Thursday, May 10, 2018

My Broken Shoulder by Lynn Lovegreen

Something you may not know--About five years ago, I fell on the ice and broke my right shoulder (the top of my humerus). Because of the location of the fracture, they didn’t do surgery or put a cast on it. Instead, I had to wear a sling strapped to my torso to keep my arm still, and let the bone heal itself. For three months.

Thank goodness my prince of a husband did the cooking, fetching and carrying, even helped me dress and bathe until I got the hang of using only one hand. And friends and other family members pitched in. But still, it was not fun.

I was in a a lot of pain at the beginning, so sitting or lying on the couch was fine with me. But after a week or so, as the pain eased down to a dull throb, I got bored. And stir crazy, not being able to move around very much. I could read, but it was hard to prop up a book with one hand for long, so I devoured magazines and read books when I could. And there was TV and such, but what I really wanted to do was write.

Of course, I’m right-handed, and I only had my left hand free for most of those three months. I taught myself how to type one-handed, which is fine for typing letters, but awkward when using the shift and special keys. I managed to write comments online and short emails, etc. But I couldn’t manage long forms of writing. The draft I was going to revise had to wait.

Life goes on. The shoulder healed. I did PT exercises faithfully, and gained full use of my right shoulder. I finished that draft, then wrote another. It all turned out well in the end. I did learn a few things from that experience:
  • Always wear ice grippers in the wintertime.
  • It’s okay to ask for help.
  • My husband is wonderful. (Okay, I knew that already, but it was reinforced during that time.)


May you never break your shoulder, or have any other malady that lays you flat for months at a time. But if you do, I hope your experience turns out as well as mine did.

P.S. Happy anniversary, Romancing the Genres! I'm honored to be a Genreista!



Lynn Lovegreen has lived in Alaska for almost fifty years. She taught for twenty years before retiring to make more time for writing. She enjoys her friends and family, reading, and volunteering at her local library. Her young adult/new adult historical romances are set in Alaska, a great place for drama, romance, and independent characters. See her website at www.lynnlovegreen.com. You can also find her on Facebook, Goodreads, and Pinterest.

6 comments:

Sarah Raplee said...

Wow! What a terrible injury! I'm so glad you've recovered fully.

It sounds like you learned some great life lessons through the experience. It's funny how we all want to help out when others have problems, because service is good for the soul. But we don't want to ask others for help. I try to remind myself that I'm giving them the gift of an opportunity to serve.

Doesn't always work though! Sometimes I still feel guilty.

Lynn Lovegreen said...

Thanks, Sarah. I'm also reluctant to ask for help, but I'm doing better with it than in the past.

Madelle Morgan said...

Lynn, it's wonderful that you recovered fully from your shoulder injury. So many of us women are givers our entire lives. I feel that your husband, friends and family maybe had a unique opportunity to show you how much they cared and to give back?

When things got tough, having a loving family and friends be of service gave you the opportunity to appreciate them and make them feel valued. Your story is such a great illustration of that. Not every woman is so fortunate to have that support.

Diana McCollum said...

What an ordeal, Lynn! I'm glad you recovered the full use of your shoulder. My hubby was extremely helpful when I had knee replacement surgery two years ago. I don't know how I would have managed with out his help. Hubbs are great aren't they? Typing one handed, that's quite a feat.

Lynn Lovegreen said...

Thanks, Madelle and Diana. I am so lucky!

MichelleSomers said...

Wow, what a pain (literally!)
So glad you’re all healed now, Lynn. We learn so much from these kinds of experiences - most of all, how much we can rely on the people we love.
Michelle xxx