Four poster beds and broken toes

[Gypsy]

Does anyone else have this problem? Every few months I swear I crack a toe (usually my little one) in the middle of the night and wake up with a fractured or broken toe from kickying the bottom post.

I am planning on getting rid of this bed and just get a nice upholstered headboard (Ethan Allen Jensen) for this exact reason. But hubby likes this bed and would rather I just paint it to match the new color scheme I want in here (bed is black now, would need to change to ivory). I haven't told him I have a NEW cracked toe this morning... I'm sure that will bring him around to the headboard... but I wanted to see if this is normal.

 

[Imdanny]

You mean you're literally breaking your toes? If so, no, that's not normal, and, yes, you should definitely get rid of it asap.

 

[Gypsy]

Yeah, I do mean I literally break a toe. Got a bruised, slightly puffy one that won't bend this morning. Couldn't wear heels and even my flats hurt it.

Hubby said I kick a lot while sleeping. He's onboard with the new headboard now, as I just told him I broke another.

 

[LGK]

My mom has re-broken her foot in her sleep from kicking and restless leg syndrome. But never actually kicked anything hard enough to break a toe all by itself!

Yeah, I'd totally get rid of that bed. I whack my leg on our new-ish one all the time, and so does DH, and that's plenty irritating enough to make us both start thinking about replacing it. breaking a toe more than once would have me chucking the thing out a window and putting the mattress on the floor! Yikes. Poor toe!

DH says I raise my arms up above my head a lot in my sleep- like stretched straight up in the air like I'm waiting to be called on in grade school or something. God, without husbands we would never know the strange things we do in our sleep...

 

[geckodani]

I used to get my feet, arms, hair EVERYTHING caught in my wrought iron four poster. That puppy is TOAST and we got a faux leather sleigh bed. LOVE IT. No more random bruising! The best was when I was working at Starbucks with lots of Cop customers, and I'd come in with these huge banding bruises on my wrists (from getting caught in the headboard). Explaining them was entertaining.

ETA: I highly reccomend the leather/fabric sleigh beds. The runners on the sides are padded too - no more stubbing toes on the bed frame!!!

 

[Efe]

We have a headboard only for that exact reason. Sorry about your toes.

 

[Jennifer W]

I never had this happen, but my bed is quite long - it's French, and not a standard size.
It sounds painful, you poor thing. Can you put some padding round the offending post in the short term? Maybe wrap a feather pillow round it with some tape until you can replace it?

 

[bebe]

OUCH !!

My little toe on my left foot is broken as I type. (I "walked" into a laptop sitting on the floor)

I guess you do need a new bed! My goodness. And ditto the suggestion of padding that post until you
get the new headboard.

My doctor told me there is nothing they can do for a broken toe unless it doesn't heal or is a severe break, then
surgery is called for.
I broke mine about 5 weeks ago. I've been in a stiff, flat bottom surgical shoe for 4 weeks now. The Dr. says
at least another 4 weeks of healing and in this "boat" of a shoe. It still hurts if I turn/pivot on that foot. I tried
to stay off of it as much as possible, but with T'giving and now Christmas, that is hard to do.
My Dr. told me not to buddy tape the toe to the next toe. I have been using thick adhesive Moleskin (super thick kind)
wrapped under, around and over. Several layers applied lightly and then surgical tape over that. It's my way of protecting
the toe. My doc liked my idea and it keeps the toe from moving around. I cannot wear a shoe on that foot and won't even
try until mid-January. grrr

 

[Gypsy]

I never had this happen, but my bed is quite long - it's French, and not a standard size.
It sounds painful, you poor thing. Can you put some padding round the offending post in the short term? Maybe wrap a feather pillow round it with some tape until you can replace it?

This is brilliant. Glad to know I'm not the only one. I'm ordering the headboard this weekend. So I need a short term solution and now I have one! Perfect!

Thank you all.

And sorry about your bumps, bruises and toes.

Bebe, I just have mine buddy taped today. It hurts but I spend most my time sitting at work. So I can take my shoe off and just let it be.

Thank you guys. You made me feel like less of a moron.

 

[geckodani]

Bed is supposed to be a happy place. Not a place that damages you, LOL!

 

[manderz]

I've never kicked it, but we have a fairly large bed in a small-ish room, and I'm forever running into it and getting these huge round bruises on my thighs. I'm pretty sure I always have at least one!

 

[Strawdermangrl]

I have that problem with my dresser and its big ol feet type things.

I generally slam my knee into the metal coffee table ends and therefore have a consistently sore patella and one that is almost always black in color.

 

[zoebartlett]

Breaking a toe sucks. It HURTS and there's not much you can do about it, unfortunately. I'm very accident-prone and I broke a toe a number of years ago simply by getting up from the couch and walking away (I slammed my foot/toe into the coffee table). All the doctor did was buddy-tape it and then he sent me hobbling back home. I hope you feel better soon Gypsy!

 

[bebe]

Breaking a toe sucks. It HURTS and there's not much you can do about it, unfortunately. I'm very accident-prone and I broke a toe a number of years ago simply by getting up from the couch and walking away (I slammed my foot/toe into the coffee table). All the doctor did was buddy-tape it and then he sent me hobbling back home. I hope you feel better soon Gypsy!

