As I was biking out of Kumamoto my foot slipped and the bike’s Pedal slammed into the back of my leg. I wasn’t going very fast, but the bike had a lot of weight on the bike. I thought it wasn’t much and kept pushing forward. As time went on my leg started to swell and ache.
I biked with one leg to a nearby clinic and got there just 15 minutes before they closed. I wasn’t able to put too much weight on my foot at this point. I was able to explain what happened to them using Google Translate. They were really kind and they stayed late. The doctor did an exam. He took an X-Ray of my ankle and found out that I have a crack on my Fibula. The nurse helped wrap my foot to stabilize it and he told me to not put any weight on it for a few days. They even called a Pharmacy and they were able to deliver the medications to the clinic so I didn’t have to walk there.
I paid cash and I was very surprised. The bill for everything was only $55, In the US this would have cost $500 even if you had insurance. I was able to slowly bike to a nearby hotel with one leg.
I found an umbrella that I have been using as a cane. The swelling has gone down significantly since the accident, but I may have to rework this trip. It gets a bit depressing being alone in a hotel room in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language, but hard times give us time to reflect.
I will keep you all posted!
10 comments
You broke your fibula, they did not cast it and said do not use it for a few days?
Something ain’t adding up.
Looks like you are little bit over exited for this trip and just saw the photos it seems actually you are not really ready or fit such 2K bicycle trip I lived long time in Japan and I can say you should first do very good planning and choose also right model bicycle for your trip as the one on your photo could not handle. Even your shoes should be special for long distance cycling. Roads in japan is not always flat but mostly step you should be very fit to cover good distance between the points in day light. Cycling in dark is a big no, no. Hope you can recover soon and consider my humble advice.
keep us posted! hope you have a swift recovery
Is this Tubman in Japan?
Ibuprofen (“Advil”) is what I would do. Careful though, many of the ibuprofen based medicines in Japan annoyingly have caffeine in them – which is the last thing I wanted when pain was keeping me awake. I believe EVE “A” is caffeine-free, but careful as other EVE brand ibuprofens contain caffeine. Good luck and be safe. Really give it time with no weight on it – I know it’s hard to sit still but take some time.
Whatever you do please avoid the temptation of “pushing through it.” You will really need to stop and rest and take care of yourself for a long while. I understand this is really really tough. Remember that you only have two legs total and you don’t get anymore for the rest of your life. Take care <3
For the inflammation, lying on your back and extending your legs up the wall definitely helps. It’s gentle, restorative, and can help alleviate some of the swelling.
I went to the optometrist because my right eye for infected from my contact lense. Brand new contacts and used one day, but saw a doc here and he said it’s been infected prior.
$30. And $20 for eye drops and it was so thorough.
The US healthcare system is a joke
Hope you heal quickly. Sorry about this. 🙁
>The bill for everything was only $55, In the US this would have cost $500 even if you had insurance.
100% accurate. Privatizing healthcare benefits the wealthy and the insurance companies / middlemen
It sucks if you have to stop your trip. I enjoyed these posts. But do whatever is best for your well-being, whether that stops the trip or taking some time to recover and adjust your routes to be shorter.