Struggling in long arm cast -

Bones, joints and muscles
1

I'm really struggling, practically and emotionally, with the experience of being in a long arm cast.  The cast is from my fingers to the top of the bicep, elbow bent 90 degrees inside cast, palm of hand facing up.  It went on nearly 3 weeks ago and the last 3 weeks have been agonizing! 

​I dislocated my wrist, fully tore one ligament and partially tore two other ligaments while working out at the gym.

​First, the pain and discomfort is substantial.  The ortho rotated my wrist palm up, into the injury and casted it that way.  This position has caused the highest degree/intensity of pain since the injury occurred and continues to cause pain & discomfort in the cast.  I'm unable to tolerate pain medication, so I take 600mg of ibuprofin every 6 hours.  This manages the pain as long as I'm seated with my arm elevated.  If I get up from a sitting position and move around for any more than about 15 minutes, the ibuprofin doesn't help.  I'm not able to wear a sling due to the position of the cast and the manner in which it was casted.

​I'm only able to sleep in a seated position (propped up by pillows) with my arm also propped up with a separate set of pillows, so sleeping is difficult and fitfull.

​I'm having a lot of trouble with daily activities because my casted arm & hand are completely unable to be used.  Daily activities are either impossible or they are arduous, tiring, and take double the normal amount of time...including typing.   When my family are home, I rely on them for most things.

​I should share that I'm incredibly athletic and active.  Prior to the injury, I would log over 10,000 steps each day and over 500 active hours of physical activity each week on my Fitbit. 

At this time, I'm able to walk around my house or yard for a few minutes at a time before I have to sit back down and put my arm up.  If I try to do more it causes considerable discomfort and pain.  I've also noticed a sensation similar to rug burn but much more painful if I try to move around more.

​I was completely unprepared for how this is affecting me.  I've been feeling so lost and such loss and sadness.  Sometimes I feel okay, other times I just dissolve into sobbing because of how frustrating this is. 

I've experienced plenty of injuries (partially torn ligaments in both knees, sprains, dislocations, breaks of my elbow and metatarsal, and bulging disks in my back) because I'm so active & I enjoy competitive sports.  None of those injuries or recoveries has been anywhere near as bad as what I'm experiencing right now.

2

Please go back to your doctor/consultant or plaster clinic. Your pain sounds like CRPS in origin and the cast needs sorting - the sooner you get it reviewed the better. I didn't and now am regretting it big time as unable to do much with my wrist a year later and am waiting for further surgery next week! I don't think the pain is all from the injury. Please seek help sooner rather than later. 1,000mg of Vit C is also proven to help in dampening down the CRPS symptoms. Good luck and hope you are pain free soon - vicky

3

I've never heard of CRPS & had no idea it even existed.  I read about it briefly just now.  Thank you so much for telling me about it!! 

​I am so sorry!!  I can only imagine how awful it must be to struggle with something like this for a year!!  I'm 3 weeks in and I'm constantly exhausted, irritable, and crying.  My heart goes out to you!!  I hate that you have to go through surgery on top of everything you've already been through!!  What will the surgery address/correct?  Is it due to the CRPS?  I hope it helps you!!

4

Hi there!  How are you doing?  I had a bike mishap 6 days ago and had to day surgery 4 days ago.  I had a plate and several screws in my wrist and I also had carpal tunnel at the same time.  I was doing okay the first several days. Last night I had a freak out episode when trying to go to sleep.  I wanted this freakin splint off my arm. I couldn't comfortable so I finally got up and retired to an easy chair. I slept fitfully there.  This was my first evening that I didn't take Percocet so maybe that had an impact on my not sleeping.  My pain has been tolerable so I'm now only using Aleve to manage my pain.  My questions.....how to you get comfortable sleeping.  I'm a side sleeper so this sleeping on my back with my arm elevated on my chest is not comfortable. 😩  I have pillows everywhere but the slightest movement and they go out of position.  My arm is still swollen and painful to touch. How do you get that claustrophobic feeling to go away or how to minimize it.  I feel like my arm is suffocating and I want to bend my elbow.  Oh my...I'm trying to remain positive and take one day at a time.  Any tips for me?  I really hope you are doing well and back to your same athletic life.