If we ever needed purrs

Adrian A wrote:

Keep your chin up Lesley, life *will* get better.

Well today was odd...

I got a bag of Hills S/D. Interesting the vet nurse told me IAMS and
Go-cat? You might as well buy the cheaper one as both are bad in terms
of crystal formation and the best you can say about IAMS is it's
marginally better for digestion okay maybe she had a vested interest in
perusading me to part with 14.00 for a 2kg bag but as I said earlier
they look good on it

Dave was sitting in his room so I handed him the latest "Fortean Times"
which led him to comment at least he might get to read this one first
oh and the DVD from Kelly. Dave looked puzzled it's one of his
favourite films and yes it might play on one of the PC machines but?

I said "She probably wanted to use the packaging material"

He looks at me as if he suspects I am on drugs so I passed the bag and
he reaches in and says "Nice t-shirt...two of them?"

So he unfolds one of them and stops dead.... unfolds it...stares at
it...sits there for a couple of minutes muttering "This is sooo nice"

Then finds the photo. Said photo is now pinned up on the wall and
Dave's new motto is "He beat pancreatic cancer I can beat THIS!"

(I have a friend who faced with the cost of getting 4 prints framed
went to an adult education centre learnt how to do it for a fraction of
the cost and is so good so many people have asked he hasn't got round
to framing the original prints- I think he's got another comission)

Then he came over and hugged me. He was really upset about losing his
favourite shirt and out of the blue I got a replacement! (I didn't tell
him because I didn't want to get his hopes up) so we went out for a fag
and to discuss going to the Half Moon at least as a start as I hadn't
eaten

Totally out of the blue I dropped my fag and went inside all of a
sudden I felt dizzy. At first I thought maybe one too many coffees (and
I'd just had some tea as well)

Then I felt dreadful...I was so unsteady when I had to go to the loo I
had to hang onto the rails to stop myself falling ...I kept feeling so
sick I went outside and retched but couldn't be sick...I felt I was
going to pass out...all I could do was sit and sip water even
Evangelina was keeping more of an eye on me than patients..I was
thirsty as Hell but didn;t want a glass of water as it was going
stright through and handling the loo was a problem since I could barely
stand..My heart was pounding and my head was splitting. Dave said I had
gone pale and was worried

Finally worked it out and applied the diagnostic test...John had a bad
cold/incipent flu and I thought I'd got off too lightly so I took two
"Lemsip" cold and flu capsules...I found out a few years ago when I
brought them because that was all the shop had they work for me...if
after 20 minutes I still felt rough then it was serious...as it was I
managed to stand up, the colour came back to my cheeks and through I
still don't feel 100% I am okay

Alas by the time I felt well enough to eat the canteen was closed...

So I came home and went mad (Called Dave's mum because its her birthday
tomorrow when she heard Dave was going to be in over Xmas she told me
she can't do much being a poor pensioner . All their money is tied up
in their house and whilst they are better off than anyone depending on
the state to look after them they are far from rich) but she's sending
an extra 20.00 to me which I must use to get a cab to and from the
hospital on Xmas day which is the best present! Okay it's more like
30.00 for a distance I can walk but I'll get a cab it's so nice of her

I hadn't eaten all day so I went to the shops and grabbed a ready
washed bag of leaf salad , two red peppers, half a cucumber, some fresh
mushrooms, an large onion and a packet of cheese straws (My weakness).
Placed salad on a plate, washed and diced the rest of it apart from the
cheese straws (Dessert) and didn't bother with a knife and fork...Also
two litre cartons of cranberry juice for later- good for vitamin C also
I can keep them by the bed so if I need a drink in the night I can be
reasonably sure the Furballs won't be sharing my cup as they tend too
with water,,,,

So I sat back filled up and feling better and opened the cheese straws

And remembered I left the bag of Hills S/D in Dave's room so I had to
bolt to the shops for catfood before they closed and yes sadly the
Furballs have GoCat instead of S/D but also wet food

Tomorrow Dave says if I am up to it we are going out....should be.

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs.

PS I saw an advert in a paper today and I am wondering if it might
help. It's for something called a "Dalesman Walking stick" it extends
to 4 feet 6 so it might be long enough for Dave to use and the handle
is at the top so he could hold it it's designed to help hill walkers
so its claimed to help stability on hill climbs I am wondering if
anyone has experience of it? I ripped the page out to show him and
maybe ask the other Lesley if it might help (Dave has a good sense of
balance standing and has often said if he could use a conventional
stick he'd be able to get about faster and better maybe even stairs) if
not him someone else...I think it's called thinking outside the box!

