Crash of the year

JQ wrote:

But to the real reason I am replying, Martha from your description of your
injury you may have fractured a rib. It is probably a hair line fracture
and there isn't much you can do for it. At one time they used to put a wrap
around the chest to help keep it compressed but that lead to pneumonia, so
now the treatment is take Tylenol for pain relief. You will need to breathe
deeply as this will help keep you from developing fluid build up in the
lungs causing pneumonia.

30 years ago my husband broke 3 ribs -- actually separated by an inch
from the unbroken parts, I have no idea how they find their way home,
but they do. Even then they didn't wrap them. He could stand the pain
from the ribs, but what brought him to tears was the laxative that the
quack-on-call administered unrequested.

Cheers, Bev
================================================== =====================
"Windows Freedom Day: a holiday that moves each year, the date of which
is calculated by adding up the total amount of time a typical person
must spend restarting windows and then determining how many work weeks
that would correspond to." -- Trygve Lode

On 2005-01-26, JQ penned:

I too was a middle distance runner on a national level. Back in the day
when I was a runner the theme was, "pain made you stronger" so we trained as
hard as we could through injury and all. I had two knee operations on each
knee and now I am a candidate for total knee replacements. I ski in pain
with knee braces and cannot do anything that is over low impact.

Ugh. I have a friend who is in a similar boat, knee-wise. She actually can't
ski anything but easy blue groomers anymore, which is quite a change for
someone who was once on the US developmental team and who taught skiing for
several years.

She's in constant pain, but she says that from her research, total knee
replacement only makes those with moderate lifestyles happy. Those who are
athletes hate the replacement knee, as they can't do anything they're used to
doing. They'd rather have the pain.

*sigh* what a mess.

--
monique
Longmont, CO

JQ wrote:
(snip)

It was wild. Conditioning has a lot to do with it. Also, he's young
enough to take the harder falls better than those of us who are a
tad
older.

I'm in decent shape. I've been in better shape; I could stand to
lose
10 pounds, and I'm working on that. Getting a better job with more
same
hours will help as well.

I used to run distance races. I've ran a couple marathons and a
whole
mess of halfs. There was a fine line between getting the right
amount
of training and conditioning and over training where injuries sort
of
seek you out. If you'll notice, a lot of professional athletes
haven't
found that line.

As to my injury, I must have torn (or extremely bruised) a muscle
next
to my rib cage. Don't worry; it only hurts when I breathe, laugh,
move.


Martha


I too was a middle distance runner on a national level. Back in the
day
when I was a runner the theme was, "pain made you stronger" so we
trained as
hard as we could through injury and all. I had two knee operations
on each
knee and now I am a candidate for total knee replacements. I ski in
pain
with knee braces and cannot do anything that is over low impact.

But to the real reason I am replying, Martha from your description of
your
injury you may have fractured a rib. It is probably a hair line
fracture
and there isn't much you can do for it. At one time they used to put
a wrap
around the chest to help keep it compressed but that lead to
pneumonia, so
now the treatment is take Tylenol for pain relief. You will need to
breathe
deeply as this will help keep you from developing fluid build up in
the
lungs causing pneumonia.

JQ
Dancing on the edge

Wow, a hairline fracture huh? I've cracked two ribs before (in a car
accident that stopped my running) and it was the most painful thing
I've ever endured. How long does iti take to heal? I want to go skiing
the weekend after next. In fact, I cancelled a trip I had planned for
Mt Rose this Saturday.

I was never at teh national level in running, though I did win a few
races my running club sponsored.

Martha

(snip)

Wow, a hairline fracture huh? I've cracked two ribs before (in a car
accident that stopped my running) and it was the most painful thing
I've ever endured. How long does iti take to heal? I want to go skiing
the weekend after next. In fact, I cancelled a trip I had planned for
Mt Rose this Saturday.

I was never at teh national level in running, though I did win a few
races my running club sponsored.

Martha

Well, it will take any where from 2 to 6 weeks to heal and sometimes longer.
Generally when you fracture a rib you also bruise the lung so in a few days
as the bruise starts to heal you will begin to cough, this will hurt like
hell but it is a part of healing. If you are a die hard, you will be able
to ski in 2 weeks but it may still be very tender and hurt as you bounce
around while skiing. Go by feel if it hurts too much stop, taking some
Tylenol will help if it gets too painful. If it still tender when you go
skiing take the Tylenol about 1/2 hour before skiing and every 4 hours
afterwards. This will help keep the pain to a minimum. When you get home
ice the area and follow with moist heat in 15 minute sets by 2 to 3 rounds
(15 min. ice, 15 min. heat). You can start the ice/heat treatment now and
it may help speed up the healing process.

