Sunday, January 10, 2010

Burn Update

My burn has finally started to change/heal. Burn are complecated. They constantly produce heat and therefore constantly produce water. Due to water pockets, burns are not allowed to heal over. Thats the puffiness you've seen on my burn. It looked like several blisters in my burn. That's normal. It was just water under the skin. It's also why skin grafts are crosshatched and not solid. The water has to be able to drain. The compression sleeves that go over burns are to force the water out. Suprisingly even when scar tissue forms burns still produce heat and water. Compression sleeves are worn for such a long time to ensure that all the water is pressed out. Sometimes they use a piece of solid silicone to place between the healed/healing scar/burn and the compression sleeve to press even more fluids out. Crazy huh. Anyways, my burn takes so long because I did not want to pay for a skin graft or for surgery to cut the burn out, press the skin together and stitch it up to heal like a wound rather then a burn. Oh and I just so happen to have the worst luck ever and am very allergic to the gauze like, skin graft alternative, healing aide.
This is my compression band that I will hopefully be getting on Monday. You have to measure your arm in 3 places to make sure it's the right size. It's white and I got 2 because my sister said they need to be cleaned alot and you still need one to wear while the other is being washed. I understand this now. Due to cream and constant water production there is a lot of 'goo' involved with burns. It's too white. I think I'll take my permanent markers to them.
The noticable change happend pretty much over night. Before I woould notice little changes and would show my mom or my husband and they would just grimace at me. Now they too, admit it looks better.
I finally have scar tissue forming and the puffiness has decreased substantially. When I wrap it with another wrap really tight the puffiness goes down even more. When I get my compression band it should get totally flat.

I kind of describe it like looking like the inside of an orange when it heals. Like when you pull off the thin skin and see the little juice pockets inside. Thats what the center of my burn looks like. See.


It heals from the edges in. The skin gets tight and they say that you are not allowed to let it get tight so you have to stretch it. I pull and stretch it when I clean it. That's why Nie Nie still does yoga too. It stretches her healing skin. It's also why her bottom lip was so big for a while. When her skin on her chin healed it tightened so much it pulled her bottom lip inside out.



It produces that water quickly and constantly. I dry it off and about 5 seconds later it's shiny with water. I have to dry it right before putting cream on it or it's like frosting a cake while it's still hot. Nothing sticks.





Doesn't it loook so good?! It's so much better. Really it's more of a hasssle then painful. I'm never ironing again, I've decided. A very stupid expensive mistake.




4 comments:

J. Cohee said...

uh... i'm so glad it's doing better but dang... that still looks painful!you're such a trooper callie!

Jen said...

Ok, seriously stop with the close ups! :)
Stay strong my dear, and I'm with ya for never ironing again.

marcie said...

I am now reminded why I didn't go into the medical field. I winced at every picture. I'm sorry Callie, but I'm glad it's gettin better.. who knew ironing could be that dang dangerous!

Meg said...

Wow- that is really interesting! I didn't know that about burns. I'm glad it's finally getting better- what a huge pain!