On 9 Dec 2006 17:10:32 -0800, "Lesley" wrote:

Totally out of the blue I dropped my fag and went inside all of a
sudden I felt dizzy. At first I thought maybe one too many coffees (and
I'd just had some tea as well)

Then I felt dreadful...I was so unsteady when I had to go to the loo I
had to hang onto the rails to stop myself falling ...I kept feeling so
sick I went outside and retched but couldn't be sick...I felt I was
going to pass out...all I could do was sit and sip water even
Evangelina was keeping more of an eye on me than patients..I was
thirsty as Hell but didn;t want a glass of water as it was going
stright through and handling the loo was a problem since I could barely
stand..My heart was pounding and my head was splitting. Dave said I had
gone pale and was worried

Finally worked it out and applied the diagnostic test...John had a bad
cold/incipent flu and I thought I'd got off too lightly so I took two
"Lemsip" cold and flu capsules...I found out a few years ago when I
brought them because that was all the shop had they work for me...if
after 20 minutes I still felt rough then it was serious...as it was I
managed to stand up, the colour came back to my cheeks and through I
still don't feel 100% I am okay

Possible explanations for this include a reaction to the cold
medicine, dehydration producing a drop in blood pressure, and a
hypoglycemic episode (low blood sugar), since you mention lower down
that you hadn't eaten all day. I am a type II diabetic, and know from
experience that low blood sugar can produce lightheadedness, sweating,
headache, pallor, and the like, in part because it causes blood
pressure to go low. If you keep having such symptoms, it would be a
good idea to have a doctor check your condition. Don't wreck your own
health while caring for Dave.

--
John F. Eldredge --
PGP key available from http://pgp.mit.edu
"Reserve your right to think, for even to think wrongly is better
than not to think at all." -- Hypatia of Alexandria

I am pleased for both of you, Lee
Lesley wrote in message
ups.com...
meeee wrote:


Sounds like your furballs are doing their job cheering you up

Yep they are sometimes I think I wouldn't be half as stressed if I had
one or both of them with me all the time!

Don't know why this flippin' machine keeps resending. I log in via
CatKB and it doesn't (Through sometimes it doesn't send to this list at
all!) and on my old works machine it never did apart from when I was a
newbie and hit the send button twice a couple of times.

First of all thanks to Adrian A and Gennie for the cards. I love
Marietta's little bed I ought to get the Furballs one each but I've
never seen them in the UK and if I know my Furballs they'd ignore them
and continue to sleep in the wardrobe (I keep shutting the door but
with two felines with advanced door opening skills it's a losing
battle! I did it when I got 20 minutes ago and it's already been
opened)

Secondly thanks for all the messages of support especially Fil who was
painfully honest and very brave. We ended up in the same situation
before Dave went into hospital. He didn't want anyone to know so yes,
he ended up cutting himself off from help and I ended up cut off from
support.

I'm feeling an idiot....It's an exact repeat of the time when Dave was
first ill and a junior house officer started talking about taking the
cats away and I panicked as Tweed memorably said "You work in the NHS
and you believed a junior house officer?!"
Just because the social worker says he won't be home for Xmas what does
she know, she wasn't even at the meeting where it was raised (Yes, I've
been reading his notes again. If anyone wants to say anything the
answer is simple "I can't be as involved as I would like to be because
of work and I need to know what you're saying because if I get it
through Dave I'm only getting one side of the story") and that says
"Unlikely to be home for Xmas" which is not the same thing

Anyway I had lunch with a good friend yesterday that's a story in
itself and makes you wonder about karma. Basically 16 years ago I used
to work with Tessa and we were very good friends (she liked the job so
much even after she left to work elsewhere she used to work for us on a
Saturday!). Then the place was taken over and closed down and you know
how it goes...we met a couple of times, talked on the phone but she
lived in the wilds of Buckinghamshire and we just lost touch. No
falling out just didn't see each other. Used to wonder from time to
time what happened to her as she did me but we moved on with our lives.


