ow!

by Alison Green on November 2, 2011

So that impending flood of posts I announced?

Today I fell off a three-inch curb and broke the bones in the top of my foot. Yes, a three-inch curb. Shameful, no?

Apparently this kind of thing is a much bigger deal than I ever realized; there was a stretcher, an ambulance, an IV, and now there’s about to be Percocet.

So we’ll have to see about that flood…

You may also like:
{ 72 comments }

{ 72 comments… read them below }

  1. Laurie*

    I can sympathise with the pain you’re in! When I was 18 one of the tendons in my foot decided to snap my fifth metatarsal while I was walking in a parking lot (I had also just stepped off a three inch curb!). I was in a walking cast for three months, it was a great ice breaker at University.

    1. Josh S*

      Yeah, the bone that supports all the weight of your body when you walk can be broken with about 30 lbs of pressure in the wrong direction. Sorry to hear it happened to you.

      I also agree with Kristinyc–your answers while on Percocet would probably be extra entertaining.

      But whether or not you can manage to answer questions the next few days, I’ll be hoping and praying for your speedy recovery!

      1. Susan*

        Oh no!! So sorry about this…any foot injury is great pain, argh. I wish you a speedy recovery :)

        And I’d probably enjoy those Percocet aswers too, I have to admit! How long do they estimate you in cast?

        Take care….

        1. Ask a Manager* Post author

          Right now, it’s in a splint because they can’t put a cast on it until the swelling goes away. I’m seeing the orthopedist tomorrow, and I’m praying that he gives me a walking cast. I don’t really know what that is, but it sounds like I could walk on it, which would make it far easier!

    2. Dawn*

      Glad I’m not the only one who was thinking , “Oh I’m so glad she had a pedicure. ” LOL Feel better!

      1. Sheila*

        I was thinking that too! When I had my c-section this summer I was so aggravated that I hadn’t been able to paint my toenails before going into the hospital. I knew I’d never manage it for ages afterwards so I was stuck for weeks lamenting the unpainted state of my toenails.

        Feel better soon, and I’ll enjoy imagining what your answers would be while on Percocet.

  5. KayDay*

    oh no! get better soon.

    and your not alone. I had to drive a friend to the hospital after she was walking and fell off of a one inch step in the sidewalk. we refer to that day as “the day the sidewalk attacked.”

  7. Sammie*

    Oh no! I hope you have a quick recovery.

    the bright side- at least youll be able to laugh about this later ^_^

  8. Tanya*

    Posts forthcoming about protecting yourself from bosses who are insensitive to illnesses and sudden injuries? =)

    Get well soon!

  11. curious*

    Oh No! I was so looking forward to your flood of posts, I even mentioned it to a fellow fan in dorky excitement. But as above, I did look at the photo and think – Ouch, that is awful, poor Ms Green…hmm, she has a nice nail polish on, that’s something at least because people are going to be looking at that thing on her leg for a while.

    Get well soon.

        1. Ask a Manager* Post author

          Interesting. Could be. But don’t people rave about Percoset and its ilk? So far, I’m discerning nothing particularly notable about it and am quite disappointed.

  18. Diana*

    Ouch :( I hope you get well soon. On the bright side, now you’ll always know when it’s going to rain!

  20. Anonymous*

    Hope you recover soon… well you kinda have to cause we need people like you to guide us through this complicated journey of finding a job, or dealing with everyday work problems. God Bless.

  21. Joanna Reichert*

    Wow, so sorry to hear that!

    But what an excellent excuse to sit and read good books, sipping mint hot chocolate, or indulge in guilty pleasures – watching ‘Maury’ or spending hours looking at kitten videos on YouTube – that you’d otherwise insist you didn’t have time for. : )

  22. Karl*

    I’m sorry, Alison! My dad broke his foot stepping off a curb, too — it seems to be more common than you’d think. Best wishes on a fast recovery.

  23. Long Time Admin*

    Sorry to hear about your accident. Don’t feel like a klutz, or, if you do, realize you’re not alone. My brother can trip over a shadow, and I’m not much better.

    Be sure to not put any weight on your foot until the doctor says it’s OK. It’s tempting after a couple of weeks, but bones take time to heal properly. A friend who ignored her doctor’s orders and started walking after 2 weeks needed surgery a year later.

    Feel better soon.

  24. Heather R. Huhman*

    Alison,

    As someone who’s done the foot injury thing way too many times (mine were just as “graceful”, BTW), be careful with Percocet!

    Hope you feel better soon! Are you going to need surgery?

  27. Reva*

    I can completely sympathize! I fell off a curb and broke my ankle two years ago walking home from a dinner party a couple blocks away. Except there was no ambulance and the cab driver took me to Children’s Memorial Hospital because it was closest, where I had to watch Ratatouille on a continuous loop and they also made me walk on my broken ankle to the bathroom to take a pregnancy test before they’d X-Ray me. Rock bottom? I think so. And all I got was generic Vicodin!! Hope you feel better!

