Stupid Human Trick # 6,517: spraining my right ankle while walking on flat pavement into my rheumatologists’s office. Actually, my ankle rolled over sideways and I tried to step onto the dorsal (upper) side of my foot. The good news is that I got it iced immediately. I sat there on the bench seat by the doctor’s desk, one foot on the ground, and the other leg folded sideways with my foot on the bench by my hip. “You really are hypermobile, aren’t you?” she asked.
“Yeah,” I sighed, “hence the sprained ankle and shoulder subluxations and tennis elbow…”
She gave me an extra prescription pad sheet with a list of things to do, including one that said to use a cane. Since I was just about to go on a trip, that sounded like a good precaution. While getting some medication, I bought a new elastic bandage, an ankle wrap, and a cane.
Not just any cane, one with a built-in small compass (cheap, but it works), an equally cheap magnifying site (but I did use it to read a sign I couldn’t decipher otherwise), a wrist strap (an excellent feature, so I don’t leave it somewhere), and best of all, it folds up! This is truly “made of win”, as the kids would say.
The eldest was so impressed that I have been instructed to buy another should they be restocked. I also packed my weight-lifting gloves, as they allow for a better grip on luggage, and even give me a little sun protection: Read the rest of this entry »
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