A year ago, I ended up in a collar bone fracture while engaging with a highly powered racing machine; meaning, a go-kart. Unlike this lockdown, where everyone in the world now is feeling like a prisoner confined to their respective cells, my life came to a halt for 3 months last year.
So even before the COVID lockdown, I had an internship experience of 3 months, locked in a condo of a small city of Indiana, called South Bend.
Clavicle Fracture? Go-karting? Seriously?
What was more surprising to my well-wishers was that I am an occupational therapist, meaning, I worked 6 days a week with medically ill people to promote physical independence in their lives, and here I was, barely good enough to even roll myself in bed! By the end of 3 months, I figured not just my operated arm was healing, but my perspective towards unexpected “breaks in life” changed (pun intended). Here is why:
- Mind your own business:
What do you do, when one is stuck in traffic for over an hour? After the initial anger and spilling out 1-2 abusive words in your native language, you start to play music, adjusts the car mirrors, or engage in a conversation on phone; basically, you start to look at what’s inside.
Similarly, with the initial grief of losing function, I started to introspect. Meaning asking myself questions like, where I started, where am I heading, where do I want to be? My overthinking mind compelled me to engage in an activity like practicing mindfulness. I had all the time in the world to sit on my blue semi-reclined couch with my arm in the sling, to ponder on things that did not require my mind. No, I am not endorsing the mindfulness apps. But I came a long way learning to re-route thoughts from the mental traffic that obstructed me on a daily basis, just by bringing myself back to mind my own business.
- Wine Theory & Relationships:
The day before the incident happened, my husband told me that I am like fine wine, getting better each day. A few hours later, with my X-ray report in hand, there seemed to be a crack that could be identified by even a non-medico. I realized my husband’s wine theory was coming true & I am going to be locked in his cellar for the coming few months.
Our offices were apart, we lived in two different houses since our marriage. Nothing else in the world but this collar bone break conspired us to live together. Our marriage had turned into a Work- Shop, where he was working and I was shopping, & handing him over hospital bills to be paid. I appreciated the way he managed everything; thanks to a split on my collar that made this relationship much stronger than before.
- Childhood again:
I wouldn’t have imagined in my wildest dream my mother visiting the US, but it happened. As much as I adored her, I was not very close to her. Why? I always made it last on her priority list, well, that’s the downside of being a responsible kid. And guess what, this time all her attention was mine for the next 2 months feeding, dressing, & putting me to bed. In your late twenties, how many of us get to live our childhood again? I did. To me, her attention was like a goldfish cracker, you always want more.
- Value of Independence:
“Learn to be thankful for what you already have, while you pursue all that you want”
— Jim Rohn.
This break made me realize, the presence of all the sound parts of my body including the thousands of eye rolls I made in a day. The realization came with the dependence for all ADL (activities of daily living) on my caretakers. When I tried to vocalize this unusual feeling to people, my pals thought I was having a spiritual headache. But deep down I knew, what I was feeling was “gratitude” for everything I could do at that moment.
- Building skills:
By mere observations, I figured not just my hair, but my laptop was a big mess. The former task involves bilateral co-ordination while the latter required organisational skills. From arranging my laptop to organising my house, I managed to rehabilitate myself on the work front as well. Reading and participating in webinars, boosted my knowledge, and I dived into the real work world again.
Through this article, I do not intend to increase the business of orthopaedic surgeons. Retrospectively, looking at my jail time in that condo, I conclude that irrespective of the kind of breaks in life, whether it is a fracture, an emotional break or a physical restrainment like a lockdown, I think that it does bring something good with it, and it arrives at the time when you most need it.Red signals are nature’s way of saying slow down, stop; introspect, value your strengths, share time with someone, and set your self up for the next challenge. I took a fracture to understand this. Hopefully, this article resonated with your COVID isolation/ lockdown experience and I would love to hear your “story with a break”.
-Dr. Unnati Jain