The day I almost lost my toe
Almost 10 years to the day now, 12 year old me was racing barefoot with a friend on the tatami after karate class, when I wanted to turn back I guess I planted my whole foot except my big toe which rotated. I heard a very load snap and immediately saw a little blood. Still in denial I thought I broke a nail somehow, happened a lot no biggie, but I was still scared so I walked as fast as possible so no one sees me. A girl in the class stops me and asks what’s up with my toe, I say it’s just a nail without checking again. She asks me to look behind me, and to my horror, a trail of blood all over the tatami, ending in a dark red pool under my toe. And now I’m really scarred. Coach saw me and wrapped my toe in whatever bandages and tissues were available and told me to go to the hospital immediately, before calling my mom so I don’t just go home without telling her (love em to this day for knowing my silent self). I was bleeding at an alarming rate and blood was leaking out my slides with every step, but I insisted to my mom that it’s a small cut ( I didn’t let her see it because I knew she is grossed out by this stuff) and some gauze from a pharmacy is enough. But the pharmacist told me the words I didn’t want to hear, in a very thick Indian accent “no, no, no. You need stitches”. Doctor told me I was lucky I didn’t break my toe, had a horrible first stitching experience (it took a while so the anaesthetic wore off half way through), and now I have a weird scar and a permanent hesitation in my step whenever I’m barefoot :)
Photos are at the first dressing, 2 days after the injury