16 years later I'm starting my new job and the outgoing PA has left a
few pages to guide me and it says "For psychology referrals contact
Tessa Card" and I thought "Can't be!" but it was so we try to get
together for lunch every Friday but it doesn't always happen. Her dad
is in hospital after major surgery and the physio's have failed to get
him back on his feet so he's going to have to go to a nursing home.So
she's going through what I'm going through except she's had an awful
week with it. She visited him Monday and out of the blue a nurse said
"He's only got 3 months". So Tessa called the social worker to say if
that was true surely she needed to stop researching nursing homes,
which being Tessa she had done so well, the social worker asked to keep
her print outs to show other clients who were considering it. (People
say I'm organised and methodical but compared to Tessa I'm a chaotic
slob) The social worker had heard nothing as had his GP and when her
dad's named nurse read the notes she could find nothing to suggest such
a grim prognosis but the consultant isn't returning his phone calls
(Methinks his PA is on leave and he can't use the thing. I've had a
very senior consultant where I used to work ask me how to start the fax
machine, "Pressing the big button with "start" on it might be a good
idea" was my reply. The guy in question (name withheld as he was a
decent bloke) can do a knee replacement without even using the guides-
this guy preps the knee looks at it for 10 seconds and tells the nurse
"A number five tibial tray, a 30mm patella button and a number three
femoral component please" and never gets it wrong but he can't operate
a fax machine, never once managed to print a document he'd email them
to me (and I had to show him how to attach a document every time))

Anyway she now has to wait til the meeting on Tuesday when the
consultant should appear to find out whether she's found a home or
needs to research hospices.

And she said something that cheered me up no end. I was saying the
worse thing was feeling I had to do everything because there were no
other people to help out. And she said "That has it's own set of pro's
and con's. Yes it's very stressful and very tiring but at least it's
just you and Dave. You make the decisions together and don't have to
consider other people"

Basically she does have the support of her sister, brother in law and
her partner Jackie, But as she explained that's not always a good
thing. Okay so she's having a nice quiet Xmas at home with Jackie and
her dogs (and one cat) because her sister lives near to the hospital
and has a car so she and her husband will visit.

But....

Her sister goes into hysterics at the words "Nursing home" and is in
complete denial this will happen as far as she's concerned he's going
home and that's that. Tessa first of all thought it was the shock and
was inclined to be charitable (It probably doesn't help Tessa and her
younger sister never got on that well) but her brother-in-law is also
denying her dad needs to be in a nursing home since if he does "We'll
have to sell the house to pay for the home and that's our inheritance
gone". Tessa has had to bite her lip several times, it doesn't help her
sister and brother-in-law both have very good jobs, own a very nice
house etc etc

And Jackie's not that much help. It's something of a delicate issue,
Tessa has decided that given her dad's age and the generation he comes
from, she isn't going to upset and shock him (also her brother-in-law
has made homophobic remarks and she doesn't want to give him ammunition
however tempted she is to say "You've married into a family with a
"lezzie" in it") so she tells her dad Jackie is a friend and her
housemate and leaves it at that.

Now Jackie is a very forthright personality, very firm believer in "not
feeling sorry for yourself". "Dragging yourself up" etc etc and her
main contribution to the situation has been to lean over the bed and
shout at Tessa's dad " MR CARD! IF YOU DON'T PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER AND
GET OUT OF THAT BED NOW YOU'LL END UP IN A NURSING HOME! SO GET UP!"

As Tessa said that was a real help...Seems there's a lot to be said for
going it alone!

Anyway I got there last night and was reasonably calm until Dave put a
Steve Hillage CD on okay until the track with the opening line "It's
all too much for me to take"

I asked him to take it off and he's like "You're not going all
depressed on me are you? I'm trying to be upbeat here"

So I thought "I've tried to talk about it so many times but always when
we're both angry and losing our tempers" so I took a deep breath and
calmly told him how I was feeling.

We ended up having a good talk. Dave told me he tries to appear upbeat
because he doesn't want me upset but he is lonely and hates when I have
to go to the extent (I had spotted this) if finding one last thing to
be done sometimes just as I'm getting my coat on so it can be out off
for an extra minute or two. He does appreciate what I'm going through
he just finds it hard to talk about because he is acutely aware it's
really his fault I'm having to go through it.

As he says Xmas is two weeks away and none of this is written in stone
so he's going to really try and get there!

We talked about the positives and there have been some today. His back
mysteriously after doing so well flared up again so they tried steroid
cream and different dressings (Kay seems to be experimenting on him)
and after just two days it's well and truly back on track and
Evengelina (his named nurse) thinks in a few more days he won't even
need dressings.

Also his support hoisery arrived today and according to the notes his
feet are now almost 100% and the few bits that aren't yet quite healed
are well on their way. Once they next take his bulky dressings off,
that will be the last time or the second from last time.

