A week or so ago I got a hangnail. I yanked it off with some tweezers like I normally do. It usually hurts for a day or two and then is fine. Fast forward. Friday night I noticed that it was still hurting and even seemed a bit more so than it had been. I shrugged it off thinking I was imagining things. Stress will do that to you.
Saturday afternoon it was a little swollen and red and starting to hurt bad enough that I was having a hard typing. Not a good thing when your income comes from your time on the computer. I still didn’t think much of it though. I put some antibiotic ointment and a bandage on it and went about my day. By Saturday night the swelling was more than obvious and the redness had been joined by some blueish purple. I re-bandaged it adding a couple drops of essential oils to the mix. I didn’t get to bed until around 1 a.m. as that’s about the time the pain medicines I had taken finally kicked in enough to allow me a small degree of comfort. I went to bed with it throbbing, but hoping for the best.
At 5 a.m. the pain was so bad it woke me up crying. It was radiating down my arm. I got up and took off the bandage to find there was now a pretty good size puss pocket along the cuticle. I took a rag and held it on the puss pocket while running hot water on it. The water was so hot that it stung, but I was hoping I could get it to pop and drain. I did that for about 15 minutes before I finally gave up. I re-bandaged it and laid back down. I tossed and turned until a little after 8 a.m. The medical clinic I normally go to is closed on Sunday, but had an after hours number. When they finally called me back, they advised me to not wait until they were open on Monday to get it seen. I needed it taken care of today so it wouldn’t get worse. (Note to self: Next time I pull a hang nail, remember to put antibiotic ointment or essential oils on it right away so this does not happen again.)
Infected Thumb Before - The picture came out kind of blurry. I had to use my left hand to take it so wasn't too steady. This was taken in the ER.
I then attempted to call every urgent care facility in a 50-mile radius. The only one I found open on Sunday required an upfront payment of $100 to see me. (Note to self: Get an emergency fund in place.) Since I didn’t have that, I ended up going to the ER. It’ll cost me more, but at least I didn’t have to come up with anything up front.
They ended up having to cut it open and drain it. I was screaming and crying which made Andrew cry. The nurses were awesome with him. One came in the room and got him. They took him out to their area with them. One even let him play on her iPhone to distract him. I’m forever grateful for that. I tried so hard not to cry because I knew it would upset him, but there are times you just can’t be strong for somebody else no matter how badly you want to.
In the end, they got it drained and sent me home with pain medicine and antibiotics. We missed church which was disappointing for both of us. But after a nap, we’ll still do an Easter Egg Hunt here at home. And then Andrew is going to read me the Easter story from the Bible.
Infected Thumb After - After it got drained and wrapped. Andrew thought this was cool. He wants his wrapped too, but he was quick to clarify he didn't want the infection or pain to go with it.
You never realize how much you use something until you can’t. Yesterday I had to go to the store and I couldn’t even put enough pressure on my thumb to turn the key to start my car. I ended up having to lean over with my left hand to turn the key. And cooking and cleaning and typing have not been easy either. I sure hope it heals fast. I’ve got Easter festivities with Andrew and a deadline to finish.
I hope your Easter is blessed and less eventful than mine. :)
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