It's time!
After months of vague references to the subject, I have arrived at my entry about pin care. For the single most terrifying aspect of the frame (aside from perhaps the thought that the pins would be, you know, going through the bone in the most literal sense of "going through the bone"), pin care has been blessedly low-key.
To start off this discussion, the basic idea behind pin care is that yes, the pins go through the skin. While the holes around the pin do heal up a little bit and the bleeding stops before too long, it is still important to keep those things cleaned out to fend off infection. Additionally, pin care serves a comfort-related function as well. The pin sites, at least the piano wire ones beneath the knee, have a tendency to develop calluses, which then are aggravated by any kind of motion. To stop all of this from happening, it helps to clean the gunk out from the pins.
In the beginning (we're talking late December and early January), pin care was a bit more of a show. We had a bottle of saline solution as well as a box of Q-tips. I believe the Q-tips had a fancier name which sounded vaguely medicinal, but Q-tips are Q-tips, fancy name or no. The saline was used to wet the Q-tip, which was then used to swipe away anything near the pin site. Simple as that, really. If I remember right, it may have stung a little bit, but nothing to write home about.
Before too long, I progressed to taking showers. Surprisingly, this had an actual effect on pin care, as the shower took care of wetting the pin site. If a pin site is wet, I've discovered, the gunk is easier to wipe away. Again, the procedure more or less consists of swiping everything down with the Q-tip.
About a month ago, I started transitioning into giving myself pin care. The new system is actually really simple. While showering, I make sure to get a washcloth good and soapy. I scrub down the pin sites, taking care to actually cover the pin sites in suds. I rinse them off. Then, once out of the shower, they get dried off. Because of the specialized nature of the drying and the requirement to reach smaller spaces, I need to use a washcloth to complete the task.
And that's it. Well, almost it. The final piece of the equation is that the pin sites do sometimes require some bonus help. Bonus help comes in the form of either antibacterial cream or vasoline, which helps the skin slide along the pin and reduces discomfort. Think of it like oiling a door hinge.
For the longest while, my parents were in charge of pin care. This was mostly due to my personal refusal to stare at, or glance at, or anything related to glancing at the pin sites. I didn't want to see them and one of the truths of pin care is you have to look at the pins you're caring for while administering said care. This took me out of the running.
There was also a time where I was willing to look at the pin sites but still could not provide my own care. The reasoning here is fairly simple. Sometimes, pin care hurts. Keeping the pin sites clear and trying to help them not cause pain sometimes involves a little bit of agression, pulling on particularly stubborn bits of callus or scab. While I can look at the pins, I don't have the heart to actually take care of the things.
This is where my father comes in. Unlike me, my father has actual medical training. And unlike me, he's not afraid to cause some soreness during pin care. I have had to tell him to stop before, but only a few times. Think of those as special occasions.
Part of the trick, I know, is that he has a bit less at stake if the cleaning hurts. Part of it is, he's just not as gentle as I am.
And that, dear readers, is my post on pin care. Obviously, for different frames and different doctors, pin care might very well look different. But—straight legs are going to be worth it, right?
Right.
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