Footnotes

[kaberett]

1. I've cracked my fourth metatarsal.

2. ... probably?

3. The X-ray was... inconclusive? but there was some kind of irregularity on the bone around where all the soreness is?

4. I'll keep an eye out for the report from the fracture clinic, said the person treating me. Because it would be an... interesting... mechanism... for fracture... but that doesn't mean it's impossible...?

5. I have a boot to wear while doing weight-bearing Anything on it.

6. Nobody is entirely sure what to do about my orthotic insoles.

7. My follow-up with the fracture clinic is on the 11th of January.

8. why am i Like This

Comments

[alexwlchan]

Yee-ouch. Sympathies.

I approve of the title.

You know the thing where you sit down cross-legged, all in one motion, from standing? Which I do all the time and which is normally fine?

In the context of your talking to a confused medic, I cannot tell if this is a slightly sarcastic “this is something unusual for most people that is routine for me”. Is it?

I can imagine how that works, and I think I see how you could overload the toe if it goes wrong. (Lift up right foot, swing it to your left as you bend the left knee and lean leftwards. The right foot gets to the endpoint, then they fold down together. I’m struggling in this conference room, but doesn't feel like it needs masses more flexibility. If it goes pear-shaped, the left foot takes the strain. Symmetric under mirroring of feet.) I'm not a medic, so I assume this doesn't work like I imagine?

I would ask for a demonstration next time I see you, but I fear that may be tempting fate! :p

[kaberett]

It's not a particularly unusual thing but is a thing that's an excellent proxy for end-of-life health! bodies_in_motion and rydra_wong have been discussing it in more detail with onward links.

So yeah, it works pretty much like you're imagining! it's just that most people don't have the flexibility to bed their toes/ball of foot quite that far toward the arch of their foot without something else going wrong first, AND UNFORTUNATELY...

[alexwlchan]

Huh, interesting. I might add that to irregular physio routine, insofar as I have a “routine”.

I tried at home on a well-known carpet and without shoes, and yeah, I can just about get down in a single motion. But it’s right on the cusp of what’s possible, and if I did it repeatedly I can easily see myself toppling over.

OH DEAR. Hope you’re not in too much pain at this point?