I have fallen and I can't get up...

Well, at least that was the case on Friday evening. I caught a taxi home after playing cards with my brother and some friends. As I got out of the taxi, I slipped and fell and I heard something snap in my foot. I have fallen on my street in the past as it is a crazy cobblestone street with about a 45 degree incline. And yes, I tend to be on the accident prone side. However, this time, I was not able to stand up and was in so much pain, I nearly vomited. The taxi driver picked me up and carried me to the bottom of the stairs leading up to my apartment. I phoned my friends Mike and Rob who were with me playing cards and they came to pick me up and brought me to the hospital right away.

I arrived at the hospital and within a matter of minutes was taken for X-ray's. While this was happening, they paged the orthopedic specialist and he was there by the time the x-rays were finished! They reviewed the x-rays with my friend Mike (who went to med school) and it appeared that there were no fractures. After a full assessment, they told me I had torn a ligament in my ankle and would be in a splint and on crutches for the next several weeks. Apparently, this takes much longer to heal than a bone fracture and I am looking at approximately 6 weeks of recovery time. For the first few weeks, I am not allowed to put any weight on my foot and must keep it elevated at all times. After the assessment, they gave me a pain injection through the IV and put a splint on my leg/foot. From start to finish, my hospital stay was just under one hour. The orthopedic specialist even gave me his cell number to call him anytime with questions or concerns. Wow, very impressive considering that if I were in Canada, I would be still sitting in the waiting room trying not to kill someone as I sat there for the typical 10-12 hour waiting period.

Overall, I was so impressed with the level of care in the hospital. I also could not believe how fast they took care of everything. And on top of that, to have an orthopedic specialist arrive within 10 minutes is unbelievable.

I want to give a big shout out to Mike and Rob for looking after me that night. I love you guys and I do not know what I would have done without you! You are my knights in shining armor!

Before this happened, my friend Michelle had asked me to come stay with her in their house for 3 weeks while her parents were away. After the accident happened, she graciously let me come to her house one day earlier and has been looking after my dogs and I ever since. She has been cooking for me, bringing me water and basically doing everything for me since I am not allowed to put any weight on my foot and getting around with crutches is quite the ordeal. It is incredibly humbling not being able to do anything for yourself and having to rely on others for simple things like a glass of water. I have not been adjusting to my reality so well and am going a little stir crazy not being able to do my daily walks and exercise. Fortunately however, Michelle has been a godsend and words cannot express how grateful I am for all that she is doing. I am not sure what I would have done without her. So, a big thank you to Michelle. Someday, I hope I can repay her for all she has done for me.

I have not been able to do too much since Friday. I am supposed to keep my foot elevated at all times so I have been in bed most of the time or on the deck under the palapa. I am on alot of pain medication so I have been pretty dopey and sleepy the last few days but that should improve once the inflammation in my foot has gone down and I can go off the pain pills. I am able to access the internet from the deck some of the time but not consistently. Once I am doing better, I will be able to negotiate my way up the stairs to the room where the modem is and post some photos and a few more blog posts on my visit with my family. I have also had a few visitors come by which has been great. Thanks for the treats everyone!