What's the easiest way to break your wrist?

Answer 1

The wrist is actually many different bones. There are two thinner bones in the lower arm, the radius and ulna. They lead down into many smaller bones. They are protected by muscles and some very strong tendons.

Breaks and injuries to the wrist are pretty unpredictable. A terrible accident can just sprain it (damage the tendons and soft tissue), and a simple slip can be bad enough that reconstructive surgery would be needed. There is just no way to know which way it will go. Joint injuries are quite often a permanent source of some pain. Sometimes the joint will never quite be the same.

In the elderly, the bones are weakened, so it is common for them to break their wrists when they fall and try to catch themselves. Due to the radius and ulna being long bones, most intentional breaks are very tell-tale. For instance, a spiral break in a young child is almost an instant call to protective services. They are done in a very specific way, and just looking at the x-ray tells exactly how.

If you are thinking about breaking your own wrist, there are a few things to consider, like why?

If you are doing this for attention or because you feel the need to harm yourself, you do need to get help. This is not said in a mean way, but self harm is a symptom of more serious things going on. You really do need someone to talk to.

If you are doing it so you can blame someone else, then what you are doing is illegal. The hospital and law enforcement are both trained in recognizing this sort of injury. You probably aren't going to be able to pull it off. They will actually arrest you directly in the ER if the strongly suspect that was the case.