Why are little toes so easy to break?

[tavalon]

I just broke one of them for about the millionth time. Yeah, I have ice on it and I will tape it to its neighbor later. I'm quite, quite familiar with the drill. But why would something that has to encounter a myriad of floor obstacles be so fragile?

Anybody know? Feel free to baffle me with bullshit. It will distract me from my throbbing toe.

[In_The_Wind]

1. imo: you should

stop kicking things

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just sayin'

[tavalon]

2. Hey, it kicked me first!

Actually, it was one of those sharp corners where two toes go directions they shouldn't. Sometimes both break (yuck) but most of the time only one breaks. The bruise after is awesome, though, like the aurora borealis is on my foot!

[In_The_Wind]

6. move more slowly

that's what I do, cause I'm always barefootin' inside

nice description of a bruise, try Rescue Remedy or Anica next time

[tavalon]

7. I have arnica, but the only upside to a broken toe is watching the flow of the colors

Why would I ruin that?

Alas, moving slower really is the key and not having a blow up mattress in the middle of a tiny, tiny barge would be nice, but the dog didn't like me sleeping upstairs so I put out the mattress so we could sleep together and maneuvering around it has rapidly become problematic. If my dog weren't sleeping on it right now, I would let the air out and we would have much more walking room.

[Wounded Bear]

3. You should acquaint yourself....

with the concept of shoes.

[tavalon]

5. LOL

I know you're right, but in my whole adult life, I've taken my shoes off at the door - it's a hard habit to break.

[Flaxbee]

13. do the Japanese thing: indoor shoes and outdoor shoes. Indoor shoes can be soft

(but have some grip on the soles so you don't slide down stairs or something like that). Keep them right near where you take your outdoor shoes off.

I used to walk barefoot all over the place until we moved onto a mountain; there is an endless amount of gravel, sticks, etc. that somehow migrate into the house. I'd never broken anything, but had stone bruises that just hurt. So, I started wearing flip-flops when inside.

Might help you protect your poor little toes.

[tavalon]

15. I am wearing slippers as we speak

and I think I shall keep them by the door. This is a pretty painful break, so I am motivated to change my circumstances.

[dixiegrrrrl]

17. THREE broken toes changed that for me.

Every damn time I went barefoot in the house...not anywhere else, but IN the house..I jammed my right little toe into the edge of some furniture, and it popped out of joint, swelled up and turned into a gruesome rainbow.
Only took one trip to the Er to learn how to deal with it.
To this day I keep tape and Ace bandages in the house.
And I wear slippers, at a minimum.

[tavalon]

18. Luckily, I am an expert at the broken toe, so RICE it is,

and yeah, I'm pretty done with this. I like the suggestion of keeping my slippers by the door. The barge gets drafty anyway, so it serves multiple purposes. I finally decided I had had enough of the ice, so now it's rest, compression (including the stabilizing tape) and elevation. Imagine, if you will, a woman, at the computer, with her leg propped on the edge of the desk.

Yes, it really does look just that silly.

[pipi_k]

27. Yah...

me too.

I can't stand shoes and only wear them when absolutely necessary, like outside, etc.

In the house I wear two pairs of socks to cushion my feet and hopefully keep them somewhat free from injury done by my two German Shepherds, who love stepping on feet.

Anyway, the one time I broke my little toe I was barefoot, but it was bedtime. I hit my toe on the leg of the bed. Went to the ER the next day, and of course, what can they do but ice it, take x-rays, and tape it to its neighbor.

Wasted trip, IMO.

[tavalon]

29. I don't know if it's my extensive personal experience with this malady

or being a nurse. But, as a nurse with both IBS and toes that break when you look at them wrong, two acronyms are burned into my brain:

BRAT: Bananas, Rice, Apples, Toast

RICE: Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation

I find that the two of these are not actually interchangeable. Important to know.

[Denninmi]

4. Because they can be?

[HarveyDarkey]

8. "Intelligent" design

Don't even ask about the appendix

[tavalon]

9. Snarf!

You are so right! Thank goodness we only come with one appendix but it's a boogerbear when it acts up.

[HarveyDarkey]

10. Or the Coccyx

[tavalon]

12. Which I have broken no less than 4 times

Likely would have been more had I birthed any children.

[evlbstrd]

11. They are the pawns of toes.

There to take the hit for the greater toes.

[tavalon]

16. Kind of like the Eric Cantor of toes,

Taking a hit for the Oompa Loompa, Boehner, over and over and over again?

[Duer 157099]

14. I have a related question

Why do cold toes that have something dropped on them, even if that something is relatively small and lightweight, hurt as though they just got broken?

[tavalon]

19. I'll take a stab at it

Maybe colder toes are stiffer and so feel the dropped thing without much spring back and therefore hurts worse. I'm a nurse, so you can trust me when I baffle you with bullshit.

[Wait Wut]

31. Hmmmm...the dropped ice cube.

If you drop an ice cube, it will land on your toe. Not on one of the rounded edges, but the corner of the ice cube. It will also attain some unheard of speed while dropping so that it has a better chance of drawing blood.

Also, if you break a glass and spend 4 hours sweeping, it will be two nites later that you'll wander into the kitchen and step on a renegade piece of glass. I don't know where it hides for those two nites, but it's an evil place, I'm sure.

[Scruffy Rumbler]

20. As I understand it, being the smallest appendage on the

human body, the little toe is often passive aggressive in gaining attention. They are not satisfied with the occasional nail triming... oh no. They have to be little brats and reach out for the nearest door jam or the nearest coffee table leg to get that attention. They will be self destructive to get what they want!

[tavalon]

21. DUZY!!!

That said, while it is usually my little piggy that breaks, this time it's the middle one. I couldn't decide whether to tape it to number 2 or number 4 so they are all on the chain gang, er, tape gang, together.

[Scruffy Rumbler]

22. Oh what the hell!

Tape all three together. A menage a toe may be just the ticket! Hope you have that foot elevated!

[tavalon]

24. I do

I mentioned it in another post. Imagine, if you will, an almost 50 year old woman, typing at her computer with her right leg propped up on the desk. Absolute absurdity.

[Scruffy Rumbler]

25. Sounds kicked back to me!

[pipi_k]

28. All of

my toes are total assholes.

They are "double jointed", which means that if I try to trim them, they won't stay nice and straight and stiff.

No. They fold in upon themselves. Like a turtle head hiding in its shell.

I'm also overweight, so bending over to get at them adds even more aggravation to the process.

[Baitball Blogger]

23. You are now a proud member of the DU Broken Toe Club.

[tavalon]

26. I fell asleep on my chair for a bit (I don't usually do that at night)

And I have to say, I don't feel so proud anymore. Ouch! I've broken the littlest toe so many times in the past, but this may be a first for the middle. Thank goodness, I'm still allowed to take Ibuprofen! That will be my next order of business.

[Trailrider1951]

30. You know, it is my contention that little toes and big toes

each occupy the exact site where the other should be; in other words, it is a basic design flaw of the human being...everyone knows that big toes, being far more robust and sturdy than the little toes, belong on the OUTSIDE of the foot, where they can take the brunt of the collision damage. Evolution never listens to me....