Here, I'm waiting for the X-Ray results at the E.R.
Here, I'm learning how to move around with crutches
The doctor switched me to a walking boot
Right there, on the spot, following this mishap, a light bulb went on in my brain and the SafeNDry Crutch BOOTS concept was born!
On December 26th 2021, following a bad fall, slipping on snow and ice, I broke my ankle at two places! Now with a cast and walking boot, I had no choice but to use crutches to move around all winter long. “Funny as a crutch” as the expression says,
well as crutch users know, it's quite the challenge to use it on snow and ice but also challenging coming back indoor to a dry floor surface once crutch tips are full of snow, ice and water. The danger of falling and hurting yourself is even worst than slipping outdoor if you don’t remove the snow and ice caught in the spiral indent tips and wipe the tips dry. I found this out the hard way!
Only crutch users will understand this situation. Most people don't think about that part.
This is the MAIN REASON I created the SafeNDry Crutch BOOTS.
Before that December incident, I never had any idea what it was like walking around with crutches and especially in the winter time! Little did I know that I was in for quite the challenge. Minutes after the fall, on that faithful day, I was still on the ground screaming with pain as I noticed my ankle looking very crooked and swelling very rapidly, I realized then that something serious had just happened.
Being a positive person and dreading the hospital emergency room, I decided to crawl in my home with the help of my daughter that heard me screaming from inside. I then decided to put ice on it thinking that it would eventually get better! Let's give it a few days, sure, wishful thinking on my part!
Plus, I knew that being right at the beginning of the Christmas holidays, the ER would have been packed with people and short staffed.
Two days later, still in pain with my ankle and foot swollen like a grapefruit, I knew then that it was time to go to the ER! The actual wait time was about 8 hours, despite the seriousness of my injury.
After seeing a doctor and a few x-rays later, he gave me the news that I had fractured my ankle at two places and I needed to wear a cast for 6 weeks. At least, I didn't need an operation which was very positive for me!
Coming out of the hospital with a cast on was a first for me, so was walking with crutches! Let me tell you that winter was not the best season to master the art of walking in the snow and ice with crutches. It wasn't so bad getting out of the ER entrance and in the Uber ride which was parked by the door. It was a little more challenging once the Uber driver dropped me off in front of my home. Thanks to the slow snow removal crew from the city of Montreal, I was greeted with huge snowbanks to climb to get to the sidewalk so I took all the precautions necessary to maneuver slowly being aware of surface that was going to support the crutches, then I had to climb about 6 steps to the entrance of my home. I was so paranoid and afraid to slip and fall on my brand-new cast.
The Moment of Truth
I was so happy to make it home safely but little did I know what was coming next! I removed my one boot by the entrance and proceeded to get in the living room when all of the sudden, as I put my right crutch on the ceramic floor it slipped sideways and I completely lost my balance and went flying on my wooden coffee table, thank God that it wasn't a glass coffee table or else I could of been hurt badly! I also banged my cast as I was trying to absorb the fall to minimize the damage.
Being a newbie at walking with crutches, little did I know or thought that once you're indoor on a dry surface, you cannot use your crutches before you completely remove all the snow and ice caught in the tip circles and wipe it dry with a towel.
Right there, on the spot, following this mishap, a light bulb went on in my brain and the SafeNDry Crutch BOOTS concept was born!
If you're a crutch-cane user, I'm sure you can relate to that story and completely understand the need to have these crutch-cane boots for safety and peace of mind reasons, not to mention conveniency. With the SafeNDry Crutch BOOTS, you'll never need to remove snow and ice from the tips of your crutches or canes ever again. You'll simply need to remove the little boots from the crutches-canes just like you would with normal winter boots and walk safely to any dry floors. It's also very convenient when going shopping and entering malls and stores from outdoor snowy , icy and wet conditions. It's recommended to remove the tiny boots when entering stores or malls and walk safely with dried crutch tips.
