Last weekend, my 10 yr old fell while running around the yard with her cousins and fractured her leg. Who knew that tripping in a hole could be so dangerous??? She didn't cry when it happened, although her eyes were watery. She said she tripped in a whole and twisted her ankle. So we iced it and went on our merry way, which included sending her to Grandma's house to spend the night. Bad mommy never thought about it again, until we went to pick her and her brother up the next morning. Ankle wasn't bruised or red, and only slightly swollen. She could wiggle her toes and move her ankle slightly, but couldn't really point her foot or flex it upwards. And she still wouldn't put any weight on it and walk. I figured it was probably just a bad sprain and would heal with ice and rest. At her middle school, you have to have a signed Dr's note to sit out of gym, so we took her to Urgent Care so they could wrap it and get a note so she could sit out a few days.
So we get to Urgent Care, and the doctor comes in and asks a bunch of questions, did she hit her head when she fell, did she loose consousness, does she feel dizzy; those types of questions. Finally she takes off her sock and looks at her ankle/foot. She said it hurts on the top of her foot, and right at the 2 protruding ankle bones (she and I both have very bony ankles.....i don't like my ankles). Her heel feels fine, and the bottom of her foot is fine, and it is just slightly tender going up her calf. Then the doctor said she wanted to get some X-rays. Ugh, really?? For a twisted ankle? (can i just say that I am normally a really good mom and tend to err on the side of caution too much. I have often been called a Helicpoter Mom and accused of having the "apron strings" too tight. I'm just a really bad doctor) 4 X-rays later, the doctor comes in and says she would like a Pediactric Orthepedic Specialist to look at them. The ankle looks funny and she wants to make sure it isn't just the growth plate. (I had no idea at that time what a growth plate is.....I had to google it.) 20 minutes later she comes back in with sad look.........she has a fibular fracture right above the ankle bone. To say I was shocked would be an understatement! I have never broken a bone in my life, so have no experience with it. But I always thought you would just KNOW that you had a broken bone!! And a leg/ankle bone?? That's a BIG bone to break! you would think if she fell in a hole hard enought to fracture her leg, it would atleast bruise!! So she is in a boot and on crutches for possibly 4 weeks.
Let me tell you about my baby girl. She is a runner, like me. She just finished her first season of Cross Country in 5th grade. She has run about (7) 5K's with me the past 2 years. Over the summer, she was on the track team for our local parks deptartment where she ran 100M, 200M and 4x100M relay where she ran Anchor. Her 4X100M relay team is undefeated, and she took home quite a few 1st places for her 100M and 200M. The child is crazy fast when it comes to her sprinting. She slows down quite a bit to allow mom to run with her. LOL We had a 5K Zombie Run scheduled for this weekend, and a 10K on Thanksgiving to get her ready for the Tinkerbell 10K in Disneyland in January. Obviously the Zombie run is out, and the doctor is pretty sure she's not going to allow her to do the 10K on Thanksgiving, maybe the 5K depending on how well she has healed. Jackie has been a real trooper through the whole thing. She hasn't really complained at all about the boot or the crutches or what her limited mobility has done to her. She really is just an amazing little girl.
Mommy on the other hand is going crazy!! Remember where I said I had to google what a Growth Plate is? It's tissue/cartliage that basically helps your legs grow straight. According to the American Society of Orthepedic Surgeions...."Growth plate fractures in the ankle often require immediate attention
because the long-term consequences may include legs that grow crooked or
of unequal length." Have you ever wanted to un-read something you read on the internet? Whoever thought we needed to have access to all this information must not have been a parent with a hurt child! Now all I can do is think about "what if"...... What if she can't run anymore? What if she always has a weak ankle? What if she breaks it again 2 days out of the boot? What if 1 leg ends up longer than the other one?? She's tiny enough as it is, we don't need to do anything to make it worse!
Then I stumbled across a post in my Virtual Running group, about an organization called "Who I run for". iRun4 is a group of people who dedicate their runs/bike rides/swims/workouts to adults and children who are physically unable to do those same tasks. You go out and run your miles, and then post a little inspiration message to your running buddy, encouraging them in their life. I was inspired. My life isn't a struggle!! Jackie's leg is going to heal and she'll bounce back and be fine.........there are so many children out there who will never get the chance to run and jump like she can. I get home from work and complain that I still need to go out and run my 3 miles.......yet there is a guy in a wheelchair who has never taken 3 steps! I can run my 3 miles and dedicate it to them, hopefully give them a little smile, let them know that someone out there has their back. I signed up for iRun4 and am now patiently waiting for my buddy. I've already got 3 medals coming for him/her, and I can't wait to meet them.
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