Disfigured toenail

I fear for the future of my big toenail. It all started in Mexico about a week and a half ago. For those who may not know (mainly because I never tell anyone anything I'm up to), Joe and I went on a last-hurrah-before-the-baby vacation to Ixtapa, Mexico.







It was kind of a package tour through Landmark. I don't really know how to succinctly describe Landmark Education, so just go to their website to learn more. Anyway, we met up with a group of about 25 people and had ballroom dancing lessons every day. Then while Joe went to a discussion group with them I went to the pool or took a nap or walked on the beach. Very relaxing vacation and the dance lessons were really a lot of fun.

So back to the toenail. The travel information sent to us ahead of time said we should wear thin flexible soled shoes for dancing. Huh? Like flip flops? Slippers? Joe asked for clarification and the response was suede soled shoes, which we don't have, or something appropriate for dancing on a variety of surfaces including wood, stone, sand, carpet, hot coals, etc. We were at a loss. So we brought some sandal type shoes, plus Keen sandals for everyday wear and some flip flops. We decided to do lessons in the Keens because they were more supportive than regular sandals, plus they offered some toe protection - very important when learning to dance with a bunch of people who are also beginners. Very important. Feeling confident in my abilities by the end of the week, I decided to wear regular sandals to the lesson because I thought they would spin better on the turns than the Keens, which they did. So I'm partnered up with Joe, feeling quite at ease going through the T-A-N-G-O (count it out, like bingo) because the instructors keep telling us how well we were doing. Then I stepped forward with my left foot just as Joe stepped forward with his right foot. My big toenail scrapped across the entire sole of his thick, heavy, rubber, traction tire Keen sandal.

The pain was immediate and intense.

I sat down for a few minutes, unable to stand. The nail almost instantly took on a pale bluish hue. Stood up again to dance after a while, even though the toe was throbbing.

The next evening was our farewell dinner/dance/social. I had been carefully tiptoeing around all day, wearing the Keens, sleeping with the foot elevated, and so by the time evening rolled around my toe was feeling pretty good... so I wore open toed sandals, because they were black and went well with my dress. After dinner there was open dancing so people could show off what they had learned during the week. I proceeded to kick my toenail against the heel of my right shoe - oww! But I couldn't stop because the instructors asked us the day before to do a special dance. We had mentioned earlier in the week that we never had a wedding dance - it just wasn't that kind of reception. So this was our wedding dance. We chose the rumba because it had very basic steps and we could do one turn in each direction, so there was little chance of messing up and stepping on each other in front of the group. The dance was very basic but very nice and romantic. No colliding feet and no missteps.



A week and a half later...

The toenail had been feeling fine, though I could still sense the slightest pressure on the nail. Joe and I splurged and went to go see Wolverine in the theater. It was immediately after Saturday night stake conference so I was wearing a dress, and those blasted open toe sandals. On the way up the stairs to the bathroom at the theater I tripped on the last step, and caught myself on THAT TOENAIL! I thought I would pass out from the pain, but had to go to the bathroom (I'm nearly 7 months pregnant, remember?) and quickly make it back to my seat before the movie started. I hobbled back to my seat and could feel my pulse beating in the toenail for the next two hours as blood pooled below the nail.



I'm afraid the nail will be lost. It's beyond repair. The toe is still swollen to about twice the thickness of the other, and the nail is perched on top of the toe rather than embedded. It's too late now to do Kimball's trick of boring a hole through the nail to release the blood. It's just going to fall off.






Yes, my toes are very puffy. You should see them after riding in a plane for three hours. Notice how the cutouts of the sandal are perfectly imprinted on my foot.




So last month when I was debating whether or not to post something gross about my toenail - yeah, it was nothing compared to this. I was simply going to say that I never removed the nail polish from my wedding manicure and it had just barely grown all the way out - 9 months later. I just wanted to see how long it takes to grow the entire length of a toenail. Now I know.