And physio today...well, Dave said he was rubbish at it but on closer
questioning he'd done everything he was supposed to do just not as well
as he liked. He's running into a problem with Julia as well.

She's loud and pushy and through she's an OT, she takes over the physio
sessions and has the habit of standing too close in a way that makes
Dave feel crowded (Funny thing is, he reckons the physio stands at
exactly the same distance and he doesn't feel crowded, body language
perhaps?). Furthermore she's trying to get him to do things he doesn't
want to not in the sense of skiving but for example, today as he wasn't
warmed up when he got in the gym he wanted to stand with the pulpit
frame for a minute or two because his ankle which went on Wednesday is
still stiff (Its sprained) and he wanted to be sure it would support
his weight and she wasn't happy for him to do that but in the one
moment of assertiveness she displayed all day Lesley (physio) agreed it
was a good idea. Then when he said he had to sit down for a moment
(after standing unaided for about 5 minutes) because his ankle was
hurting, Julia snapped at him "It doesn't hurt! Ignore the pain!"

Ummm....if it doesn't hurt then where's the pain coming from that he's
to ignore?

Also she keeps saying he's perfectly safe and won't fall because she's
there to catch him. Dave's looking at her, she's a good 6-8 inches
shorter than him and half his weight so he's finding that hard to
believe and anyway the one time on Wednesday he did stumble, she had
her hands in her pockets and he had to balance himself (As it said in
his notes he has excellent standing balance). As he says the only thing
she could do is break his fall (The floor is concrete)

(Btw I want to complain about the floors . I know they're obsessed
with cleanliness but they are buffed to the extent that I've almost
gone over several times every day. As I said to John, one of these days
I'm going to go past in a wheelchair and annouce I've taken residence
in Rose Court down the other end of the ward!)

Another thing has me completely mystified. Julia says Dave doesn't
stand up right. I don't care how he does it so long as it's safe, he's
confident and it works but she won't have it. Consider getting up from
a chair. I put my feet down flat and slight apart and stand up as does
Dave (and I suspect most people). Apparently according Julia we've been
doing it wrong all these years! Apparently you're supposed to tuck his
feet back right under you and lean forward with your nose pointing
downwards and in front of your knees and then stand...I tried it and at
5 feet 6 inches on a low chair the first thing that happened was when
my feet were in the approved position I couldn't get my heels down!
When I did do it, my ankle protested (I wonder if that's how his got
sprained?) and I had to stumble because I hadn't got the whole of my
foot on the floor! But Julia says that's how you stand in the textbook
so that is how you will stand and deviation from that is wrong! It's
like she keeps going on about how he doesn't transfer "well" from chair
to bed and vice versa. As far as we are concerned
he gets where he needs to go, quickly, comfortably and at no risk of
falling whereas her "textbook" method has nearly caused him to fall
flat on his face

Anyway things are better now...

Oh and Julia's finale for the entire inhabitants of Green Court was
coffee making! Dave came top of the class after the nurse made
allowances for him. You see, making cuppa's assessment is part of every
OT's repetoire but they don't usually ask you to do it using the
machine the nurses use to bring hot drinks round rather than a kettle!
Dave simply couldn't quite reach the button for hot water and had to
ask someone to press it for him. But he got brownie points when the
nurse said she'd take the cup to the table and he said he could do it
himself and did without spilling any.

I really don't want to know who came last in such a simple task!

Left and had to wait ages for a bus so long Evangelina came out and
waited with me and I was able to talk to her about how I'm feeling. She
told me it's okay to feel like I do, it's perfectly normal and only
proves I'm a Human being. She said she's seen partners and family
members suffer like this loads of time and I shouldn't feel guilty for
being less than perfect and more importantly I should make sure Dave
doesn't make me feel guilty (which he doesn't really, it's more the
bloody ridiculous sense of guilt my mum landed me with)

That made me feel a lot better and she said if I need someone to talk
to when I'm on the ward then find her and she'll make time to support
me and anyway if she isn't I can always talk to a member of staff I
trust. She's going to discreetly mention it to the nurses and told me
they've been waiting for me to hit a low because it happens to everyone
and I've done remarkably well so far but they knew it would happen!

And now I'm off to see Dave and I'm taking the biggest anti-depressant
you can imagine with me short of the Furballs!

