On Friday 10 December, I went out with friends in Huddersfield to celebrate my Birthday and Christmas in one go. Leaving work at lunch time two of us shared a pot of mulled wine (I had less than half ) then we all went for a late lunch at a cafe where we met a colleague and her baby and had a natter over a sarnie and a cuppa. After saying goodbye to those who weren't drinking, the remaining revelers went on to a bar, we spent half an hour avoiding a very drunk man, by moving from seat to seat before giving up and leaving after one bottle of lager.
We then went back to our favourite coffee bar and I had a pint, as it was my birthday I followed this with a Long Island Ice Tea. I nipped upstairs for a wee and after reapplying my lipstick headed down the spiral staircase to rejoin my friends. This is where it gets hazy, one minute I was nearly at the bottom of the stairs the next I hear a loud crack and feel myself flying through the air, I land on the floor and instantly know my ankle is broken. My leg is straight in front of me but my ankle is hanging to the side. It could be the alcohol or shock, but its no more painful than a bad sprain, which I have had on plenty of occasions ( I have notoriously weak ankles) thats not saying it isn't agony and there is no way I am standing on it - my foot does not belong at that angle. A man whose face I never saw held me up while we waited for an ambulance, someone got my friends from outside and they called my other half.
What seemed ages but was probably only minutes passed before I found myself in the ambulance where my brand new boots (flat not heeled) and the tights I had on under my jeans (it was freezing and I am soft) were cut off my leg revealing the hideously misshapen ankle in all its glory, my blood pressure was really low so they gave me gas and air to help with pain relief, which was still pretty bad, as I had been drinking the paramedic wouldn't give me morphine. I remember sucking on the gas whilst closing my eyes and trying to block out the pain as the ambulance whizzed through the streets with sirens blaring. The experience was a bit strange, I went into some kind of zone where everything went really quiet, I could hear people but it was like I was in a deep hole or underwater.
At the hospital I was talking a lot and laughing. The ambulance man who was very kind and didn't make me feel at all silly said it was the gas; which by then was my new best friend - I certainly missed it when they took it off me.
My friends arrived having followed in a taxi, they made me laugh, keeping my mind off the pain, which was growing now that the shock, alcohol and gas were wearing off. After examination and X-ray the doctor explained it was dislocated and I had broken two bones - and shook his head saying I couldn't have done a worse job if I tried, my ankle was essentially shattered. I was told I would need an operation to fix it and I would be staying in hospital overnight, they would try and operate the next day if the swelling reduced and a theater space opened up.
A noisy night in hospital (snoring and beeping beds), my first experience of a bed pan and lots of drugs followed. I awoke to find a room where I was the youngest by at least 30 years, despite this the staff and other patients were lovely and made me feel welcome.
My operation took place late that afternoon, I opted for a general anesthetic I didn't fancy someone jabbing a needle in my back. It went well and 3 days later I was released with a half leg cast and an instruction to put no weight on it whatsoever. What a way to spend Christmas!!!
next installment to follow...
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