I’m 6’ 2" and we have a ceiling fan with a lamp under it in our den. Where we also now have a Wii. And while executing a vigorous leaping, fully extended backhanded tennis smash while playing Wii Sports, I managed to smash the front of the middle finger of my right hand against the bowl of the ceiling lamp.
On the plus side, the lamp is apparently an expensive and classic one (it was already in the house when we moved in) and the bowl is made of heavy lead crystal, not glass. The result is that there was a truly beautiful and reverberating ringing tone, clear as a bell, when my hand hit the lamp, and no shower of broken glass.
Also on the plus side, I hit the lamp with my finger, being as it was a backhanded stroke, and not the Wii remote, which is what might have happened on a forehand stroke. And smashing the Wii remote would have been sucky since they’re darn near impossible to find right now around here.
On the minus side, I think I may have broken or cracked a bone. I applied ice at once, but it swelled up and turned black almost immediately right around the bottom of my fingernail, and it’s all numb now from between the first and second joints down to the tip. I’ll find out for sure when I see the doc tomorrow afternoon: I figured it wasn’t worth a trip to the ER when there’s no blood and no pieces dangling loose or anything.
I can even sort of still touch type, albeit very gingerly when it comes to the letters corresponding to my right middle finger. Such as the letter I. I’m compensating by using my index finger with mixed success. Well I guess I can learn to be less egotistical this way.
If it gets cold or you can no longer feel a pulse, (check the pulse on either side of the finger) go to the ER. If you lose circulation, you could lose the finger.
Seriously – I will check. Right now it’s still throbbing, does that count as having “a pulse”? And it’s numb but that’s not quite the same as cold… In fact if I weren’t immersing it in ice/ice water all the time I’d say it feels like it’s feverishly hot (but in my fingertip past the first knuckle).
(Or is that the second knuckle – does one count from the fingertip inwards, or the palm outwards? I never did figure that one out.)
Per picunuerse I called a friend of mine who’s head nurse in a local ER room and whose husband is a Lieutenant in the NYC EMS. They told me to go in to the ER. So here I am awaiting triage. Ho ho ho!
Per picunurse I called a friend of mine who’s head nurse in a local ER room and whose husband is a Lieutenant in the NYC EMS. They told me to go in to the ER. So here I am awaiting triage. Ho ho ho!
Be prepared for a sore back in the future, too! There are five people at my workplace (including myself) who have had Wii’s for at least six months and every single one of us has reported sore arms, shoulders, or backs at some point. It’s amazing what happens when you’re, you know, forced to move your arms for something. Us office folk aren’t used to that.
Just wait - it gets even better when you have two people, neither one completely sober, playing Wii Tennis. Suffice it to say, rams in spring have nothing on our unintentional head-butt and successive tangled fall to the floor, laughing and crying with pain and inebriated glee.
We have not yet tried that scenario with four, but when we do, I’m sure you’ll hear about it on the national news.
Well the finger ain’t broken, at least sez the X-rays. But the doc wouldn’t “drain” the finger of blood either, so it’s just swollen and painful. He says he doesn’t think it’s bad enough that the nail will fall off (even though the blackened spot under the nail is now covering about 75-80% of the nail area).
I’m right glad to hear that, but I was kinda looking forward to having it drained to relieve the pressure in my fingertip. Ouch! He says the swelling is from ruptured blood vessels (hematoma) that will “get reabsorbed” by my body over time, and to just soak it in warm water with some Epsom salts added if I wish. And ibuprofen (Advil/Motrin).
As for future Wii-related injuries: how long before there’s essentially a version of Twister for the Wii?
A quick Googling turned up this article on Wii-related injuries: …we’ve got a Agassi wannabe who didn’t exactly pay attention to the overhead (glass) light fixture before serving an ace, and now he’s reportedly got the bloodshed (and repair bills) to show for it. The moral of the story is that the Wiimote can be a potent weapon and injury liaison if not used properly…
Yeah, I resemble that remark, except for the lead crystal saving me from repair bills (except for my HMO co-payments)
Some friends of ours had a Wii party a few weeks ago. I think the smartest thing they did was set it up in the room with the vaulted ceiling and no overhead fans. Not sure why they did this, since they’re all short, but I appreciated it.
I’m surprised the doc didn’t drain your nail. If it’s covering that much of a nail, I will offer to drain it most every time, for my patients.
I even gave my daughter instructions via phone and email on how to do it for a friend who had similar, using a candle and a paper clip. Blessed relief resulted.
I actually saw two docs, and brought up the procedure to both of them after my friend’s wife who’s an ER nurse mentioned it to me while urging me to go in last night to see if it was broken. First the guy in the ER last night, then my regular doctor today, who I ironically had an existing appointment to see prior to my finger injury. Both of them said it didn’t look bad enough to warrant draining. But it hurts, dammit! Why not drain it? ('Cause they don’t have the time?)
I’ve pulled a calf muscle and have sore arms and shoulders, all since my daughter got her Wii from Santa a couple of days ago. Clearly I need more practice, however: she homered off me in the top of the third in Wii Baseball this afternoon, beating me 7-4.
Well, 52 hours or so after the injury the swelling is becoming less painful (or maybe I’m getting used to it), so I don’t think I’ll bother draining it any more. The additional injunction to Soak the injured finger in warm water with a few drops of disinfectant for 20 minutes, 4 times a day, for 2 days seems like more trouble than it’d be worth now.
My feelings would probably have been different yesterday. The first 6 or so hours it was just kind of sore. The next 24 hours were increasingly more painful. 24 hours ago I would probably have drained it myself per these directions. Now, I think another 24-48 hours and it will go down by itself…
I do kind of wish I could get a leeching. A little ol’ leech on the blood engorged lump right behind my fingernail would probably do the trick too.
