Well...
While we are waiting for snakeblitz33 (I believe he goes by Seth in the real world)... I figured I will update on my (non saltwater related) life. Really it's just an excuse to show you all this gnarly cut that I got early last week.
My story goes as follows:
I work part time at a local sports grill. Last week I was preparing our store to open and I was filling a bin with ice.
To make a confusing and long story short, I cut myself.
After almost 2 hours of on-again-off-again bleeding, I go to urgent care.
I discover it's an odd sort of cut, running up the length of my pinky, starting on the ******** of my finger and going toward the anterior side of my hand.
I opt to not get stitches, since this cut on my right hand pinky straddles two joints. I did not want more scarring or stitches over a joint if it could be helped.
After a round of tetanus (I plunged hand first into the wrong edge of a metal ice scoop) and a lot of pain due to soaking, rubbing, squeezing, rinsing of my finger, and repeating, I was bandaged, splinted and being told I must come back. I also remember being vaguely warned about infection and then being sent on my way...
I go home, where I have been... going stir crazy because I am right handed and I can't do a darn thing!
I sit on my couch, hand elevated, both arms in pain. The left from the tetanus shot (did they hurt that bad as a kid?!?!) and the right hand, arm and shoulder hurting due to the laceration and the amount of nerves that were injured.
I feel like a total gimp. I lift a glass to my lips and I spill it. I go to grab something and miss, subsequently knocking over other things in the process. I am so frustrated and annoyed... ALL FOR A FREAKING CUT!
48ish hours later, my best friend (who happens to be an RN) comes to my house and examines my cut.
The left side of my right hand is red, swollen, itchy and very warm. My poor little sausage pinky is so swollen that my finger nail is starting to lift off of my finger. It hurts. She instructs me to call the urgent care immediately as my finger is infected. Just Peachy.
Another Dr and 2 hours later, I have antibiotics that I have to take every 6 hours.
Back on my couch I sit, occasionally getting up to get a drink or look at my tanks. Mostly, I get up to tend to my infected wound... washing, dabbing, ointment-ing, wrapping, re-splinting...ugh... And lets not forget about taking my antibiotic, every 6 hours, lest my hand fall off.
This is my little wound without dressings or it's splint. :-( Seems so small and insignificant...
This room has been my prison for the last 6 days... I can't go back to work until this thursday!!!
So I guess some words of caution... never put an ice scoop facing with the sharp edges out, always store it with the, rounded, back side out... Someone could seriously get hurt. Also, infections are apparently easily caught. You can never be too careful! Take advantage of all of the Drs/medicine around you. If I had not known about this hand being infected... it could have gone septic. If my friend had never said, I never would have known it was infected. No joke, this little cut could have cost me a finger or a hand... Some people even die from septic shock, apparently.
Be careful out there kids!