Dave has a friend in Canada called Kelly, Kelly's sister is married to
Ronnie Hawkins stage manager and Ronnie is an old friend of her
parents. She had a fascinating childhood. Some of her earliest memories
are of "Uncle John" she still has letters and drawings he did for her
which have so much sentimental value she will never sell them even
through "Uncle John" was John Lennon. Now Dave regards Ronnie Hawkins
as a rock God and when he went on tour after his recovery from cancer,
Kelly snaffled one of the t-shirts for Dave that were only meant for
the band and crew. His pride and joy

Of course muggins here (and Dave was a muggins as well) when we were
waiting for the ambulance Dave insisted he couldn't go without a clean
t-shirt (The things you worry about) I took his Ronnie H shirt out of
the drawer for him to change into.

Alas for various reasons the first night at the hospital it got
completely ruined and I was advised to bin it. Almost as soon as Dave
was coherent he asked where it was and when I told him it was probably
incinerated, he was upset for ages.

So I mentioned (without ever telling Dave) what happened to Kelly and
she said she'd ask her sister but didn't hold out much hope. That was
the first week he was in hospital and it was never mentioned again (I'd
forgotten about it and assumed she had)

Last week she emailed me saying she was sending the DVD of "American
Splendour" to Dave as she felt bad she'd forgotten to send him a card
as she's a bit disorganised and would it play on our DVD player? I
replied he'd already seen the film but it is one of his favourites and
I wasn't sure but as we have 2 stand alone DVD players, 3 in the
computers and he has a portable at the hospital if she wanted to send
it fine.

It arrived last night, wrapped in not one but two replacements for his
beloved shirt! And a signed photo of Ronnie H saying "Get well soon
Dave and keep rockin'"

I'm just so touched by this! And finally I'm going to see him and I'm
going to bring something that will bring tears to his eyes (tears of
happiness for a change there's been plenty of the other kind)

Guess I'm back on the programme thanks to all of you who sent messages
of support, Tessa, Evangelina and Kelly!

I've just learnt a crucial lesson. Don't bottle things up, ask and
you'll find more help than you need

(And the Furballs have just pointed out I will be walking past the vets
and the bag of Hills S/D is very low I must say since trying Royal
Canin and Hill's as some people said- I have noticed an amazing
difference in the thickness and shine of their coats, they were
beautiful before but now...they are stunning!)

Lesley

Slave of the Stunning Fabulous Furballs

John F. Eldredge wrote:

Possible explanations for this include a reaction to the cold
medicine,

Not that I didn't take the stuff until I'd been feeling rough for half
an hour or so

dehydration producing a drop in blood pressure, and a
hypoglycemic episode (low blood sugar), since you mention lower down
that you hadn't eaten all day.

I think it's a combination of factors, I didn't sleep well (if at all)
Thursday and Friday night. On Saturdays and Sundays while I'm doing a
few bits I end up drinking a few cups of strong coffee and I don't
drink coffee in the week and when I looked back I'd had 4 cups on an
empty stomach, which was silly of me as I know that can make me queasy.
It was probably a rebound from the stress (some of it felt like a panic
attack). I hadn't eaten all day, which was silly (We were going to get
something to eat when I first went ill and I felt much better after
that salad!) (Oh and I had cramps, which can make any woman feel rough)

Anyway I went to bed. Couldn't sleep at first then went out like a
light but had some very strange dreams and woke up about 4am drenched
in sweat. Had a wash and drained some cranberry juice and took a Lemsip
capsule then went back to sleep. Woken up by Sarsi demanding
skritchies, drank more juice, gave skritchies and lay there, drinking
more juice (I am addicted to cranberry juice and don't really need any
excuse to drink it!)

Got up had a bath, more juice, some toast and have limited myself to 2
cups of coffee made with a level teaspoon of powder rather than a
heaped one (and I am not going to finish the second one). Didn't do
much housework just stuff I had to do (washing clothes for the week)

I don't feel too brilliant, tired and aching so it's flu and I just
hope it doesn't get worse as I have the dreaded brainstorming session
on Wednesday so going sick is not an option but I certainly don't feel
as bad as I did.

I am a type II diabetic, and know from
experience that low blood sugar can produce lightheadedness, sweating,
headache, pallor,

I wasn't really sweating jusr felt hot and cold. And the pallor faded
within 15 minutes of my suddenly feeling ill

If you keep having such symptoms, it would be a
good idea to have a doctor check your condition.

