My Foreign Body

After reading the title of this post you may be wondering what I could possibly mean by," my foreign body." Is it an alien? Plastic surgery? Well to answer your questions and put that confusion to rest; I will have to begin this story at the place it all started. That magical place is called Dewey Beach, Delaware!


The black line on my heel is where the foreign body was.

I will begin by telling you that one of my best friends and I, rarely get to spend time with each other due to college and work life. We were so excited that we finally had a day off together, Monday, June 17th.  We decided to go to the beach because the weather was perfect for a beach day . Living on the Delmarva Peninsula there are many beaches to choose from and we had our minds set on a few different ones but in the end we chose Dewey Beach. Neither of us had been to the beach there much; if at all. We actually had a great time down there. We ate a bar/restaurant called Woody's. I have been there once before but never actually ate there. They were really good! After, lunch we walked to the beach and decided to get in the water because the sand was hot. The cold water was refreshing but as I was walking deeper into the water I felt something pinch/ cut my foot. It hurt so bad! I really thought it was just a crab bite. I thought the pain would just go away the next day. Well it did not! The next day, Tuesday, June 18th, the pain was so bad it was making me nauseous. I felt terrible! My manager's let me leave early from work so I could go to a walk-in clinic and get it checked out. I ended up spending two hours waiting to see a doctor at this clinic. Finally after they called me back and checked over my foot the doctor determined that there was something in it and it was also infected. I was terrified! Something was in my foot !!! She prescribed me an antibiotic (that I still can not pronounce), as well as giving me the number to an outpatient operating room at Beebe hospital. I gave them a call and the nurse who answered told me that it would take at least five days before they would be able to see me there and recommended I just go straight to the emergency room. That is exactly what I did!


After, 1st attempt at removal

I decided to go to the emergency room, Wednesday, June 19th, at the new Bayhealth Hospital, Sussex Campus. I thought I was going to have to wait there forever like usual but I didn't. They called me back immediately and took an x-ray of my foot to make sure something was really in there. I then had to wait in the waiting area while I was waiting on a room to become available. Once, in the room the doctor informed me that he did see the,"foreign body," and that they were going to do there best to remove it. Before they could begin the removal process they had to numb the area so I wouldn't feel anything. Everything was done while I was awake. I call the needle they used to numb my foot the, "Needle of Hell," because it was the most excruciating pain I have ever felt in my life. The doctor did warn me before hand that it would burn. Little did I know that, "burn," would feel like my foot was going to fall off. Once, my foot was numb (and did not fall off), he began the procedure. I did not watch because I can not handle blood and things like that without throwing up or passing out. When he was finished he showed me the, "foreign body," he took out of my foot and we both agreed it looked like a tiny piece of plastic. He took another x-ray of my foot to make sure it was all out. It wasn't !!!!!!!!! There was still a piece in there! I had to go through whole process and the, "Needle of Hell," all over again! I think the plastic just kept breaking off into pieces because even after the second attempt he was unable to get it all out. Even though I talk about it being painful I want it to be clear that the only part that hurt was the needle used to numb my foot. I actually couldn't feel him trying to get the, "foreign body," out. I am thankful for the time he spent at least trying to help get it out. However, since there was still more stuck in it, he decided to refer me to a podiatrist to get the rest out. 

After the second attempt at removal

I saw the podiatrist, Thursday, June 20th, scared to death he was going to use the. "Needle of Hell." Thankfully, he did not. He showed me the x-ray and told me that it was too far into my foot to put me through all of that again and told me he was going to operate on it to get it out. I was so relieved ! I was a little nervous about getting an operation done but so thankful that he didn't have to use the, "Needle of Hell," again! The doctor was able to schedule my procedure pretty quickly (which was at 12pm on Friday, June 21st). Of course, my procedure didn't start exactly at noon. They had to get all my information, get a vacant room, and set me an with an IV. I saw my podiatrist and an anesthesiologist while waiting for my operation to begin. They went over everything that they were going to do during the procedure. Once the time got closer, the podiatrist came back and signed the foot he was going to be operating on. When it was time for the operation they gave me the anesthesia and brought me to the operating room. All I remember was the doctor laying my foot in a block and that was it. I woke up in the recovery room with my dad waiting at my bed side. My dad was with me through every step of this process. I love him to the moon and back. It was a pretty speedy process of getting me home once I woke up. They gave me a fancy shoe to wear and some gram crackers because I hadn't eaten since before midnight. I asked if I could see the "foreign body," but unfortunately it had already been taken away for testing. They said they had already shown me but I was still under the anesthesia and I can't remember anything. They weren't sure what it was, exactly. One nurse thought a maybe a hard piece of plastic, another thought glass, and one lady even said that it could have been a piece from an animal like a crab or a sea urchin. Yikes!  I am hoping when I go back to my podiatrist on Thursday, he can tell me what it tested as.

After the final operation



Whatever it was, I have learned my lesson from now on. I am definitely not going into the water without water shoes on anymore, especially if I can't see what's in it. Also, it makes me a little more aware about the harmful affects that pollution has on the animals in the ocean. Let's say it was a tiny piece of plastic like I think it is, my foot went through all that mess for just a sliver of a piece. It makes me think of a sea turtle or a whale eating a piece of trash and having it caught in their stomach or having a piece caught on their fin and getting cut up from it. It gives me the chills. I can't even bear the thought now. I am definitely be more conscious and  will strive to do my part to help make the ocean become a safer place for these animals to live in. Thank you for reading and if I found out what exactly the "foreign body," tested as; I will let you know in one of my next posts!