The tale of Austin's toe began last Saturday when we were returning from our Spring Break beach trip. We were near Columbus when I got a text from Austin that said, "If you could pick up some morphine on your way home I would appreciate it . . . pretty sure I broke my toe . . . it ouches." I told him to fix it with duct tape (that is his usual solution). A short time later, I called to check in and make sure he was OK. He wasn't. A 2,500 pound pallet of milk had broken while he was unloading the truck and landed on the big toe of his right foot. He reported the incident, but they must have thought he was joking. They told him not to be a baby and to get back to work. So he tried to brush it off and continue working. After 2 hours and no relief, he told them he was going to have to leave. They then took a serious look at it and decided he should have medical attention. He was given the address of the urgent care facility indicated by worker's comp and sent on his merry way - - alone. When he arrived, the facility was closed. He wasn't sure what to do next and was in a great deal of pain, so he went home to wait for us. When we drove into the cul-de-sac, he bolted out of the front door, jumped in the car, and Alan drove him to the ER. (The first picture of his blue toenail in the matching blue flip flop was taken in the ER.)
At the ER, they drilled holes in his toenail to relieve the pressure. It bled. His toe wasn't broken; just smashed. He was given pain pills and sent home. He stayed with us and did not sleep much that night or Sunday night. The painful throbbing kept him awake. On Monday morning, he sent a text to me (instead of walking) and asked if we could go to the doctor again. He was still in a lot of pain and running out of pain medicine. We went to the doctor, but we were not impressed. The doctor would not give him additional medication - to relieve the pain or allow him to sleep. In fact, he said that he could return to work the following day - with limited activity. At this point, Austin couldn't drive, put on a shoe, or stand up for any length of time. Austin thought that if we dropped a 2,500 pound weight on the doctor's toe that he might reconsider his decision. I had to agree.
Austin struggled through another 48 hours and returned for a follow-up visit. He was asked if he wanted to see the same doctor again and "NO" was the clear response. The second doctor gave him a prescription for pain medication and told him not to return to work this week. We liked this doctor much better.
Austin went in to work today at 10 and they sent him home at 10:03. I guess they didn't want him riding around in one of those scooters with his shoeless foot elevated in the basket. The second photo with the black toenail is today's look. After 8 days, it looks much worse that when it happened. We're pretty sure he's going to lose the nail. We are very grateful that he wasn't hurt worse than he was. He will recover and have handsome toes again, but it's going to take a while.
