April 1, 2007

Cracking

This is the time of year when people are typically cracking eggs; but I don’t like to be like everyone else. I’m a leader, not a follower, which is why I think I may have cracked a rib. Here’s a little quiz for you. . .

How did BBM potentially crack her rib?

A. Sparring with Mr. BBM

B. Working on bunkai (application) at the dojo

C. from a wrestling move from Lil C

D. by bending over and picking up a toy while sneezing

I know. It’s tempting to choose A right? Think of the posts that would follow, the back and foot rubs and cooked dinners that would result if Mr. BBM had indeed cracked or bruised my ribs. Oh, how I wish that were so. A gal can always use some pampering.

And then there’s working out at the dojo, which is also a tempting notion. Karate can be rough and it was only a matter of time before an injury would result, right? If that were the case, it would be a warrior injury. Unfortunately, a warrior I am not.

Then there’s C, as in Lil C. Lil C has found me to be very much like an animated playground these days. I have no doubt that she could crack or badly bruise a rib. It wouldn’t be hard for her to do so. She has often "attacked" me while I’m lying on my back and has no problem walking all over Mommy literally. But a Mommy injury it is not.

On Thursday morning, I was cleaning up Lil C’s room when I bent over at the waist to pick up a toy. In the process, I sneezed a ridiculous sneeze. When I stood up, I felt like someone had thrown a knife into my side. It hurt to take a deep breath, and I stood there, completely still for several minutes because the pain was so severe.

At first I thought it was heartburn, but after drinking a glass of baking soda and water and knowing that I am not pregnant, I quickly ruled this one out.

I then moved on to thinking I was having a heart attack. It’s entirely possible for a young woman to have a heart attack and the symptoms that I googled confirmed this belief. Mr. BBM was working from home that day and after his baking soda cocktail failed to provide relief, he was thinking my heart was failing me too. "Lift your arm up, do this, do that. Does your jaw hurt? Does your arm hurt?" he asked. He bombarded me with questions since he’s an avid googler himself. When I didn’t get worse, we ruled the heart attack out.

I moved on to cancer. That’s where everyone goes at some point when being plagued by odd symptoms, so I did as well. I ruled out cancer and was puzzled. What the heck was wrong with me?

When night rolled around, I was still hurting and I talked to my Mom who happens to be a nurse.

"I bet you cracked a rib," she said. She went on to say that tall, thin people are more prone to these types of injuries and that it’s not unheard of for someone to crack a rib from a sneeze or cough. My Mom, as much as I hate to admit this, is almost always right. I googled "cracked or broken rib" and there it was: more pain on the exhale than inhale, intolerable to be on back or side, pain increases drastically when laughing. . . uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh, yeah.

So apparently there is nothing you can do for a cracked or broken rib. You just have to wait and let time heal the wound. I haven’t gone to the doctor and don’t think I will go, since I haven’t chosen a new doctor since this happened. If it gets worse, I’ll go. For now, I’m trying not to twist or laugh while sitting. Both are painful. And at night, I have to sleep on my right side or else I wake up in pain. Holding Lil C, especially on the left side has been uncomfortable. Fun.

I’m hoping I can continue to go to karate, avoiding sparring obviously. We’ll see how this week goes. I am hoping I only bruised a rib, not cracked it. I’ve read you can dislocate ribs too, and the popping/cracking sound I heard when bending and twisting at the grocery store says that maybe that’s the problem.

The biggest problem I’m having right now though, is slowing down and resting. After a weekend full of birthday parties, t-ball, a Team Mom meeting, and entertaining guests and two very cranky, tired children. . . I am exhausted. And we haven’t even started dying eggs in the BBM household yet. Here’s to a crack free rest of the week with some actual rest.