JQ
Dancing on the edge

JQ wrote:
(snip)

Wow, a hairline fracture huh? I've cracked two ribs before (in a car
accident that stopped my running) and it was the most painful thing
I've ever endured. How long does iti take to heal? I want to go skiing
the weekend after next. In fact, I cancelled a trip I had planned for
Mt Rose this Saturday.

I was never at teh national level in running, though I did win a few
races my running club sponsored.

Martha


Well, it will take any where from 2 to 6 weeks to heal and sometimes longer.
Generally when you fracture a rib you also bruise the lung so in a few days
as the bruise starts to heal you will begin to cough, this will hurt like
hell but it is a part of healing. If you are a die hard, you will be able
to ski in 2 weeks but it may still be very tender and hurt as you bounce
around while skiing. Go by feel if it hurts too much stop, taking some
Tylenol will help if it gets too painful. If it still tender when you go
skiing take the Tylenol about 1/2 hour before skiing and every 4 hours
afterwards. This will help keep the pain to a minimum. When you get home
ice the area and follow with moist heat in 15 minute sets by 2 to 3 rounds
(15 min. ice, 15 min. heat). You can start the ice/heat treatment now and
it may help speed up the healing process.

JQ
Dancing on the edge

JQ,
Good to see you still bouncing around. Try again for
Killington skiing. We are finally getting some good
(cold) weather and "real" snow.

Martha,
I agree with everything JQ sez except:
Tylenol is generally bad for kidneys. I MUCH prefer
ibuprofen (always take with food) for pain. Vitamin I,
like aspirin, is also an inflammation reducer which
Tylenol is not. The skiing doctor elsewhere agrees with
this and has given her recommendation for pain relief
with out prescription as somewhere around 800mg every
8 hours taken with food because it can screw up your
stomach. Over the counter Ibuprofen is 200 or 250mg
per tablet.

Some people tend to take a small dose of pain killer
and keep upping the dose to max in order to get any
effect at all. My strategy is to take the max dose
when I first feel the need and often it's all I need
to take.

VtSkier aka RW

On 2005-01-27, VtSkier penned:

Martha, I agree with everything JQ sez except: Tylenol is generally bad for
kidneys. I MUCH prefer ibuprofen (always take with food) for pain. Vitamin
I, like aspirin, is also an inflammation reducer which Tylenol is not. The
skiing doctor elsewhere agrees with this and has given her recommendation
for pain relief with out prescription as somewhere around 800mg every 8
hours taken with food because it can screw up your stomach. Over the counter
Ibuprofen is 200 or 250mg per tablet.

Grr, I can't find a link right now, but be careful with this! Too much
ibuprofin *or* tylenol can damage your liver. Also, your body digests 4 200mg
ibuprofin differently than a single 800mg (prescription) pill. I don't recall
the exact differences, but if you're planning on taking this much of any pain
killer, a call to the doctor is a good idea.

Some people tend to take a small dose of pain killer and keep upping the
dose to max in order to get any effect at all. My strategy is to take the
max dose when I first feel the need and often it's all I need to take.

Body weight plays into this, too. Just because your body can (or at least,
thus far has) tolerated 800mg doses doesn't mean it's a good idea for
everyone.

The only time I've taken 800mg at a time is when I had my wisdom teeth removed
and was in serious pain. That was by prescription.

--
monique
Longmont, CO

"VtSkier" wrote in message
...
JQ wrote:
(snip)

Wow, a hairline fracture huh? I've cracked two ribs before (in a car
accident that stopped my running) and it was the most painful thing
I've ever endured. How long does iti take to heal? I want to go skiing
the weekend after next. In fact, I cancelled a trip I had planned for
Mt Rose this Saturday.

I was never at teh national level in running, though I did win a few
races my running club sponsored.

Martha


Well, it will take any where from 2 to 6 weeks to heal and sometimes
longer.
Generally when you fracture a rib you also bruise the lung so in a few
days
as the bruise starts to heal you will begin to cough, this will hurt
like
hell but it is a part of healing. If you are a die hard, you will be
able
to ski in 2 weeks but it may still be very tender and hurt as you bounce
around while skiing. Go by feel if it hurts too much stop, taking some
Tylenol will help if it gets too painful. If it still tender when you
go
skiing take the Tylenol about 1/2 hour before skiing and every 4 hours
afterwards. This will help keep the pain to a minimum. When you get
home
ice the area and follow with moist heat in 15 minute sets by 2 to 3
rounds
(15 min. ice, 15 min. heat). You can start the ice/heat treatment now
and
it may help speed up the healing process.

