Squished big toe

“I squished my big toe. Let's say for backpacking purposes, a big rock landed on it. The toe nail is black.

Is it common practice to take a hot needle and burn a hole in the top of the nail to let the blood out and relieve the pressure? In the past, I've always just let it ride and eventually the nail fell off. This nail is full blackened, however.

Just curious.”

“Until last year, I've never heard of such practice, but a coworker of mine drilled a hole through his thumbnail to relieve the pressure/pain.

He swore that it helped, and since he didn't get infected, I guess it worked well.

He still lost the nail anyway...I guess it's just for relief. (?)”

“I usually find that if I sterlize the needle and insert it under the nail in question until it reaches the blood blister underneath, it allows the fluid to drain and definately relieves the pressure/pain.”

“What really happened to your toe, Rosey? Hmmm?

C'mon, tell us!”

“He was messing w/ his tools? Maybe? Hehehehe!”

“I dropped the friggin' iron on it with the metal pointed nose/top of the iron hitting squarely in the middle of big toe nail on my right foot.

And yes, it killed.”

“OUCH
I spent the weekend off my feet because of my big toes.

Damn them!!

I say OFF with them ALL”

“Dude, that makes my toe hurt just thinking about it.”

“I already did this bit.”

“Newgirl:

That would have resulted in a broken foot. Heh heh.”

“So you were bored just hanging around the house and decided to iron your feet...”

“Very funny all.

I will post a pic doon a' la Violin just to gross everyone out. Especially once I start pulling the nail off. Ewwww...”

“I bet I can beat the ugly toe contest!!


bring on the ugly


heheh yuk yuk yuk”

“You are just too funny Rosey!”

“Poor toe.

When the nail comes off, be sure to bury it in a dignified manner.”

“I lost two toenails in the past couple of weeks. I was told to save the toenails for the toenail fairy. Well... I put them under the pillow last night, and nothing happened.”

“Did you dream of cheese?”

“I had a friend whose brother lost two fingers after he grabbed onto a jeep roll bar as it was tipping and they were squished off. He kept the bones on a necklace around his neck.

Maybe I'll do some custom jewelry with the nail. Would that be considered Goth?”

“I have tried the red hot paperclip, needles, etc. . .(oh, I do a lot of carpenter work)
BUT .. . have found that if you get a new "X-Acto" blade and slooowwwllyyyyy drill into the worst spot, it is painless and gives you an opening for future pressure relief. (the X-Axcto blade does need a handle) available at most K-Mart, Wal-Mart stores, etc...... No kiddin. . .this does work !!!”

“Next time just do what I do... use a bigger piece of iron....”

“Dremel. They work for everything. If you have only one rotary tool, make it a Dremel!

Duhn duhn DUHN!

(applause)

Fade to black”

“Well, at least the squished part - the mechanism of injury was entirely different, too. I slammed my finger in the truck door after the Green Bay Super Bowl victory (97?) and it proceeded to swell and blacken under the nail. After a couple days my finger throbbed constantly and was so swollen I could not bend it, so I decided to melt through the nail and relieve the pressure. Of course, I could not find a needle so I used the next best thing - a straightened paper clip. After a few messy attempts I got through the nail, but couldn't get the darn thing to drain. A painful day or two later my coworkers convinced me to see a doctor. When I got there the doctor laughed at my pockmarked fingernail, asked me what I used and showed me their cool gadget for precisely these situations - its a neat little handheld tool with a tiny loop of wire that gets white hot at the press of a button. (Needless to say, it went through my nail like butter.) The doc had to use a large-bore needle to get the blood to drain, but Oh! the relief!

Afterwards the nail had to come off, but that was not straight forward either. My nail loosened aorund most of the cuticle, but remained firmly attached along one lateral edge. After a while it could swing open like a little gate, so I did what anyone would - I reduced a photo of my face, cut it out and slipped under the loose fingernail. Then I would walk around and disgust my coworkers by flipping my nail open and showing them my "locket".

Eventually, I got tired of the loose nail catching on everything and had to get rid of it. At this point my wife was happy to oblige. The removal process consisted of her grabbing the nail with the pliers on my Leatherman and yanking really hard! She enjoyed it - I did not!”

“Okay, I change my mind. I thought Buddur-Dog's burrowing whatever thread was awful. But now this one wins. Awful. Just awful!”

“I know that #&%!$ hurts. I feel for ya bro.
I lost 4 toenails from the White Mountains trip in New Hampshire last year. If the toenail is black than it's just a matter of time till it falls off. No need to go to a doctor and get him to do it too soon.
Get well soon man!”

“ooooh, I just love a man who irons. ;)

That sucks, Rosey. Just get it over with, like others said (masochists, we are)

I lost four toenails last year on Pico Duarte - they didn't turn black all at once though. It was cool...green and then purple and then a brownish shade, just before they departed.
grooovy
>:D~”

“AmyG?!?!
Your Alive!!!!!!
Where ya been?”

“Digger Boy - LOL!! No I didn't dream of cheese... But, that would have been a fantastic gift from the toenail fairy. Maybe I'll put the nails under my pillow again and check the fridge in the morning!”

“Can you say "Steel Toe" Hiking Boots?

The needle does not need to be hot. Just use a exacto blade and twist/drill a hole through the nail, only if you feel a bunch of pressure.”

“Hit it again and maybe the nail will fall off!”

“Yep! The Time Honored Black Toenail club! I recommend either the South Kaibab trail or the Grandview Trail from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Didn't some hiker guy have the nails on his big toes permanantly removed 'cause they were always turning black and falling off anyway... ? Or is that just another Non-urban Legend?

Maybe Pathman or Kodiakman can confirm this, but isn't there a bar in Alaska where the Specialty of the House is a drink with a Frostbitten Toe tossed in as garnish?? (kinda like a jalapena-stuffed olive... only different)”

“that would be a rural legend....”

“As I was hiking xctry down the steep slope this weekend, my toes were getting squished. I even stopped to trim the nails. And I could hear Sarabelle "O! THE PAAAANE!!!!"”

“Let's amputate!”

“At what point do we amputate? Ankle? Knee? Or higher?”

“Tarabull - no foot rubs in the middle of the night from Gene??”

“EEEEWWWW-EW-EW-EW-EW-EW-EWWWW!! i knew i should have avoided this thread. sorry about the ol' toe though, Rosey! major suckage. i used to lose toenails to my pointe shoes, before i realized there was nothing remotely fun about walking on the tips of my toes on wooden blocks. who'd a thunk!”

“Last night the pressure was killing me before i went to bed and I confirmed I'd be going to the doc to have him relieve the pressure. But it's not so bad this morning but it may be it take a day for it to build. I'll see how it feels this eve but I may just ride it out and do nothing to the nail.”

“Keep drillin'!

Remember James Dean in "Giant"...”

“You're doing this all wrong.

Where's the picture?”