A memory that I would prefer to forget...!
What a bugger Padre...!:frown:
I know from experience that having a finger cut right at a joint (clean cut) is a lot less painful than losing just the finger tip. The only part of my hands that I lost about 26 years ago, on a table saw, was my left pointing finger tip, right at the finger nails growing level, losing the very tip of the bone also.
Blood lost was considerable and my most painful feeling (as soon as it happened, as the "real pain started latter...!) was to realize that, I couldn't play guitar anymore, one of the things that I enjoyed immensely and a period of my life where I played in blanks (3 of them) for about 10 years total.
At the hospital, where I had to drive for 3 hours to get to, I was unlucky that seconds after I arrived, a major road accident has taken place and there were many casualties so, I was left there, seated with a large bath white towel (given to me at the mill where I was working at) rapped around my left hand that was rapidly changing colours, surrounded by many other people that had all kinds of injuries plus, some other that arrive from that accident but that weren't in critical condition.
I waited and waited, bitting by tang out in pain but, the scene all around me made me believe that I wasn't that bad anyway until the lights went out and i went down like a tone of bricks. Fortunately for me, when I collapsed due to excessive lost of blood, the critically injured people from the accident have been taken care of and I was taken inside by nurses that responded to the calls from the other patients near me.
When I come up to, I had a few people around me and I could see that I was receiving blood and other stuff before my finger was attended to, by then I was lucid enough to have a conversation with the doctor that explained that, if he would not suture the open wound and patch it up with a special syntactic pad with lots of oils and other stuff in it, that would assist the tip of the finger to grow back as the nail, less the tip of the bone that was lo longer there (never found it either...!).
I was then told that, the pain levels and the healing time would be considerably stronger and longer, as the nerve that is situated in our finger tips is very painful to heal when damaged. In fact, a lot less painful if the finger is cut back to the next joint, and closed up with skin, this will heal a lot faster also...!
I remember well to come out of the emergency rooms, and walk pass the waiting room where I stood waiting and collapsed, I looked at the chair where I once was seated and saw this large pool of blood on the floor, still untouched...!
I asked a few faces I remembered, what was that blood on the floor and the answer was, "that is/was yours mate, coming out of the towel you had rapped around your hand, while you were waiting...!
"
I could see the seats next to the blood being empty, not from the lack of people there waiting but, people voiding to get too close...! I believe, todays hospital services everywhere, even in small countries like Portugal, are better in that respect and would live that blood there, for long but, in those days, a visit to the hospital was something that everyone would void at any cost, even to see your GP as a normal appointment, the waiting room was the same for everyone, regardless what they where there for so, many of the most horrifying moments were experience while waiting in those rooms, where everything has to go pass them...!
I understand well the pain that is associated with the loss of a finger tip, and I can tell you that yes, it will grow back to a point, unfortunately it will take a long time and it will require a lot of care to void any infection but, in time, it will get better and you will be able to get back to your saw dust. The pain management is going to be a problem, and the extra sensitivity you will feel from that finger tip after healed up, is going to be considerable for some years so, don't despair, the human body is an amazing "machine" and you will be OK.
I'm sorry to give you an accurate picture of times to come but, lying about it serves no one's purpose...!
Get better soon...
Cheers
George