JQ
Dancing on the edge

JQ,
Good to see you still bouncing around. Try again for
Killington skiing. We are finally getting some good
(cold) weather and "real" snow.

Martha,
I agree with everything JQ sez except:
Tylenol is generally bad for kidneys. I MUCH prefer
ibuprofen (always take with food) for pain. Vitamin I,
like aspirin, is also an inflammation reducer which
Tylenol is not. The skiing doctor elsewhere agrees with
this and has given her recommendation for pain relief
with out prescription as somewhere around 800mg every
8 hours taken with food because it can screw up your
stomach. Over the counter Ibuprofen is 200 or 250mg
per tablet.

Some people tend to take a small dose of pain killer
and keep upping the dose to max in order to get any
effect at all. My strategy is to take the max dose
when I first feel the need and often it's all I need
to take.

VtSkier aka RW


Hi RW,

I agree with you but the thing with Tylenol causing kidney/liver problems
is if it is taken in very high dosage or for prolong period or with alcohol.
Ibuprofen is a nsaid (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug) they can cause
stomach ulcers even when taken with food if used for a long periods and if
taken with very high dosage or with alcohol. Neither should be used long
periods because all drugs have their down side even in if used on short term
basis. I personally use Tylenol and Alieve, I switch between the two
depending on the situation. I used Tylenol for pain management when
necessary and Alieve for inflammation management. I also double the dosages
which works fine for me , like RW said with max dosage. I also do not take
them on a daily basis only when needed. I used to take Alieve on a daily
basis until I started to get stomach problems. However, you need to weigh
the benefits against the draw backs here is some info on nsaids:
http://www.chclibrary.org/micromed/00058510.html info on acetaminophen:
http://www.lef.org/protocols/prtcl-001.shtml

I hope this helps,

JQ
Dancing on the edge

PS
As soon as I can arrange my time I will be up to Killington, I did buy the
Bronze season pass for myself and son.

VtSkier wrote:
JQ,
Good to see you still bouncing around. Try again for
Killington skiing. We are finally getting some good
(cold) weather and "real" snow.

Martha,
I agree with everything JQ sez except:
Tylenol is generally bad for kidneys. I MUCH prefer
ibuprofen (always take with food) for pain. Vitamin I,
like aspirin, is also an inflammation reducer which
Tylenol is not. The skiing doctor elsewhere agrees with
this and has given her recommendation for pain relief
with out prescription as somewhere around 800mg every
8 hours taken with food because it can screw up your
stomach. Over the counter Ibuprofen is 200 or 250mg
per tablet.

Some people tend to take a small dose of pain killer
and keep upping the dose to max in order to get any
effect at all. My strategy is to take the max dose
when I first feel the need and often it's all I need
to take.

VtSkier aka RW


Thanks to both JQ and VT!

I have been taking Addvil when I need it. It feels better each day,
though is still sore. It's at its worst at night. I think I'm going to
sit out skiing for the next couple of weeks and set my sights for the
12th when I'm planning on going to Heavenly.

I've cut back on my workouts, but I still go out walking and when I hit
the stairs at Jones/Pine it is painful to breathe.

Martha

JQ wrote:
"VtSkier" wrote in message
...

JQ wrote:

(snip)


Wow, a hairline fracture huh? I've cracked two ribs before (in a car
accident that stopped my running) and it was the most painful thing
I've ever endured. How long does iti take to heal? I want to go skiing
the weekend after next. In fact, I cancelled a trip I had planned for
Mt Rose this Saturday.

I was never at teh national level in running, though I did win a few
races my running club sponsored.

Martha


Well, it will take any where from 2 to 6 weeks to heal and sometimes

longer.

Generally when you fracture a rib you also bruise the lung so in a few

days

as the bruise starts to heal you will begin to cough, this will hurt

like

hell but it is a part of healing. If you are a die hard, you will be

able

to ski in 2 weeks but it may still be very tender and hurt as you bounce
around while skiing. Go by feel if it hurts too much stop, taking some
Tylenol will help if it gets too painful. If it still tender when you

go

skiing take the Tylenol about 1/2 hour before skiing and every 4 hours
afterwards. This will help keep the pain to a minimum. When you get

home

ice the area and follow with moist heat in 15 minute sets by 2 to 3

rounds

(15 min. ice, 15 min. heat). You can start the ice/heat treatment now

and

it may help speed up the healing process.

