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about, roughly 4-7 days ago, I hit the back of my right hand on a hard-glass tv screen really hard. The TV is OK, but both the right side of my right hand and the dead center of the back of my right hand hurt.
I noticed some swelling, but it has gone down a little. Now if I move or click with my right index finger or right middle finger enough, I get an occasional sharp pain that shoots through the center of my hand, and if I push my hand into anything or pull something with my hand, especially if it involves a pinching motion (raising the wrist up with the finger tilted downwards), it aches a little, and it almost feels like a bone or something is about to pop out of place.
That being said, slight pain aside, I'm still able to use my hand fully, but I'm worried it's going to get worse if left untreated, or if treated improperly, which is bad because I need to do a lot of typing and heavy-lifting. I remember having a similar sensation in my left knee when I was letting my knees heal over a month, and I would do certain things with my knee, but it has mostly healed now.
If I rub my hand, it doesn't hurt, unless I just really push and squeeze it really hard (of course).
I have no health insurance, and am currently waiting to get health insurance from my mom and her new job so I can see a real doctor for an x-ray, but for now, I've just tried keeping my hand and wrist compressed with an Ace wrist band, and have tried taking ibuprofen.
In the meantime, what kind of injury does this sound like? Is it a fracture, or a dislocated bone, or what?
Sounds like a fracture to me. an Xray will tell you right away. I'd go to your local hospital emergency room and get the problem addressed ,worry about the money some other time.
Damn shame in this day and age people can get into circumstances where they have to go without full healthcare coverage.
I know, right? My school doesn't provide healthcare, no one ever showed me how to get some, and my parents always told me that health insurance is so expensive, it's not worth it, but what the hell should I do if I'm tight on cash and I, I don't know, get shot or break my hand?
So, do I just go there and tell them I don't have health insurance and go into debt with the hospital I chose? How much does an x-ray in Memphis cost?
My hand actually was feeling a little better early this morning, although that may be from the ibuprofein I took last night. Now it hurts more than previously because I had to do a ****ton of heavy lifting to move into my new apartment.
I'm worried that the whole cycle of constant healing, and then re-injuring, and then healing again, and then RE-injuring again, is just going to wear away some cartilage or something in my hand or make it heal back wrong. That is my top concern.
I've broken my hand twice. Both times, it bruised almost black right away. I've had other broken bones and they seem to follow the same bruising pattern, except for a stress fracture in my foot that didn't bruise at all.
Both times that I broke my hand, it healed within several weeks. The first time, I went to the hospital for x-rays and ended up with a cast for three weeks. The second time, I didn't have health insurance and I let it heal on its own. I had a thick spot on the bone that I could feel for a couple of years after that but it didn't affect the function of my hand at all.
I'm guessing if you could do a lot of heavy lifting, your hand is probably not broken. You should ice it and rest it, and continue to take the ibuprofen, but I'm not sure I'd waste the money getting x-rays. Another thing to consider, you can go to the ER and they will bill you later (some of them will give you an option to pay about $400 on the spot or get billed at least a thousand later), but if you do have a broken bone and you need a cast, you'll have to see an orthopedic surgeon and most of them will not even see you without insurance, even if you have cash. At least that was my experience when I broke my leg.
If you do decide to get your hand looked at, go to your county hospital or county clinic. Since you give your location as Memphis, TN, this looks like it might be a good place to go if you decide to get it looked at: Pediatric Dentistry & Family Health Clinics with Community Support Services If they can't help you, they can probably tell you where you can go instead.
I know, right? My school doesn't provide healthcare, no one ever showed me how to get some, and my parents always told me that health insurance is so expensive, it's not worth it, but what the hell should I do if I'm tight on cash and I, I don't know, get shot or break my hand?
So, do I just go there and tell them I don't have health insurance and go into debt with the hospital I chose? How much does an x-ray in Memphis cost?
My hand actually was feeling a little better early this morning, although that may be from the ibuprofein I took last night. Now it hurts more than previously because I had to do a ****ton of heavy lifting to move into my new apartment.
I'm worried that the whole cycle of constant healing, and then re-injuring, and then healing again, and then RE-injuring again, is just going to wear away some cartilage or something in my hand or make it heal back wrong. That is my top concern.
If you're really worried about healing, then reinjuring, then healing again, then reinjuring again, then - stop doing that. Stop injurying and healing and reinjuring and rehealing. Really, lifting heavy stuff with a hand that you KNOW is injured, and haven't even found out how badly yet, is not a very good idea.
Yes, you will go into debt in the hospital. And no, you're not just getting an x-ray. You're getting an emergency room visit, a consultation with a licensed medical practitioner plus a team of nurses, assistants, a radiologist, an employee whose primary job it is to sanitize everything in the area you were in, and then sanitize it again when you leave, possibly a specialist, possibly an anasthesiologist, and all kinds of other people who are there waiting to find out what you need.
And then, they actually take the x-ray - which costs money, then they have someone read the x-ray, then they discuss it with the physician, who makes his diagnosis (or passes it to a specialist if it's something he's not familiar with), recommends treatment, and prescribes whatever he prescribes. If he simply bandages you up and sends you home, you still have to pay for everything leading up to that one moment where he sends you home. Including the bandage
Hm. Both good insights. You sound like you're a medical professional, AnonChick.
Since most of my moving is done now, I am going to find some way to rest my hand a bit better over the next week or two, and see how it does. I'm still not sure whether to compress it or not. I'm guessing I should to help hold the bones together, but the wrist band that I use sometimes feels like it either doesn't help much in reducing pain, or actually makes it worse. I could be wearing it too tight or too loose.
Hm. Both good insights. You sound like you're a medical professional, AnonChick.
Since most of my moving is done now, I am going to find some way to rest my hand a bit better over the next week or two, and see how it does. I'm still not sure whether to compress it or not. I'm guessing I should to help hold the bones together, but the wrist band that I use sometimes feels like it either doesn't help much in reducing pain, or actually makes it worse. I could be wearing it too tight or too loose.
If the injury is in your hand, wearing a band on your wrist isn't going to do much for it. Using some sports tape on your hand would provide some support and help hold things together. Don't wrap the tape tightly, maybe use strips that don't wrap totally around your hand. If it's swelling, then using ice and elevating your arm whenever you can will help with the swelling.
Well, the band I have now is meant for the wrist, but it is like a thick cloth band with velcro, so I can wrap it around my hand. It's just a bit big, and I have to wrap it some-what snug to feel a difference.
At worst i'd say all you need is an Xray to confirm a diagnosis and then probably a cast applied, i cant believe it would cost more than $500 out of pocket. But then again i dont live in America so i have no idea what something like this might cost.
It's unlikely you fractured it from hitting it the way you described unless you have an underlying condition that causes your bones to break easily. It's more likely you have bruised the tendons and/or ligaments in your hand. My advice wound be to use an ace wrap for support and see if it feels better in a week or so.
BTW I've had 30+ broken bones and I can't remember there not being a bruise with it. Also when I've broken my hand I haven't been able to even hold things never mind normal use.
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