Last Friday Kyle had a football game, and it was the start of the "play-offs" down here. The games are normally pretty intense, with arguing and fights breaking out every 2 minutes. This one was actually pretty tame and Kyle was having a great game so far. Well, that was until he dove into the in zone on his left shoulder and a guy from the other team jumped directly on his right shoulder. When it happened, he was just laying on the ground, and I don't think I've ever seen him get seriously hurt in football, so I' freaking out a little but figured he just needed a second to get up. The EMT guys run over there, and at this point I'm thinking do I go out there, or do i just stand here. I didn't know what to do!
So finally they help him up and I could tell something was definitely wrong as they walked him off the field. So I run over to the picnic table they sat him down at and the first thing they he says to me is "I think I broke my collarbone." Which I had no idea how serious/painful that was but I knew it sounded pretty bad, and he looked like he was in so much pain. So the EMT guys take us over to the health center and they get him laid down on a stretcher. They decided he would probably need an x-ray to see if it was really broken. There is a hospital in Portsmouth (15 min away) but their x-ray machine is down. There is the main hospital in Roseau (1 hour away) but apparently it's not like hospitals in the US where doctors are just waiting around. You have to have another doctor call ahead to let them know we're coming. We'll the problem was that the 2 doctors who run the health center had just left the island and were on an airplane and couldn't be reached. So we sat in this little room at the health center for probably an hour before they finally got a hold of the hospital and the ambulance came. And when I say ambulance, picture a van with two benches in the back and a red light flashing on top...
The ride was definitely an experience. I was so worried for Kyle because his shoulder and his neck hurt so bad, we're flying down he roads hitting so many potholes while he is basically laying on one of the benches with no seat belts. There was also another kid with us who got hit in the mouth during the game and needed an x-ray too. We all joked that if they were in more critical condition, honestly they probably would have been long gone before they ever made it to the hospital.... So we finally get to Princess Margaret Hospital (which is actually where Kyle will be going next semester), and they take us into this small "dressing room." This room looked like it was out of some scary movie (and it didn't help that it was about 10pm). The nurse comes in and confirms Kyle needs and x-ray but tells the other kid who got hit in the mouth all he needs it to just soak his mouth with salt water and his teeth will probably fall out (you should have seen his face when they said that!) We found out that they had to call the x-ray technician in, so we waited around for another 45 min until he got there. And this whole time, all Kyle has had is 2 Tylenol... and he couldn't even sit up or lay down on his own, or really move his neck. I'm sure if we were in the US the first thing they would have done would be to give him drugs to take away the pain.
So we get the x-ray, and then have to wait for the doctor to get there. That took about another 30 min. We go into the room where she is, and she asks Kyle's name, put his x-ray up on the light board, and says "What semester are you?" and he replies "4th." So she tells him, "Oh well then you tell me what this looks like?" I almost laughed out loud, but she was completely serious (AND she looked like she was about 16 years old!!). So Kyle tells her it looks like it isn't broken and she just goes "Yeah, so just take ibuprofen every 4 hours to help with the muscle soreness," and then just moves on to the other guy! So finally Kyle says, "Um well what do you think is actually wrong with me?" and she told him just muscle soreness... I mean she never even examined him, and she had no idea how much pain he was in (He said it was about an 8/10, which I'm sure would be a 15/10 on my scale!). So I asked if there was anything stronger she could give him to help with the pain. She offered an injection - which this big Dominican nurse had to give him in his "backside" which was funny - but it really wasn't any different than taking Tylenol.
Finally we got to leave and came home at about 12, ate a dinner of scrambled eggs, took about 30 minutes to get just his shirts off (he was still in his dirty football clothes) and then we did a little research on Web Md. The symptoms and pain he had matched up pretty well with a dislocated collarbone, and the treatment is the same as if it were broken - you just keep it is a sling and limit movement. Thankfully, he was able to sleep that night but the only bad thing was that the 4th semester banquet was the night after this all happened. It's a little celebration with dinner, dancing, slide show, etc to celebrate your last semester (well for those who don't stay for 5th) on the island. So all day Saturday I was trying to get a hold of someone who had stronger drugs and a better sling since they just tied a piece of cloth around him to keep his arm and shoulder in place. Finally I found one of Kyle's friends who had medicine that might help and I tracked down an EMT to get me a real sling. I felt like I walked all over campus that day, and I even managed to make two loaves of bread :) So he took the medicine and slept most of the day, and something must of worked because he said he was feeling well enough to go to the banquet! It was quite the adventure getting him dressed, and getting a tie on and everything. I was worried about the 45 min bus ride we had to take to get to the banquet, but we made it and though there were a few times he was really in pain, most of the night he was fine! He even surprised me because he was asked to give the "Spouse Appreciation" speech. And then he even felt well-enough to dance a little bit.
So of course we got home late, but he was such a trooper that the next day he even spoke at the RCF Sunrise Service for Easter at 6am! It was held out on the beach, which was so pretty but I could tell it hurt him a lot to even talk that much, but he made it through:) We came back and he went right back to bed, but we were invited to someones house for Easter brunch, and I hadn't made anything yet AND our apartment was a complete disaster. So I started cooking and cleaning, and before I knew it, it was time to go. The brunch was a lot of fun. There were about 12 of our friends there and we all just brought food. But once we got home I was exhausted and so we just napped.
The adorable John Walker Wade at the sunrise service
The adorable Kyle Morgan speaking :)
Easter Brunch with friends at Bella, Julianna, & Angie's
I told Kyle it was actually nice that he got hurt because he got to stay home with me all weekend:) He's a lot better now but still in pain and taking medicine. He hasn't been wearing the sling, and hasn't had to miss any class. And today, he's going back to the hospital, which they do 2 times as 4th semester for somewhat of a "mini-rotation day." So, at least if he's feeling bad today, he will already be at the hospital!
Like I said in the beginning of the post, THANK YOU to all of you for your thoughts, prayers, e-mails, visits, medicine, and even for making us dinner! Kyle said that he just felt so loved as each person showed how much they cared and how concerned they were. Most of the football team came to visit him in the EMT room, and so many friends stopped by as well. I felt like I was manning the phones all night as the calls and text messages rolled in. We appreciate each and every one of you. Thank you for making us feel so loved!
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