GDGAPW Syndrome

GDGAPW ??? Well it's a very common syndrome affecting young males, especially those in their teenage years. I've seen so many teenagers with this syndrome that I'm beginning to wonder if it is genetic, although I must say that I must be missing this gene. So what does GDGAPW stand for?

Get drunk, get angry and punch wall syndrome. The W can also stand for window. We had an eighteen year old boy come in one Friday evening after punching a window. You would think that the window would come off second best, but you'd be wrong. He suffered a very small laceration to the inside of his wrist. It was such a small cut that he wasn't going to come to hospital, except the sensation in his hand had changed. Little did he know that his budding career as a rugby professional would come to an end.

The thing about rugby is that you need to be able to catch the ball and this young man was left with little-no sensation in a large part of his right hand. He will still be able to play rugby, but probably not at the top level.

The hardest part about this whole episode was watching as this realization came to him. As hardened as we nurses often come to alcohol related injuries and the stupidity of the average male, I couldn't help but feel deeply sorry for this young man. We've all made mistakes, and most of us are lucky. This young man said he had never done something like this before, and that he never would again.

It hurts when we don't get a second chance.