Okay, folks, I don't have a bunch of time at the moment so I'll keep this short. But it's pretty darn important so I figured I should post something now even if I will have to flesh it out a bit later on.

Today I hurt my back. Like, I REALLY hurt my back! It all started late last week when my mother was going to sit down and I saw she was going to miss the chair. I caught her and in the process I wrenched my back and shoulder pretty badly--and this morning I finished the job when I had a little coughing jag and it suddenly felt as though I was being broken in two.

Anyway, the point of all this is to say, if you have any skilled help, a home-health agency, or the like; and if you haven't done so already, get them on the phone today and set up an appointment for them to demonstrate for you, and help you to practice all of the spiffy tricks they know about how to transfer your loved one safely, how to assist in sitting and standing, getting into and out of bed, etc., etc., and how the heck to position yourself when you are confronted with a imminent fall.

Believe it or not, I have been shown all of these things several times. We even have a gait belt (was I using it?...HA!). So get educated and practice, practice, practice! Cuz, now I am in the position of trying to care for Mom who is rapidly needing more and more physical assitance, my hubby is out of town, and my little people don't weigh 70 lbs. soaking wet .

At the moment I'm trying to get Mom into the hospital for a thorough going over because she has been in a fairly rapid decline since last Monday evening. If my efforts fail, I'm not sure what I will do because I sure can't be tugging and lifting on her right now!

Hugs to all
...now, you all get busy and learn some new tricks!

One of my cousins severely injured her back and reguired surgery, while trying to care for her Mom, my Aunt, Mom's sister. She read me the riot act about how to take care of myself while caring for Mom. Her Mom had to go to respite care for the recovery period, and she never recovered totally ( neither her, or her Mom). Please, please ask for demos on how to do things safely, YOU are important. More than you could ever know . ..

Thanks Happy and Gypsy. I am feeling an improvement this morning. I guess the cortisone injections are finally kicking in because I didn't have another painkiller during the night. I felt that the heating pad helped quite a bit. I know you're not supposed to sleep with one--especially on HIGH--like I did, but I didn't burn, start a fire, or strangle on the electric cord. Must have been worth it!

A CNA is coming this morning to help me wash Mom up and get her into my van so I can take her to the hospital. It'll be the ER for us, as her doc wouldn't do a direct admission I should have known

Regarding my "little people"--they're not that young anymore. It's just that we've had our children in "sets" so I still refer to them as the "big folks", our "middle people" and the "little people." Our youngest are 6 and 11. The eleven-year-old is so petite that the six-year-old has nearly caught up with her in stature. And we only have one other child still at home--a middle guy who's 16. ...must be hitting a growth spurt cuz he's thin as a blade of grass I need some muscle around here!!!! Well, thank-God, that at least Ben (16) is out of school for the time-being and can help out with watching the youngsters while I'm with Mom. (I should have forced the driver's education issue, huh? I knew it! Well, he's gonna learn to drive THIS year, by gum )

...time to stoke up on some coffee and augment my courage. I pray it won't be one of those nightmare days

I love y'all! Thanks again

So sorry about your back Mariabee. I was very lucky that when Mike was in rehab I went to Victoria too(that was where the rehab hospital was) I camped in our camper van(with the dog) and went every day to his sessions -part of the work they did was teaching the CGs some of this stuff-I leave Mike's belt on when he is up. When he is in bed it is on the back of his chair. We actually have 2-one stays in the bag on the back of his chair. I think the thing that has helped us the most is the transfer pole beside the bed.It is the thing I miss the most when we go on holidays. Also a rolling commode/shower chair. No more transfers in the bathroom. Please look after that back of yours. Gypsy

mariabee: sorry about your back. there doesn't seem to be a thing the body does where the back does not scream out it has been abused. is there any outside help, friends or volunteers who can give you a hand on the biggies until you get some rest? it's amazing how clear hindsight is. even though we know these things does not mean we are always prepared for the unexpected and and control natural reflexes. take such good care of yourself, i know i'm sta ting the obvious but i guess that is also a natural response . i really do know your pain. i'm facing back surgery but have been putting it off as long as possible for lack of backup during recovery. so far i am fortunate that daisy is pretty mobile but things can change so fast in life and i really fear that. good luck and spoil yourself as much as possible [that is not intended as a joke since it seems that pampering doesn't seem to be in our vocabulary,] but do your best. when does hubby return and how many little ones do you have? don't mean to be nosey, just not up on everything.

i hope everyone checks out this post! i was trained to do all these things but i can't believe how many times the instructor had to correct us when we thought we had it down. i know for a fact it only takes one time of ignoring the correct mechanics of a move to lay one flat. also there is no way to exaggerate the value of a gait belt and yet so easy to forget. tahnks you so much. periodic refreshers on our techniques is important so make sure we haven't strayed from correct form. sorry for preaching. been on the painful end of forgetful and it stinks.

