some skin grafting. The surgery was set for Thursday, July 17th. So, again, they just wrapped his finger back up. BLAH!
So we leave RWJ, with his pinkie in my handbag, never thought I'd see that day. We get to UMDNJ, around noon. We got in pretty fast, the second the Dr looks at his finger (the one that was in my bag), he said, there's no way we can reattach this, I can already confirm that. It had been way too long, the blood vessels were already dead (or whatever happens to them). After being there ALL DAY, having about 1000000 people look at it, bothering it, making my poor boo go through so much pain (although THANK GOD for pain meds), they just wrapped it up and sent us to a surgeons office for Monday morning. SO FRUSTRATING! Poor Ry was just so miserable, and hungry but not from all the pain meds he had been on all day. We went to the surgeons office on Monday morning and Ryan was at the point of just asking them to cut it down to wherever they could to wrap the remaining skin over the bone. He just wanted to start healing. However, the surgeon felt strongly about keeping the length, since no bone or tendons were exposed. He convinced Ry to do a cross finger flap surgery as well as some skin grafting. The surgery was set for Thursday, July 17th. So, again, they just wrapped his finger back up. BLAH!
Now, 2 weeks later, he gets his fingers detached on Monday, the 4th of August. He still wishes he just went with them amputating it, to speed up the recovery process. Plus, now his hand hurts not only on the pinkie, but the ring finger (since they had to take skin from the front of that finger and wrap it around his pinkie) and the side of the palm of his hand (since that's where they took the skin graft from, for the front of his ring finger). All in all, it's been a hectic 3 weeks and the process still isn't over. He's been in pain ever since, some days worse than others. But it's just frustrating. I feel awful for him and also miss the $hit out of all the help he gives. I knew he did alot for us, but once you're faced with someone who really can't do shit, it opens up your eyes to all that he actually does. He can't do anything, can't cook, clean, help with laundry, I mean, it's hard for him to make his own lunch!
Anyway, lets follow this up with some pics! READY?!
This is from when I showed up at the hospital. Poor boo.
This would be his finger! CRAZYYYYY!!
Straight out of a horror movie, huh? Too bad it doesn't show the blood squirting out of the side of the finger.
A little close up of the back.
And the front.
At the surgeon Monday the 14th.
yikes
CRAZY!
After surgery on the 17th and all bandaged up.
Such a trooper.
Since I couldn't make it to his follow up appointment from surgery, before the detachment of his fingers. I asked him to take a pic for me. Yes, I love seeing this ish. It's just amazing to me what dr's can do. So this was mid surgery healing.
And after those fingers got separated, here is how it looked.
fingers bandaged separately!
Now...So now, the only thing that's bandaged is his pinkie cause some of the skin still has to grow back, but not much. Here is the scar on his ring finger. So that skin on top is from the side of his palm. Don't mind my super beat up kitchen table.
The back of his pinkie, which as the skin from the front of his ring finger.
Kinda crazy looking. The tip is where the skin needs to grow back.
He's already growing back a nail.
Amazing what dr's can do....sorry if this was too graphic, but I warned you!!!