Zoe, how long was it before you could wear a shoe and bend your foot !!?

 

[LGK]

Bebe, I broke my toe last summer (first broken bone *ever*) and boy do you ever know you've done it. That snapping noise is just unmistakeable, ick! It took around 6 weeks if not longer for my foot to be normal-ish again- I think it was about 6 weeks before I could wear normal shoes. I work standing for 7 hours every day so that didn't help the healing process one bit either. It's just fine now though, totally healed normal.

Sounds like your break was pretty bad though, maybe worse than mine was. Mine was xrayed to check if the bone was displaced, but it wasn't- just cracked. They buddy-taped it and that was going to be it, but I begged some painkillers since it was utter murder to even get down the steps to get to the bathroom at home, and Motrin just wasn't doing it! (I love our condo, but the bathroom on the lower level just sucks if you've, say, dislocated your knee for the fourth time or broken a toe.)

Happy toe thoughts for you Bebe- and Gypsy too!- hope it heals soon.

 

[AGBF]

Gypsy-Is it the post or the footboard that you kick? I don't know if you have an entire footboard or if you just have posts, but manage to kick the post. Padding sounds great in either, case...although I don't know why you need a footboard or two bottom posts as long as the frame doesn't require them structurally! We have a king size brass bed with headboard and footboard and, at 5' 5", I am far too short to kick the footboard!!!

Deb/AGBF

 

[Fly Girl]

DH is tall, so our bed has a headboard only, never a footboard. I love the look of 4-poster beds, and beds with real footboards, but never for us. He keeps trying to extend the bed by pushing on the footboard. It doesn't work; it will only break the bed if he does succeed.

So sorry to hear about your broken toes...how terrible. On the plus side, headboards are much less expensive than entire beds, and you don't walk into the corners and hurt yourself that way.

Dust that you heal quickly.

 

[monarch64]

Girl, you need a new bed with either a padded footboard or no footboard at all. I can't imagine waking myself up in the night with a cracked/bruised/broken toe! Four posters are beautiful, but egads! The damage they're doing to you and the sleep you must be losing!!! I have a king with only a headboard and love it. Even growing up (and I've been tall since I was 14) I had a queen with a footboard but I don't remember ever cracking my feet/toes against it. You NEED to get something without anything on the end which will encumber your tootsies. Please!

 

[Gypsy]

Low slung foot board that is about 6 inches below the top of our mattress. On purpose. So it's definitely the posts. Monarch, you are right.

This is our current bed. But our mattress is 20 inches thick so it sticks up A LOT over the footboard (I planned it that way hoping I could have a four poster bed because I do love them).

 

[Gypsy]

Which headboard do you prefer?

In Platinum Grey Jute or Tweed. With Silver nail heads.

 

[Gypsy]

Another view of number 2

 

[Lovinggems]

Ouch I hope you recover soon Gypsy. Maybe you can saw off the 4 posts, if you were planning on throwing the bed away...

 

[Imdanny]

Yeah, I do mean I literally break a toe. Got a bruised, slightly puffy one that won't bend this morning. Couldn't wear heels and even my flats hurt it.

Hubby said I kick a lot while sleeping. He's onboard with the new headboard now, as I just told him I broke another.

Oh, I'm so sorry! I'm sending healing thoughts your way.

And for you too Bebe.

Gypsy, I vote for the second one but they're both very nice.

 

[zoebartlett]

Gypsy -- I think I like the first headboard better because it's darker and it's taller than the second one. I prefer darker tones (or to go completely the opposite way and go with white) as opposed to lighter tones for furniture.

Bebe -- It was so long ago, 10 years I think, so I don't quite remember now. I worked in retail at the time, and for the first day, I stayed behind the counter ringing people up. After that though, I had to get out behind the counter and help customers all throughout the store. It was rough but I managed. It was weeks before I could wear tighter fitting shoes. I think I wore loose fitting sneakers for about 3-4 weeks.

 

[Imdanny]

Gypsy-Is it the post or the footboard that you kick? I don't know if you have an entire footboard or if you just have posts, but manage to kick the post. Padding sounds great in either, case...although I don't know why you need a footboard or two bottom posts as long as the frame doesn't require them structurally! We have a king size brass bed with headboard and footboard and, at 5' 5", I am far too short to kick the footboard!!!

Deb/AGBF

My mattress set is on one of those frames with wheels (although I took the wheels off) they give you free when you buy a mattress and box springs. I guess it's a good thing. I'd like to have a sleigh bed but it's not a necessity and I have more pressing things to think about than getting one. Padding is a great idea. Otherwise, I would literally put the mattresses on the floor.

 

[geckodani]

I like the second one. Only because I've had a ginormously tall headboard before and I prefer the lower profile one we have now. Leaves room for art above the bed.

 

[bebe]

Gypsy, I like the 2nd headboard. I like the neutral color of it.

You "could" cut off the posts of your current bed and attach a finial type replacement.

 

[PinkTower]

Your current bed is beautiful. Are you saying you hit your toes getting out of the bed? Or are you very tall? Do you think you may have RLS?

The one your are considering looks a lot like our new one. Ours is by Lexington.