The Doctor in charge came in and told us it was obvious what was wrong and that the orthopedic surgeon was on his way in. The nurses but ice on her arms and tried a few times in one of her feet to put an IV in. That didn't work so they tried the other foot and succeeded. She couldn't have an IV in her arms for obvious reasons. That was the worst part for Sophie. She had a hard time with that. Once they were able to get morphine into her system, she started getting calm and a little loopy. The male nurse was checking her arms out and she looked up at him and said "What's your mom's name?" he quickly replied "Carol, do you know her?" She then said "How would I know her, I don't even know you that well." People on pain meds are funny. The other nurse came in to take her to the operating room. She put up the rails and started wheeling her out. Sophie said "Mom, look at the candles." The nurse and I looked at each other like, I wonder if she is hallucinating. I asked what candles she meant. She said: "Handles mom, the bed has handles." kind of like I was a slow-witted child.The next part of the story is one I would like to forget. Garrett took the girls to my friend Christie's house while they started setting her bones. It was a horrific nightmare that I still see sometimes when I close my eyes. The Doctor looked up at me and asked if I was OK. I quickly told him to ignore me I was fine. It was really hard to watch, so I tried not to. Garrett got back in time for the second arm. He thought it was pretty cool.
After the setting we were told to keep her arms elevated for the next 5 days...easier said than done. She got a prescription for Tylenol with codeine and that helped for the first day. I put it in my purse and the lid wasn't on tight. It spilled all over everything and was completely empty. I had to call the doctor and ask for a new prescription. The pharmacist didn't believe Garrett when he went to get it so he was interviewed by 3 people before they gave him a re-fill. He should have brought my purse with him.Well it was a long ten days of feeding, helping her go potty, getting her dressed, bathing her, scratching her nose..you know the things one might do with one's arms. The funniest thing was when the relief society called and asked if I would take a meal to a lady who just had a baby. I, of course, couldn't say no, so I did it.
I took Sophie back to the doctor to get hard casts, they had put soft casts on because of the swelling. The doctor said that the bones had not healed right and that he would have to do surgery and put pins in to hold them in place. My heart felt so heavy, I knew then that it was going to be a longer road than I had expected and I selfishly wondered how I could get through it. How was I going to keep my house ready to show to buyers, how was I going to function on sleep in 4 hour segments on the floor, how was I going to take care of her sisters and show them that they are important too, how was I going to remember everything I was supposed to with the medications, feeding, elevating arms etc. It seemed like too much. I then remembered that I wasn't the one hurt and I should feel sorry for her not myself.
So here is Sophie before surgery...
So here is Sophie before surgery...
(How kind of them to give her a coloring book...she was so frustrated that she couldn't color very well) We killed time by making funny faces, watching pbs kids, and taking wagon rides up and down the hall. She was nervous but when she found out that she would be asleep when they put the IV in her foot she was a little better.The surgery took twice as long as the surgeon thought it would. Garrett took the day off and we waited from 11:00 until about 3 for the operating room to open up. Garrett had to go pick up the girls from school and take them to my friends house. I waited in the hospital. I wished I had brought a book because I couldn't get my mind off of what was happening. "How do they get pins through bones?" I kept wondering to myself. The doctor ended up having to make incisions in both arms, re brake them and set them right with pins. Here is a picture of the x-ray of one arm.
She was so unhappy when she woke up. I think that since the surgery took longer than expected the pain medication wasn't enough. She was confused and sad and in so much pain. We finally got some codeine since she had had the limit of morphine. She eventually calmed down. It was heart wrenching to see her in so much pain. She got some orange popsicles and sprite, even that didn't cheer her up much.
We got her home and it was back to keeping the arms elevated...
While this was happening we sold our house! We moved to Providence and the girls started school there. I kept Sophie out until she got hard casts on. Here are the girls on their first day of school...
We went back to get hard casts. That was more traumatic than I imagined. Sophie was hurting so bad when they did the x-rays. I had to hold her fingers and try to keep her calm. It was not a good experience. The doctor did the pink cast and the nurse did the orange one. I think she was nervous that she didn't put enough padding around the incision/pin area and she went overboard, it was much thicker. It was hard to find shirts that fit over the orange arm. She did let Sophie choose stripes as well so this was the end result...
Time is a blur but I think it was two weeks later she got the pins out. It was the 19th of May. I remember because the next day was Gracie and Kestlie's birthday. Anyway, I took her while the girls were in school and Garrett at work so I just prayed that it wouldn't be as bad as the other casts. It was a little better, she didn't freak out as much, but it was still quite painful. The doctor took the pins out pretty fast and there was a bit of pooling of blood at the pin sites. I still see it in my mind sometimes. Here are the pins that came out..also the tape that held the yellow knobs on...
This time I asked Dr. Lyman to do both casts. It looked much better. She chose pink and green. She was disappointed not to get waterproof casts but the pin sites can't get wet.
Now she is going to Kindergarten at Providence Elementary. I go there in the middle of class to help her go potty. But her teacher is impressed with how well she can get around. She writes and even cuts with a little help from the boy that sits next to her. She was so excited one day when I came to help her with the bathroom she said "Mommy, I can cut!! Alex just put the scissors in my hand and I cut!!!"I have learned a lot through this experience. I have a testimony that Heavenly Father will help us through whatever is given to us in life. I have learned about service, patience, and love. Sometimes I have had little pity parties for myself, but I know that life could be so much worse and I have no right to complain. It was such a blessing to sell our house quickly. Now we get family time and Garrett doesn't commute. I am so thankful for the health of my girls, there are so many things that could go wrong, I tell them that every finger on every hand is a blessing to me. Our bodies are such an amazing gift from Heavenly Father, every part that works is a miracle that enhances our experiences here on earth.
.JPG)
