Capitulation

I’m caving in. My wrist hurts so bad that it’s starting to interfere with my life — I have a high tolerance for pain, but now even Aleve isn’t really working. And it kept waking me up last night. Every time it slid out from under the cold pack. So I am going to an Orthopedist in the morning to see if it really is a ganglion cyst, and if so, what we should do about it.

I’m not sure exactly what will be done tomorrow, other than a definitive diagnosis. Which is, in itself, valuable, I suppose. But I may, or may not, end the visit with actual treatment of the problem.

See, I’m competing in a karate tournament on Saturday. And I’ve already paid the (non-refundable) entry fee. And I’ve already psyched myself up for it. I am not going to miss this competition.

So I’ll be discussing options with the doctor.  My sister-in-law, who is a doctor, says that when these cysts get to be this troublesome, they generally want to excise them. Read: “Cut open your wrist and yank that bad boy right on out of there.” I’m cool with that, but not if it means having my left hand trussed up and immobile on Saturday. I’m not sparring, but I still need to be able to make a fist.

The other form of treatment is to “aspirate” the cyst. Read: “Stick a large-bore needle in your wrist and suck the stuffing out of the cyst.” I’m also cool with that. Especially if it means not having some ginormous bandage act going on with my left hand on Saturday. Next week, they can do whatever they want. But before Saturday, no deal.

If both of those options means immobility of that wrist, then treatment will have to wait. For now, I just have to wait and see.

Tags: Family Life, karate, medical issues, pain, True Stories