The timing for Daisy wearing a full leg cast was great to be conducting school from home. Daisy's classrooms at school are located upstairs and there is not an elevator, so we weren't sure how she was going to pull that off. However, Daisy was looking forward to going to school and having her friends sign her cast. We all signed it and she had a couple neighbor friends sign it, but that was it.
The plan was to go school for a 4 day week and then the cast would come off right before spring break. She was getting pretty comfortable with the full leg cast.
One evening we ventured out for the first time with crutches. She tried going up two little steps that were just a few inches high and she really struggled with it. Thankfully that replaced some of the disappointment with relief when returning to school was pushed back until after the cast came off.
We were four weeks into our 12 week journey. The big day had arrived. Upon entering Gyeongsang National University Hospital we had to fill out a questionnaire about how we were feeling and if we had traveled anywhere recently. Then everyone gets a thermal scan to check for fever right inside the door.
Once we passed our Rona screening, Daisy's de-casting process began with an x-ray.
The cracks were not completely healed in both the tibia and fibula, but the bones were straight. Good news.
Daisy had been scared to death about having the doctor saw off the cast. She had herself all worked up even before anything happened.
She was convinced they were going to slip and cut her leg with the saw. She sort of freaked out and cried a wee bit.
TaDa! No more cast.
When you pack 3000 pounds of your belongings to bring overseas for two years, you often doubt your intellect when you arrive. You wonder 'why didn't I bring so-and-so,' and you also wonder 'why the heck did I bring that?' Every now and then you pat yourself on the back when you have something that you really need. Eli's boot is one of those things that made me say, "Man, I'm smart." Now why on earth did I not pack the crutches along with the boot I will never know. But we brought the boot and it worked. I was relieved because last visit the doctor said we could get a shorter regular cast or an 'expensive' boot.
When you get to know Koreans, they are super sweet people. If you don't actually know someone, they can come across a little abrupt. When Daisy was putting on the boot for the first time, she was crying out and saying how much it hurt to flex her foot flat. The doctor looked at her and bluntly said, "I don't think it hurts." I laughed at that more than Daisy did.
The hospitals here have a different feel here. It's hard to put into words. For one thing, when we go in for anything medical at all, it is always at the hospital. Broken bones, well-child exam (which I later learned is not a thing here), mammogram...it's all done at the hospital. I am under the assumption that there are no doctor's offices outside the hospital. So while we are waiting for paperwork,
we see things like this. First of all, that is a 7-11 randomly housed inside the hospital. Second of all, you see patients being wheeled around in beds, with IVs and the whole nine yards,
as well as people just lying around on benches. It just feels weird.
Here is the Daiser on our ride home. Her leg was healing but her spirit was crushed. Now on to eight weeks with the boot.
[March 26]
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