Broke my trigger finger yesterday....

T

Tactical Jackalope

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Well there you have it...my trigger finger on my right hand. I always carry my Glock 21sf and now I'm unable to carry anything let alone use the gun range or drive my manual car, a mustang gt. My dominant hand is out of service for a month...


I may be heading out to the range now with a buddy to learn how to shoot lefty. That's all I can really do. Practice and I guess try and become ambidextrious. Regardless I'll never feel as comfortable as I do with my right.


I hope this thing heals ASAP and correctly and I don't need physical therapy.

Think the CZ-82 with good hollow points may have to be my main carry for this time being. I'm a .45acp guy...this feels weird.

Any other ideas out there? Anyone else been through this before? Share. Much love.
SA 1911 - XD45 - G21sf - RIA 1911 - G22 - G27 - Hk USP 40 - SIG P226 E2 - PX4 Storm - Browning High-Power - S&W M19-3 - CZ-82 - S&W 642 - Remington 870
 
Dude, I can drive stick with a pop can or my cell phone in right hand.

Man up !

And shooting lefty is good for you, someday if you get in a shootout and you take a round to you right hand, if your weapon is still functional, you can switch to your left hand.
 
Probably real hard to fasten your britches.A guy could be a little clumsy fastening his britches and drop his gun and shoot himself in the hiney.
 
Ow! I bet that smarts!

On the upside, you've broken ONE of your trigger fingers. You have several more. Look on this as a training opportunity. I'll bet that after you've shot with your off side a couple of times, it will become almost tolerable.
 
Just rub some dirt on it...:p

Look at it as an opportunity to improve your weak hand. Most of us (including me) don't spend near enough time doing it.

I hope it heals quickly and properly. Good luck.
 
Weak hand drills are very important, but most folks don't do them near enough, myself included. This is a very good lesson.
 
Shooting lefty is no big deal. I usually put a couple magazines through my carry piece left handed just to make sure that I'm ok with it. You really aught to be doing this anyway.

Shifting will be a pain though - hope you heal up quickly!
 
It is good that the fracture is not displaced, since it minimizes the risk of lingering tendon or nerve damage. You should talk to your doctor about prognosis, but from what I can see in the radiographs, my money is on you healing pretty well. (Veterinarian, not MD. The hand is more complex than a paw, but the bones heal similarly.)

As others have said, left hand is still good, and there are folks who use their 3rd finger on the trigger, too. Talk to you doctor about the latter, though, because he might not want the concussive force being applied so near the fracture site.

Hope you feel better soon, and that healing is complete.
 
That's horrible. Wish u a speedy recovery. In the mean time practice with the left. I did and learned that I'm a hell of a good shot lefty, just not as quick in the draw. Just don't get used too it, cause new holsters ain't cheap....lol
 
AS my father use to tell me, "long way from the heart"

Sorry,

This is one of the reasons I stress shooting (at least 60% of the time) shooting weak hand. ( Weak = 60%, Strong = 30%, two hand = 10%)

Back in '77 I got shot in my right hand (no I wont tell the story). Had the whole hand bandaged. I got to where I could draw (still carried my service revolver on my right side) with my left hand, kind of a weird reach around.

Sargent took me to the range to watch me draw, then sent me to "property" to get a left handed holster. Took a bit of practice but I got over it.

I got to where I could draw and shoot no problem, but had to go to the bank and do another signature card because they couldn't recognize my left handed signature.

I still have the Bianchi left handed breakfront holster for a 4 in. S&W if you need it.
 
I cut off my trigger finger five years ago. It was surgically reattached and three months later I was pheasant hunting. You got plenty more fingers.
 
My wife had a less severe break on the same finger, but on the upper part of the digit closer to the knuckle. Early December 2010.

She had that same type of splint for 1 week, and then a cast for about 3 weeks. She had some therapy for a while after cast removal- twice a week for 4 weeks and then once a week for 8 more weeks- and then did it on her own. She wasn't as diligent as I would have liked and at this point has just a bit less flexibility in the knuckle joint when making a fist. If you work on this part harder, you should not permanently lose any flexibility. But expect a lot of stiffness at first and some loss of strength that will come back quickly with some work.

I recall the Dr. saying something to the effect that there would be lasting effect of achiness for approximately a year or so until fully healed.

She has no problems but occasionally does have some minor soreness.

About the off-hand practice- good idea. When I took my first CCW class the instructor had us do that and just about all the other people in the class said it had never occurred to them to do that. Made me wonder about those people...

Good luck and heal well.
 
Did an orthopedic surgeon who does hands look at you, or just the ER staff?

When you go to therapy, (GO TO THERAPY!) make sure you see a Certified Hand Therapist (CHT). Don't wait to get a referral after a month from now. GO NOW.

Either a physical therapist (PT) or an occupational therapist (OT) can be a CHT. Most of the hand therapy performed in this country is actually done by OTs rather than PTs. DO NOT allow your physician to send you to a PT unless that therapist is designated as a CHT! If you can't find a CHT in your area, see an plain-jane OT. OTs are better at hand therapy than a PT who may lack specific hand training. About 85% of teh CHTs in this country are OTs.

You need a better splint on your finger than that aluminum and foam thing. That was probably what they stuck on you in the emergency room, yes? There is a lot going on with soft tissue in the proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joint. It is a very complicated joint. You are not going to be 100% in a month. That middle finger bone (second phalanx) may take up to 12 weeks to heal.

To find a CHT in your area, got to HTCC.org (the Hand Therapy Certification Commission) and do a search for one in your area.

At this point you can probably guess what I do for a living. If I can help with questions send me a PM.
 
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