    1. Ask a Manager* Post author

      Ratatouille on a continuous loop! I was actually in an ER bed with my own TV, which I did not use because I was so fixated on the pain, but if you ever get injured, Arlington County is the place to do it. Ambulance arrived less than 5 minutes after 911 was called, the hospital treated me instantly, and everything was very impressive and high-tech.

  31. Kimberly*

    Ouch! Don’t feel shameful….. I did the same a couple years ago by dropping a shampoo bottle on my foot. SO embarrassing. I hope you feel better soon!

  33. Liz*

    I’ve been out of commission for 2.5 months due to an injury with a really dumb cause, too (though, I definitely had a horrible sprain due to a 3-inch curb 12 years ago, those things are dangerous)! They said breaking my foot would have been a better option. Then they said that had I required surgery it would have been a quicker recovery time than this. Blessings in disguise?

    Feel better!

    1. Ask a Manager* Post author

      Apparently painkillers will work faster if they give them to you through an IV instead of through a shot. So when they gave me the choice, I was all over that IV.

  37. ImpassionedPlatypi*

    Aww :( That sucks! If you need soup, or baked goods, let me know. I’d be happy to help ease the pain with confections of some sort, despite the fact that I am now a bit nervous about leaving my apartment. There are a lot of people in the comments talking about how common it is to break your foot just by walking normally on it…

  38. Kristi*

    Aw, don’t feel bad. I sprained my ankle very badly stepping on a crack in the sidewalk the very first day of my first big summer job during University (although my mother was suspiciously fine…). I was four hours late to work after I finally got out of the ER. Luckily my new manager was very understanding and we all had a good laugh when I came hobbling in on crutches

  39. Mary Sue*

    My mother recently tanked it off a curb, too, and her doctor told her that’s one of the leading causes of injury to ankles and knees. So now she’s all freaked out and actually told me not to walk anywhere.

    But hey, stuff happens.

    May your healing be swift and not involve physical therapy.

  42. Interviewer*

    Speedy recovery to you. Maybe you could take this time to consider drug-induced blogging as a new career path, and become the Hunter S Thompson of HR blogs.

  45. Rachel*

    Oh no! Hoping for good news from your ortho- and a walking cast *only* if they’ll actually let you walk on it(otherwise it’s just annoyingly heavy and clunky) #brokenanklesIhaveknown

  46. Christine*

    Ooh OUCH!!

    I’ve had my fair share of sprained ankles and scraped up knees (and, one time, head) thanks to those sneaky curbs, holes, and steps. I have a slight vision impairment, so I just tell people I didn’t see whatever I tripped on/missed. lol. I’m amazed I’ve never broken anything, although one time, I sprained BOTH ankles at once; I wouldn’t be surprised to find out there was a near-break….I’m terrible about getting these things checked out. :/

    Anyway, wishing you speedy healing Alison!

  48. Anonymous*

    Cue Pink Floyd “Comfortably Numb”.

    Seriously, hope you feel better soon & your foot heals quickly.

  53. Chris in NYC*

    Oy! I know your pain, I’ve actually done this only mine was a pothole in a crosswalk. Actually it was more like a crack than a pothole with one side elevated about an inch – but I got half my foot on one side and half on the other and BOOM! Down I went. I ended up breaking a length of bone off the bottom of my leg! It was miserable! I have some form of “pothole PTSD.” Sometimes at night I lie in bed think about that moment and my ankle turning….ugh.

    Best of luck in your recovery. Here’s to quick healing and no setbacks!

  54. Heather B*

    Yipes! Wishing you healing as quickly as possible.

    We have someone at work who broke her ankle back in July or so and just started coming back in last week… not to scare you or anything. ;-p She did it stepping down out of a high car/SUV (came down on her friend’s foot and sandal, which had big beads on it, which rolled underneath my co-worker’s foot… and there you go). These things never seem to happen in ways that aren’t embarrassing or silly, do they?

  55. Anonymous*

    So whatever happened to you? Did you get a walking boot, cast surgery? This just happened to me yesterday and I look like you now. Can’t see ortho for a few days because of holiday.

    1. Ask a Manager* Post author

      If you search for “foot” on the site, you’ll find a bunch of other updates, but the upshot was: in a cast for about 10 weeks, a boot for four weeks after that, and then a few months of learning how to walk on it all over again! Still in physical therapy and with a slight limp, but it’s getting better. The key is patience!

      (Also, I had an especially bad break, so hopefully yours won’t be as bad and will heal in the more typical 6-8 weeks!)

      You could read these too:

      https://www.askamanager.org/2011/12/foot-update.html

      https://www.askamanager.org/2012/03/i-walk.html

  56. Lynne*

    Just found this! Glad your foot is feeling better. Just needed to comment about curbs. I once slipped off a curb leaving work and broke both my ankles at the same time. 6 weeks in a wheelchair. Knowing I’m not the only one who has done serious damage from a curb makes me feel a little less alone. CURBS! who needs em? I am still nervous about curbs when it rains (it’s been 7 years!), and one ankle still is wonky.

Comments are closed.