I think I broke a toe

[kingcreole]

NOTE - Chef is NOT permitted to post on this thread.

I've never broken a bone in my life. Yesterday, I'm in the garage looking for some work shoes. Before I put them on, I have to go back inside. Being the klutz that I am, I didn't quite make it up the two steps back to the kitchen. My left foot slammed into the top step.

After hopping around like a Mexican soccer player who just got breathed on and pounding the pantry with my fist I sat down and inspected my foot. Well, the second toe had a nice hunk of skin hanging on by a thread. But other than that, I figured nothing was wrong. After moping in self-pity for a couple hours on the recliner, I had to get the kids ready for bed.

I noticed my toe was numb. Looking down, the upper part was kind of purple. This morning, same thing.

I've been told by Queencreole it's not even worth going to see a doctor, that there's nothing they could do for it.

So short of drinking some beer, putting some peroxide on it and taking a knife to it, what do I need to do here? Is it something that heals itself or what?

 

[Dyno]

I had a deep bone bruise in my little toe a few years ago and it was insanely painful. I went to the urgent care place to have it checked out (I thought it was broken). They took xrays, but beyond that, there's nothing they can do. So Queencreole is right. I just stayed off it as much as I could, wrapped some gauze around it to keep my shoe from rubbing against it, iced it and took Advil. After a few days, the pain lessened. Good luck (and stay away from the peroxide and knives).

 

[slappy4428]

Rub some dirt on it, Nancy-boy...

 

[21]

-Get some first aid tape, and a little bit of gauze or cotton.
-Buddy tape the toe to the toe next door, putting the cotton in between. Just a little, to keep them from getting yucky.
-Ice and elevation.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

If it's purple, it's almost certainly broken.

I've broken a few doing karate and your wife is right that there is almost nothing a doctor can do about it.

Only reason to go to the doctor would be to get pain meds.

 

[KG]

They can't do anything for a broken toe, but you can protect yourself from constantly brushing it against stuff, which makes it hurt more. If you use something sort of like the corn pads you can find in the first aid isles, it will cushion it some. Also, you can get a splint to keep yourself from bending it when you are sleeping, but you won't be able to walk around in shoes with one on.

Are you limping badly? If it is broken, you will certainly be limping. Also, is it swollen? If it's broken, it should be pretty swollen.

 

[KG]

Oh and when you have time to relax, borrow your wife's toe separator (if she has one) used for separating the toes when painting the toenails. It should help take some of the pressure off.

 

[The Big Ragu]

Rub some dirt on it, Nancy-boy...

Love it!

I have a mangled pinky. It was bent like a pretzel -- knuckle turned inward, so it was on the same side as my palm, and the top half of the finger was at a right angle. It was the ugliest thing I have ever seen.

Its permanently swollen, crooked and doesn't bend now. I might have been able to get it surgically fixed with a screw, but the orthopedist who did the emergency fix at his home (people I was with when it happened are friends with him, so they rushed me over to his house and he fed me beer, shots and percocets, and finally had to shoot it up with lytocaine to untangle the mess) is a former college football player who has put his body through hell and back, and his verdict was, "It's just a ****in' pinky. What do you need it for anyway?"

He was actually right.

 

[outofplace]

Ouch. I broke my big toe when I was 10 or 11. As everyone else is saying, there really isn't much the doctor can do for you unless it is more than a simple fracture (spiral fractures, infections and such), but that doesn't sound like what you are dealing with here. There were some good suggestions above for protecting it.

Be glad it isn't the big toe. That was really no fun.

 

[Football_Bat]

What the hell is it with Kansas people and toes?

Hell, even the dog in the movie was named Toe-Toe.

 

[Big Buckin' agate_monkey]

Rub some dirt on it, Nancy-boy...

Love it!

"Nancy-boy" is what makes it.

 

[slappy4428]

ehhh, it's a gift.

 

[DemoChristian]

Get drunk, cut the damn thing off and post some play-by-play [/Chef]

 

[terrier]

Broke my little toe a few years ago when the kid accidently caught my bare foot in a door. It turned deep, deep purple, and hurt like hell for a week.
A doctor's office or clinic trip, obviously, would've been useless.

 

[doubledown68]

Do be careful. The immortal Jack Daniel broke a toe one day kicking a safe. He was too embarassed to tell anyone about it, and gangrene eventually set in.

The whiskey king was eventually done in by a broken toe. (It's amazing what you learn when you tour the distillery.)

Anyway, I'm sure you're protected againt gangrene. Just be vigiliant, I guess.

 

[kingcreole]

They can't do anything for a broken toe, but you can protect yourself from constantly brushing it against stuff, which makes it hurt more. If you use something sort of like the corn pads you can find in the first aid isles, it will cushion it some. Also, you can get a splint to keep yourself from bending it when you are sleeping, but you won't be able to walk around in shoes with one on.

Are you limping badly? If it is broken, you will certainly be limping. Also, is it swollen? If it's broken, it should be pretty swollen.

Yup, I'm limping like a Mexican soccer player who got kicked in the arm and it's purple. I'd say it's broken.

And I have to coach soccer practice tonight ... :(

 

[Overrated]

Although, I empathize with kingcreole, I think it's absolutely hilarious there's nothing doctors can do about a broken toe. I mean, what century is this?

Doctor: Well, we took some X-rays and I have some unfortunate news.
kingcreole: Oh?
Doctor: Your toe is broken.
kingcreole: Now what?
Doctor: I'm afraid there's nothing we can do.
kingcreole: Are you serious?
Doctor: As cancer. Now, I have to run along and drill a hole in this guy's skull so we can insert some RAM, which will give him the ability to fly while he solves trigonometry problems.

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

I've broken a few doing karate and your wife.

Fixed.

 

[kingcreole]

Although, I empathize with kingcreole, I think it's absolutely hilarious there's nothing doctors can do about a broken toe. I mean, what century is this?

Doctor: Well, we took some X-rays and I have some unfortunate news.
kingcreole: Oh?
Doctor: Your toe is broken.
kingcreole: Now what?
Doctor: I'm afraid there's nothing we can do.
kingcreole: Are you serious?
Doctor: As cancer. Now, I have to run along and drill a hole in this guy's skull so we can insert some RAM, which will give him the ability to fly while he solves trigonometry problems.

Kind of what I thought.

I put some ointment on it and dressed it with a gauze/tape, and be damned if it's tougher to walk now than before.

Dr. Chef?

 

[RossLT]

If it's purple, it's almost certainly broken.

I've broken a few doing karate and your wife is right that there is almost nothing a doctor can do about it.

Only reason to go to the doctor would be to get pain meds.

Pain meds are always a good reason to go to the doctor