I've been walking around on a foot that has a crush injury, caused by an angry child, for over a year now. I've been prescribed creams and patches, have custom orthotics, and must wear jogging shoes for their cushion and shock absorption. Nothing works, even on the rare occasion when I can stick to the 15 minutes I'm allowed to be on my feet per hour.
I find workers' compensation a mixed bag. It's nice to know that if I get hurt at work, I'll be taken care of. I was given prompt treatment and treated quite well on the phone, and have been given appointments, diagnostic tests, and treatments in a timely manner. I appreciate getting paid for time off (not for writing sub plans, though!) to go to appointments and for my mileage. The reality is, though, that the patient still has to be her own advocate.
After walking around on a foot that needed to be rested for over a year, being deprived of my active lifestyle, getting crabby by lunchtime, and becoming more and more resentful of my condition, a student of mine arrived at school with a broken foot and a scooter.
Around the campus he zipped. Around the campus I hobbled. His foot healed, mine still has not. Granted, they are not the same injury. So at my next six week appointment, I asked/told the doctor that I wanted one. So he ordered me one. That's what I mean, I have to ASK for what I want and can't just trust that my own doctor is looking out for me. I didn't even know such an apparatus existed! Why didn't he suggest it?
So it arrived the day before the last day before Thanksgiving break. It needed to be assembled, which I tried to do myself (I'm a master at assembling Ikea stuff), but couldn't figure it out. So my husband tackled the project. He ended up having to get a hammer......a few grumbles later (this thing is definitely not of Swedish design and I'm glad I'm not an arthritic, little old lady living on her own!) it was ready for use.
I was a little self-conscious, but not so much so that I was willing to put up with this foot any longer. I used it whenever I needed to travel around campus, which on a Friday, is about five+ times. It made a HUGE, HUGE difference! So much so that I wonder how my foot would be doing if I'd had this thing from the very beginning. Only time will tell.
It needs some tweaking as it's a little hard on the knee I must stand on. I would suggest bicycle-like tires and/or shock absorbers. The breaks aren't that great either. But overall, it's an improvement over walking up and down the corridors all day long.
Take my advice and avoid this entire ordeal: Don't make a child get out from under a table. Ever.
I find workers' compensation a mixed bag. It's nice to know that if I get hurt at work, I'll be taken care of. I was given prompt treatment and treated quite well on the phone, and have been given appointments, diagnostic tests, and treatments in a timely manner. I appreciate getting paid for time off (not for writing sub plans, though!) to go to appointments and for my mileage. The reality is, though, that the patient still has to be her own advocate.
After walking around on a foot that needed to be rested for over a year, being deprived of my active lifestyle, getting crabby by lunchtime, and becoming more and more resentful of my condition, a student of mine arrived at school with a broken foot and a scooter.
Around the campus he zipped. Around the campus I hobbled. His foot healed, mine still has not. Granted, they are not the same injury. So at my next six week appointment, I asked/told the doctor that I wanted one. So he ordered me one. That's what I mean, I have to ASK for what I want and can't just trust that my own doctor is looking out for me. I didn't even know such an apparatus existed! Why didn't he suggest it?
So it arrived the day before the last day before Thanksgiving break. It needed to be assembled, which I tried to do myself (I'm a master at assembling Ikea stuff), but couldn't figure it out. So my husband tackled the project. He ended up having to get a hammer......a few grumbles later (this thing is definitely not of Swedish design and I'm glad I'm not an arthritic, little old lady living on her own!) it was ready for use.
I was a little self-conscious, but not so much so that I was willing to put up with this foot any longer. I used it whenever I needed to travel around campus, which on a Friday, is about five+ times. It made a HUGE, HUGE difference! So much so that I wonder how my foot would be doing if I'd had this thing from the very beginning. Only time will tell.
It needs some tweaking as it's a little hard on the knee I must stand on. I would suggest bicycle-like tires and/or shock absorbers. The breaks aren't that great either. But overall, it's an improvement over walking up and down the corridors all day long.
Take my advice and avoid this entire ordeal: Don't make a child get out from under a table. Ever.
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