I recently took a fall and dislocated my thumb. Apparently dislocating a thumb isn’t always as simple as just resetting it. Turns out my wonderful thumb now refuses to stay in place, so I’ll need surgery to put some pins in to stabilize it. The worst part for me is that the doctor said I can’t exercise or sweat as long as the splint is on (~6-8 weeks). Understand that I’m in Atlanta in the middle of the summer. I can barely walk to my car without sweating. So, what to do? For me it’ll be a lot of walking. I happen to live a stone’s through from some great hiking/running trails, so I’ll be hitting those up often. I’ll sweat, but the doc will just have to deal with it. At least I’m not running or riding. The other way I deal with this little set back is gratitude. I remind myself of things like:

1. It’s not my dominant hand. I’m right handed and it’s my left thumb that’s a little cattywampus.
2. I can still drive and get around.
3. I think/hope I’ll still have use of my fingers on my left hand, even after the surgery.
4. I get to teach myself all new ways of doing things with my elbows, mouth, knees, etc. I have all sorts of body parts that still work and I never put to their full use.

It sucks, for sure, but it’s not the end of the world. I used to joke that you might as well cut off my left hand because I am so right-handed dominant that I never use it. Turns out I was wrong. I use my left hand all the time, and it took not being able to use it for me to realize that. Take care of yourselves, and appreciate your non-dominant hand. They actually come in handy even if you don't realize it like me.