Front Range Orthopedics

When I went to the ER following my accident, they TORTURED me in order to get x-rays. They had me move my arm in many different ways that were excruciatingly painful. For their final trick, they laid me down flat, which made my shoulder feel like it was going to explode. Then, to make matters worse, the moved the table from horizontal to a decline of about 15 or 20 degrees (head down, feet up), which nearly caused me to have a heart attack. Then they splayed my arm out to the left away from my body, and then pulled my upper arm away from my body at the shoulder. The tech had to hold my arm and manipulate it into that position, since my collar bone was broken. After the x-ray was completed, the tech just dropped my arm and walked away. I felt my collar bone rotate up and push against the skin from the weight of my arm. Lucky for me, it did not puncture through the skin. I had to reach over with my other hand, grab my left arm, and put it back into place, once again shifting my broken collar bone in very painful ways. I can’t remember ever screaming in pain like that at any other time in my life. I broke out in a cold sweat, and I was trembling in an uncontrollable manner. It took several minutes for that to pass. I told the x-ray tech that I was going to hunt him down and hurt him once I was able to…


Fast forward three weeks… I had an appointment yesterday at Front Range Orthopedics for new x-rays and general follow-up. I have been absolutely terrified all week. If I try to lie down flat, my clavicle feels like it is going to come apart. I’m still sleeping in a recliner at about 45 degrees upright. I have just over 2 weeks of healing completed (after re-breaking the clavicle a second time), but even the slightest movement of my arm/shoulder causes excruciating pain. As a result, I’ve made it a point to not move those areas at all. Just the motion of walking causes pain, which I can handle. Moving that arm though, even just a fraction of an inch, causes tremendous pain at my clavicle and in my shoulder. I also have had lots of clicking, pain, and instability in my left shoulder as well. The thought of going through x-rays again like I did at the hospital has been weighing very heavily on my mind this week. I have literally been terrified of going to this appointment. Well, I voiced my concerns prior to starting x-rays and the tech just stared at me in disbelief when I described what they did at the hospital. He said that is insane and unbelievable, and said whoever did that to me should be fired. He did the new x-rays with me standing up, without removing the sling. Totally pain free!!!! That is how they should have done it at the ER as well. The doctor said my clavicle is healing well, with some, but not excessive, overlap of the two bone pieces. He said the instability and pain in my shoulder is normal for a full clavicle fracture. The clavicle is one of several anchor points of stability for the shoulder. Even with 2 ½ weeks of re-growth, he said the clavicle is still moving and flexible, and not supportive of the shoulder. That is great news! I thought sure I was in line for shoulder surgery once my clavicle heals, but that may not be the case! I’ll find out in three or four weeks.

All in all, I am very happy with how things went. The Ortho doctor also gave me another pain med prescription. I don’t take them during the day, but they are so helpful for sleeping. Last night was the best sleep I’ve had in a week! I went to Walgreens to get the prescription filled, and I found a small miracle tucked away on the shelves while waiting! I can’t move my left arm away from my body, so I have not been able to use deodorant for three weeks. Instead, I’ve been hosing myself down with Axe men’s body spray. That is the best I’ve been able to do, but it doesn’t really work that well. Last night, I found Arid Extra Dry deodorant in a cream! I can just barely apply it without causing too much pain. There are many things I take for granted. A debilitating injury really highlights the conveniences in life that we don’t think much about.

So, overall, the prognosis is good. Now I just need to wait for the medical bills to start rolling in. So far, the costs have been $230 in co-pays, $110 in prescriptions and calcium supplements, and two weeks of lost pay at work. I took 40 hours of vacation pay which helps, but I now have no vacation pay for 2009. I’m not sure how much of the medical bills will be covered by insurance and how much will be my responsibility. Knowing my luck, my insurance probably has a clause exempting idiots that crash their bicycles into heavy steel commercial building doors. Basically, if anyone asks what I’m getting for Christmas in 2008, the answer is “a new clavicle and left ear.”

Gotta run…
JD