MacGyver Casting!!!

The one phone call you never what to get.  Your child's (or child that I have been a nanny for for 8 years who is just like mine) school nurse calling...and saying "He fell in P.E. and hurt his wrist.  I don't know if it's broken but dislocated for sure.  I think he may need to go to the doctor."  

"I will be there in 2 minutes" is all I said, slipped on my shoes and grabbed my keys with just enough time to say to my mom "you have buggy right?"  Now that I think about it I didn't even wait for a response.  Good thing she was there or Leyton may have gotten his first taste of taking care of himself for a few hours...LOL!!!

I got to the school and saw something that any mother hates to see.  The child you care so much for in unbearable pain.  I could tell that my once stoic teenager was looking like a 3 year old wanting you to kiss a boo boo better and there was nothing I could do.  It broke my heart and made me want to cry.  I knew however I needed to keep it together and just get the situation taken care of. 

Uhh...that doesn't look right.

We made it home on a very slow drive as every bump caused even more pain to his arm.  The next hour or so consisted of his dad looking at it, sending in an order for x-rays, getting him ready to go to the hospital, the drive to the hospital (and realizing I may not make it back in time for Leah and Nathan to get home from school so calling a great friend to help with them...Thank you Carolyn!!!  I owe you) getting x-rays, and hoping that surgery would not be necessary.  Finally the word comes that they were going to try to set and cast it and that should take care of it.

This is were we met Dr. MacGyver.

It worked to get his arm to hang to start to set the break.

This turned into the funniest part of our day.  The piece of equipment they needed (the doctor affectionately called it the finger trap) they couldn't find.  For anyone who doesn't know the finger trap as I was told is used to elevate the arm so that it can hang and let gravity move the bones back into place as much as possible on it's own.  At this point the two young doctors turned into MacGyver.  They ran a cord through the metal part of the ceiling and then used another thing that looked like finger traps to me to make the whole thing work.  It couldn't have looked more like a movie scene unless they would have also incorporated some duct tape and paper clips.  At least it got a laugh out of all who were involved.  Oh and just about the time the got it all put together and had his arm hanging with this great invention of theirs, a medic shows up with the allusive finger trap...LOL!!!

Molding the cast.

Luckily their resourceful ways ultimately worked and they got his arm set and started casting it.  After two attempts to get it right they got it done and we have as good a diagnosis as possible.  Six weeks in a full arm cast with follow up appointments every week for the first three. Fingers crossed he won't need surgery.

I have to tell you I was so completely shocked and impressed by Jared.  He wasn't throwing a fit about how much it hurt or even really complaining.  He took it like a man you might say.  He was so great, he didn't have any Tylenol until about 5 hours after the whole ordeal started.  Which in looking back may have been a mistake as now we are fighting to get back ahead of the pain.

There is nothing worse than looking at  a child you care for in pain when there isn't much you can do to make it better.  For a kid who hadn't really shown any pain all day including while they were setting his break and casting it.  A process that had a grown man dripping sweat off his head...literally!!!  To then see him grimacing in pain and deep breathing to try to help.  That is the worst feeling in the world for me.  I would take his pain in a second if I could but can't and I hate to see him like that.  Hopefully over the next few hours we can get the pain under control and then he will heal quickly and be back to playing basketball and harassing his siblings and me in no time flat.