JQ
Dancing on the edge


JQ,
Good to see you still bouncing around. Try again for
Killington skiing. We are finally getting some good
(cold) weather and "real" snow.

Martha,
I agree with everything JQ sez except:
Tylenol is generally bad for kidneys. I MUCH prefer
ibuprofen (always take with food) for pain. Vitamin I,
like aspirin, is also an inflammation reducer which
Tylenol is not. The skiing doctor elsewhere agrees with
this and has given her recommendation for pain relief
with out prescription as somewhere around 800mg every
8 hours taken with food because it can screw up your
stomach. Over the counter Ibuprofen is 200 or 250mg
per tablet.

Some people tend to take a small dose of pain killer
and keep upping the dose to max in order to get any
effect at all. My strategy is to take the max dose
when I first feel the need and often it's all I need
to take.

VtSkier aka RW



Hi RW,

I agree with you but the thing with Tylenol causing kidney/liver problems
is if it is taken in very high dosage or for prolong period or with alcohol.
Ibuprofen is a nsaid (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug) they can cause
stomach ulcers even when taken with food if used for a long periods and if
taken with very high dosage or with alcohol. Neither should be used long
periods because all drugs have their down side even in if used on short term
basis. I personally use Tylenol and Alieve, I switch between the two
depending on the situation. I used Tylenol for pain management when
necessary and Alieve for inflammation management. I also double the dosages
which works fine for me , like RW said with max dosage. I also do not take
them on a daily basis only when needed. I used to take Alieve on a daily
basis until I started to get stomach problems. However, you need to weigh
the benefits against the draw backs here is some info on nsaids:
http://www.chclibrary.org/micromed/00058510.html info on acetaminophen:
http://www.lef.org/protocols/prtcl-001.shtml

I hope this helps,

JQ
Dancing on the edge

PS
As soon as I can arrange my time I will be up to Killington, I did buy the
Bronze season pass for myself and son.

JQ
Thanks for the correction/amplification of my earlier hurried
response. When I saw Monique's reply I did a few quick googles.

Tylenol is clearly indicated in liver problems. Ibuprofen seems
to be indicated in liver problems when there is *already liver
disease present*, specifically hepatitis (B, I think).

I would never suggest that any OCD (over the counter drug) be
taken on a regular basis over a prolonged period of time (a
week would be my maximum) without guidance AND monitoring from
a doctor.

Vitamin I, like aspirin will SEVERELY damage the stomach lining
if not taken with food and it may still damage the lining when
taken with food. If any stomach pain is suffered after taking
any dose of an NSAID pain/inflammation reducer, STOP and seek
professional advice.

I would still take a maximum dosage at first rather than build
up to it. My experience tells me that this will often reduce the
total amount of medicine I am taking. A good thing in my mind.

VtSkier
JQ, I believe you have my REAL email address. Be sure to let
me know when you are coming. We now have *real* snow.

VtSkier wrote:

Thanks for the correction/amplification of my earlier hurried
response. When I saw Monique's reply I did a few quick googles.

Tylenol is clearly indicated in liver problems. Ibuprofen seems
to be indicated in liver problems when there is *already liver
disease present*, specifically hepatitis (B, I think).

I would never suggest that any OCD (over the counter drug) be
taken on a regular basis over a prolonged period of time (a
week would be my maximum) without guidance AND monitoring from
a doctor.

Vitamin I, like aspirin will SEVERELY damage the stomach lining
if not taken with food and it may still damage the lining when
taken with food. If any stomach pain is suffered after taking
any dose of an NSAID pain/inflammation reducer, STOP and seek
professional advice.

I would still take a maximum dosage at first rather than build
up to it. My experience tells me that this will often reduce the
total amount of medicine I am taking. A good thing in my mind.

VtSkier


Gotcha. I don't think I mentioned how much ibuprofen I'm taking, but I
have been taking two in the morning and two more in the afternoon. I
also take two tylenol PM before bed because I find sleeping when it is
the most painful.

However, this afternoon it started hurting a lot more, so we'll see.
I'm going to give it until Monday and if it hasn't improved it's off to
the doctor.

Martha