It has never been my strong suit. I appreciate that my mother tried---several years of tap dancing lessons for body awareness...even a college class in "dance"....but I am a klutz. I am o.k. with that. Acceptance!
Occasionally, it is humorous. Once in awhile, problematic. Tuesday was a problematic day.
I fell out of my office building . There is no other way to describe it. As I stepped out the door, my foot landed on a small branch (I think) that was on the sidewalk just below the step. That rolled, casting me to the side. My other foot landed in the landscape rocks--and unstable surface---and I became a projectile--aided by momentum toward my home bound commute and gravity.
WHAM, oppph! I was suddenly intimately associated with both the landscape rocks and the adjacent cement sidewalk---With my hands slammed against the edge of the walkway, and my chin, lips, and nose in full contact with the cement--I briefly pondered how to "gracefully" get up---while a co-worker frantically asked me if I was getting up-----like it would not have occurred to me to do so!! She was slightly hobbled by a leg cast as the result of her own interactions with a stool that her foot went through--breaking both the stool and the foot.......so was not actually in any shape to rescue me from my position inspecting the cement.
My first thoughts were "How did I get here?" Followed quickly by the realization that EVERYTHING hurt, and could possibly be hurt! It took a few seconds to think through the next move.
First I moved my eyes back a little from the cement, breaking the contact of my chin. I did not observe gushing blood---a good sign. Then I considered if I could /should use my hands to push up. Of course I needed to, but the possibility of doing further damage did occur to me. Lacking a crane, I saw no other choice and pushed myself up to my knees (ouch, the rocks!), and then to standing. Collected my bag, ran my hands over by face--pulling them back, no blood! Ask my co-worker if I seemed to have all my teeth? She said she thought so...So, having a car pool to catch, not to be stranded in the city, I departed, shouting over my shoulder that I would let her know if my jaw was broken. Adrenalin rush!
Passing her car pool buddy on the route to my pool, I admonished her to "watch out for sticks"---which she thought very odd until she got the rests of the story........
Fortunately, nothing seems to be broken. I spend the time in urgent care, and have filled out all of the "workplace injury forms" Lots of bruising, soreness, etc. I look like a victim of domestic violence---or workplace violence---but it is just the result of Klutziness mixed with bifocals and a stick!
I will heal in time, but will still be klutzy.
My employer should do a better job with the random sticks and debris----I need all the help I can get!!
Random musings of a middle aged knitter.
1 comment:
Good heavens. My significant empathy. I did the same thing, pretty much, early last November. I was being good and doing my required morning walk. I knew that sidewalk was uneven but had forgotten. I was looking elsewhere than at my feet.
I ended up flat on my face -- too fast to catch much of my weight on my hands, though there was some (jammed a finger in the process). Scratched my glasses (right lens), scraped my nose, teeth cut up the inside of my mouth pretty thoroughly, chipped one tooth, scraped my chin. And yes, there was bleeding all over. I didn't even realize about the tooth for several hours. My mouth was swollen out to there (you know, probably as far as the end of my nose and maybe more.
I did call the dentist who asked about whether anything was loose. Since there wasn't, he said to come in after 2 weeks and get the chip smoothed out/filled in. Which he did. Couldn't do that until the swelling went down.
I went to the optician who said my coating was still under warranty even though, I questioned, I did it myself and it wasn't their fault. Yup, so that was replaced.
It did take about the two weeks before the swelling went down. More until the scabbing went away. I've used Mederma on the scarring, and it's looking almost gone now. Very impressive. I haven't done my morning walk since then, however. Even though the sidewalk was fixed less than a week later following my request to VDOT (the state is responsible for our streets and sidewalks in the communities -- very strange).
And not my first fall outside -- I tripped on a hole in the street at work, but just ran a stocking and bruised a knee. A colleague helped me up, helped collect the stuff I had dropped, and made sure I wasn't shaking any more before he let me keep walking. He got a very public written thank you from me and his boss and the Assistant Secretary -- well warranted, since there were a lot of other colleagues around and he was the only one to help me and express concern.
Back in 2001, the black ice on our hill of a driveway -- so much for my lower right leg. My first real broken bone (not counting the two toes at different times). Home for about 8 weeks for that one. At least they didn't have to pin it.
Then there was the right knee sprain when I missed the bottom step at home. And the left knee sprain when I fell while trying to catch the cat.
The doctors don't like adults to fall. It's pretty hazardous. So you see, I do empathize with you. I feel like a hazardous trip zone sometimes.
So are you feeling better now?
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