Traveling with a Trimalleolar Fracture and serious FOMO

On September 17th, my boyfriend and I woke up at 4AM so that we could get to the airport in time for our 6AM flight. A sleepy friend drove us to the airport, and we arrived there around 4:30AM.

I was ready for the most stressful airport visit of my life, but lo and behold, there was a silver lining to my broken ankle.
Going to the airport with a broken ankle is actually the greatest thing ever, because basically you get to cut every line and get the best seats possible. WIN!

When we got to the airport, we were checked in at a special curbside check-in, where I was also issued a wheelchair. This took about 5 minutes. Then we got to go up the elevator and into a special security line, which also took about 10 minutes. I didn't have to go through the scary X-ray machine, and instead they patted me down, which just wasn't that bad.
It took about 15 minutes from us leaving the car to get to our gate. Insane. My ankle had actually sped up our process.

Southwest really is a great airline when it comes to helping those who have a physical disability. You're allowed to board first, and , as promised, I got to sit in the front row, which gave me plenty of space to rest my leg.

Don't get me wrong though. I was far from feeling comfortable. The fact that I couldn't elevate my leg, meant that blood was rushing to my ankle, and the dull, throbbing pain I felt was only slightly helped by the extra painkillers I was taking.  Luckily, I was so exhausted from sleeping until 4AM that I slept through most of the trip and pain.


My time in Ohio was bittersweet. My boyfriend's parents and family are so amazing, and were incredibly supportive of my injury, and catered to my every need. They even rented a wheelchair for me (way funner than crutches). My boyfriend's mom took me to get my hair washed at the salon, which was amazing, because other than a quick rub down with a wet towel, I hadn't been able to take a shower since my injury

As much as support as I was getting from everyone around me,  I could feel myself feeling more and more depressed. I missed being able to take walks with my boyfriend, and the pain and pain meds exhausted me. Every little thing took so much effort, and I felt guilt that I was keeping everyone from having a good time, because they had to take care of me constantly.

One day, I just stayed in bed all day long, because I was so exhausted and just wanted to sleep. I love visiting Ohio, it's so beautiful and my boyfriend's family is the best, so it was very hard to be confined to my crutches and wheelchair, and to feel so down.

My mood lightened a little bit after I found a blog that made me feel a little bit better.

After searching through a LOT of dark, sad stories, I stumbled across Travels and Tripulations. Kenda, the author, has so much insight and deals with her injury in such a good way, that I read this blog whenever I feel down. Her healing journey actually inspired me to write this blog. It's important to stay positive during your recovery time, and with everything that's out on the internet, it's easy to get down.
Kenda's experience has been really similar to mine, and I think it's very important to find support when you're going through an injury such as this one. Plus- the rest of her blog is a kick-ass travel blog, including her travels post-injury, which is super inspiring.

The thing is, Ohio isn't going anywhere, and when I feel better, it's still going to be there. I may have been out of commission for this trip, but there will be many more to come, and I will appreciate them SO MUCH more.