I found a wonderful site, Gerontology 130, Working with the Frail Elderly - Transferring and Safety Issues. It covers the basic concerns and it offers RealPlayer videos demonstrating techniques, as well as, written transcripts.

It is a page on the site of Coastline Community College that follows the curriculum of a 16 Unit course of study.

The intro states:

quote:

"In the last stages of dementia, ambulation becomes increasingly more difficult. Individuals can no longer understand the commands you are giving them and may have difficulty walking or sitting. Getting individuals in an out of cars, transferring from a bed to chair, or getting to the bathroom in time, can be next to impossible if caregivers are not aware of proper body mechanics and transferring techniques.

"To help caregivers understand the importance of body mechanics, Assistant Professor Donna Schwab, P.T., M.S., of Long Beach California State University, and her students—Chu Lee and Michael Bennett—illustrate how to properly get a person out of bed, assist someone from a sitting to standing position, transfer someone from a wheelchair to a chair, and how to properly use such devices as a cane and walker. Physical Therapists are trained to teach family members the importance of range of motion, mobility, transferring, and safety techniques and help to restore and rehabilitate physical functioning."

Although the Transferring and Safety URL above does not cover ALL of the aspects or body mechanics, etc., we are interested in here, it is a *very* good start in lieu of a first-hand pro-demo until you can obtain one. AND the rest of the site addresses many of the other ongoing concerns we have with our loved-ones.

IMHO..."Excellent"
I'm book-marking it, myself

Thanks BG, your pointers are very helpful! MB, you were exactly on the money!

...and thanks for the well-wishes I sure can use them!

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Also, if you get a moment, check out Full Circle of Care, which is where I found the Gerontology 130 page.
It features a topic index and pages such as...

I Need Help But I Don't know What I Need or How To Get It!

Taking Care of You - Taking Care of Caregiver Needs

...worth taking a peek at

This message has been edited. Last edited by: mariabee,

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"For us, there is only the trying. The rest is not our business."

~~~T.S. Eliot

Oh no sweetie I know what you mean here (and Maria too) I just wanted to give some safety guidelines is all, the demonstration IS priceless and everyone should ask for it no matter what, I agree with both of you

BG all those things are important, but I think Maria was talking about things like standing squarely in front of someone while letting them down into a chair, watching their foot position, etc... the demonstration kinda stuff that is so easy to learn when shown but is so difficult and time-consuming to explain in writing.

It is worth EVERY CAREGIVER'S PRECIOUS TIME to have a pro demonstrate the techniques you need to know to assist and safely handle your patient.

For example: Many folks don't use gait belts and that is the FIRST rule for walking with people with dubious ambulation. In case the person stumbles, grabbing the gait belt will prevent injury to both the caregiver and the patient. Grabbing an arm, etc. will surely result in injury to one or both of you.

Another common example: Many folks do not understand the use of draw sheets for bedridden patients. Hauling them up in the bed by their armpits is very hard on their skin, especially that tender backside that is so prone to pressure sores. Move them with the drawsheet, preferably with someone else on the other side helping.

Learning and understand a little about body mechanics can go a LONG WAY toward preventing injury in not only the patient, but in the all-important caregiver.

Get well quick, Maria! Make those kids do your work for the next few days! Time to watch movies and eat chocolates for a few days...

Oh Maria take care baby! Nothin worse than throwing out your back I hope you feel better soon and force the issue with her PCP of getting her in for some testing.
I can tell you I feel a heck of a sight better today getting some much needed rest and starting to function better as well. Force it dont take no for an answer. We dont get to use this often but when its needed take advantage of it

Here are some guidelines to use for safety.


Assess your lifting limitations, do you have back problems to begin with ask for help if help is not available think before you assist in moving a LO use tools you have available


Are there tools you can use back support, sliding board, taking out armrest of wheelchair, transfer bench.


Inform your loved one what you are about to do, lift, roll them over, transfer...Keep your knees bent!


Ask your loved one if he or she can assist with the lifting every little bit helps


Be sure that the surface is not slippery will you need to put shoes on your loved one and never do so when you are wearing slippers that come off easily ie slide ins either take them off or do the task barefooted.


NEVER jerk or suddenly pull on your loved one they are frail skin is tender and thin.


Transfer from the strongest side of your loved one...remember bend those knees! And do not over reach.


If your loved one starts to fall, do not stop the fall lower him or her gently on the floor and if you think you can not lift them from the floor, get help.


Lift with your legs and keep a straight back
Bend those knees! (is there a theme here?!)

Do some back stretches and squats before lifting warm those muscles up this really does work!

P.S. While you are getting your demonstration, remember to ask about using a draw-sheet for adjusting your loved one while he is in bed (...and any other "bed tricks" they may know). The need to be able to do this can come about suddenly, and it is an invaluable skill!