Throughout last summer, my right wrist had been hurting. Sometimes it just ached. But, when I would push open a door, or do a push up, it was terrible.
I finally called a doctor and went in for an appointment in September to see an orthopedist whose specialty is hands. He did some x-rays and didn’t see any “secondary damage”, but seemed fairly sure that I had torn ligaments. A couple of weeks later, I had an MRI. As soon as the radiologist started putting the dye in my wrist, he could tell (on the x-ray) that I had tears in my Triangular Fibrocartilage Complex (TFCC) and he showed me where the tear was. It was pretty cool to see, but I didn’t really know what it meant for me. And, I still had to do the actual MRI, which honestly wasn’t too bad. I think I was lucky to be laying on my stomach – so I couldn’t look up & see how I was confined.
(Sort of digressing here, but I remember Mom going for one of her many MRIs. It was during a thunderstorm and they kept losing power. So, she’d be in the middle of having an MRI done, and it would “stop” with her inside. And, they’d have to start over again. And, again. And, again.)
When I went back to the doctor a few days later, I knew I was in trouble when the first thing he said was “I haven’t seen a tear this bad in a long time”. Why, thank you. At another point, he said my wrist looked like that of someone that had played in the NFL for 10 years. Thanks, again. (And, where is all that money I earned?) The tears were old & new and who knows how I actually injured myself. Sometimes surgery is needed, but he felt that at my “young” (ahem) age we should try to avoid it unless it was really necessary. I think at some point I will end up needed it, but he is hoping to push it off a bit since technology is improving so much with these things.
He prescribed a brace for 2-3 months. Remember, this is my right wrist….and I’m right handed. It made things interesting for sure. But, at least it wasn’t a cast…I could take it off to take a shower, etc.
The follow up appointment in December was a weird one. He told me that it had healed….just by moving my wrist around and pushing in certain areas. And, when I asked about hurting in a different area, he told me “that’s the arthritis”. I thought “secondary damage” was arthritis? And, that I had no secondary damage? I was confused, but he seemed rushed & it wasn’t all really registering with me at the time. So, I have no idea. He told me to stop wearing the brace so much. (But, if it is healed, why do I have to wear it at all?) And, to do some exercises with my wrist to help loosen it up…..then come back for a follow up in 2-3 months.
I finally called a doctor and went in for an appointment in September to see an orthopedist whose specialty is hands. He did some x-rays and didn’t see any “secondary damage”, but seemed fairly sure that I had torn ligaments. A couple of weeks later, I had an MRI. As soon as the radiologist started putting the dye in my wrist, he could tell (on the x-ray) that I had tears in my Triangular Fibrocartilage Complex (TFCC) and he showed me where the tear was. It was pretty cool to see, but I didn’t really know what it meant for me. And, I still had to do the actual MRI, which honestly wasn’t too bad. I think I was lucky to be laying on my stomach – so I couldn’t look up & see how I was confined.
(Sort of digressing here, but I remember Mom going for one of her many MRIs. It was during a thunderstorm and they kept losing power. So, she’d be in the middle of having an MRI done, and it would “stop” with her inside. And, they’d have to start over again. And, again. And, again.)
When I went back to the doctor a few days later, I knew I was in trouble when the first thing he said was “I haven’t seen a tear this bad in a long time”. Why, thank you. At another point, he said my wrist looked like that of someone that had played in the NFL for 10 years. Thanks, again. (And, where is all that money I earned?) The tears were old & new and who knows how I actually injured myself. Sometimes surgery is needed, but he felt that at my “young” (ahem) age we should try to avoid it unless it was really necessary. I think at some point I will end up needed it, but he is hoping to push it off a bit since technology is improving so much with these things.
He prescribed a brace for 2-3 months. Remember, this is my right wrist….and I’m right handed. It made things interesting for sure. But, at least it wasn’t a cast…I could take it off to take a shower, etc.
The follow up appointment in December was a weird one. He told me that it had healed….just by moving my wrist around and pushing in certain areas. And, when I asked about hurting in a different area, he told me “that’s the arthritis”. I thought “secondary damage” was arthritis? And, that I had no secondary damage? I was confused, but he seemed rushed & it wasn’t all really registering with me at the time. So, I have no idea. He told me to stop wearing the brace so much. (But, if it is healed, why do I have to wear it at all?) And, to do some exercises with my wrist to help loosen it up…..then come back for a follow up in 2-3 months.
I don’t wear the brace at all anymore – unless it’s hurting & I want to make sure it doesn’t do anything weird when I’m sleeping. I think that’s only happened once or twice since the last appointment. I try not to do much that could reinjure it, though. It’s frustrating. Cleaning is much more difficult because of that repetitive movement and the strain on my wrist. And, I know this sounds weird, but I would just like to be able to do that. Yes, I would like to be able to clean the bathroom. I feel like I’m making excuses when I get Butch to do it. Yet, I don’t want to clean it myself & cause a new injury that leads to surgery. And, working out is challenging because many of my workout DVDs and the classes I do either do push ups or things very similar that require a lot with the wrist.
Things like this really make you feel old. On top of this issue, I’ve had a shoulder injury for quite some time that needs to be looked at. Lately, I can’t sleep on my left side without having a lot of shoulder pain. I think it's a shoulder impingement.
I have an appointment for a follow up on my wrist & on my shoulder in a couple of weeks.
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