If it continues then I will but I think it's a one off caused by
stress, tiredness, too much caffeine and lack of food combined with the
flu. Dave had this and said it only lasts for 24 hours so I should
start to feel better in a couple of hours

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

Lesley wrote:

I hope you're feeling better today, that must have been worrying when you
nearly collapsed. It was good of Dave's mother to send some money for the
taxi but I suppose there's still a chance Dave could come home for xmas even
if he has to go back after.

BTW, everytime you talk about going for a fag it makes me smile, I'm sure
most Americans on the group have to think about that one. ;-)
--
Adrian (Owned by Snoopy and Bagheera)
Cats leave pawprints on your heart.
http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk

Adrian A wrote:

I hope you're feeling better today, that must have been worrying when you
nearly collapsed.

Not half! I just kept thinking "Not now-I can't be ill just now, who'll
feed the Furballs?"

It was good of Dave's mother to send some money for the
taxi but I suppose there's still a chance Dave could come home for xmas even
if he has to go back after.

There's always a chance...if not well at least I can get there without
too much effort- I checked with one of our local minicab offices and
they will be open Xmas Day since all the staff are Muslim and don't
regard Xmas as a special day (Beyond charging double fares that is!)


BTW, everytime you talk about going for a fag it makes me smile, I'm sure
most Americans on the group have to think about that one. ;-)

LOL!

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs

PS I saw an advert in a paper today and I am wondering if it might
help. It's for something called a "Dalesman Walking stick" it extends
to 4 feet 6 so it might be long enough for Dave to use and the handle
is at the top so he could hold it it's designed to help hill walkers
so its claimed to help stability on hill climbs I am wondering if
anyone has experience of it? I ripped the page out to show him and
maybe ask the other Lesley if it might help (Dave has a good sense of
balance standing and has often said if he could use a conventional
stick he'd be able to get about faster and better maybe even stairs) if
not him someone else...I think it's called thinking outside the box!

I missed the beginning of this thread, and after reading dozens of
messages I'm no nearer to knowing what condition Dave has actually
got. (For a while I thought it was clinical depression but it seems
from the last couple of postings that it's something neurological or
rheumatic). It may make a difference to what aids are appropriate.

I haven't needed a walking aid for disability except when I was on
crutches for a sprained ankle once, but I have done a fair bit of
hillwalking. I DO NOT like the folding or collapsible sticks of
the type you're talking about, they aren't as secure as a solid one.
The two types I prefer: (1) an old ski pole, as found thrown out
in somebody's rubbish or sold in a charity shop for a pound; (2)
a strong six-foot bamboo pole, originally used as the centre of a
roll of carpet - if you've seen Oriental pictures of monks and
peasants out walking you'll have seen how they're used. Which is
preferable depends on whether he'd rather grip a handle at the top
of the stick or grip the stick itself at a (variable) midpoint.
It won't exactly break the bank to try both.

I occasionally go into hillwalking shops to test out collapsible
sticks to see if they've improved. My test is quite simple: set
the stick up at the length I'd normally use it, hold it out in
front of me and then drop full-force on top of it with all my
weight. Every time, this leaves the stick irrecoverably jammed
in a partially collapsed state. Since it simply demonstrates
that these things are dangerous pieces of crap unfit for their
intended use and potentially capable of killing their users, I
have no qualms at all about wrecking them by doing this.

There are more specific things available from disability-aid shops,
like those sticks with four prongs at the bottom or Zimmer frames.

============== j-c ====== @ ====== purr . demon . co . uk ==============
Jack Campin: 11 Third St, Newtongrange EH22 4PU, Scotland | tel 0131 660 4760
http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/jack/ for CD-ROMs and free | fax 0870 0554 975
stuff: Scottish music, food intolerance, & Mac logic fonts | mob 07800 739 557

"Jack Campin - bogus address" wrote in message
...
PS I saw an advert in a paper today and I am wondering if it might
help. It's for something called a "Dalesman Walking stick" it extends
to 4 feet 6 so it might be long enough for Dave to use and the handle
is at the top so he could hold it it's designed to help hill walkers
so its claimed to help stability on hill climbs I am wondering if
anyone has experience of it? I ripped the page out to show him and
maybe ask the other Lesley if it might help (Dave has a good sense of
balance standing and has often said if he could use a conventional
stick he'd be able to get about faster and better maybe even stairs) if
not him someone else...I think it's called thinking outside the box!
07800 739 557

Lesley - My grandmother lived in the West Virginia mountains and used a pool
cue/stick as a sturdy walking stick. My father probably bought a cheap one
and maybe cut it off a bit - I seem to remember it came about to her
shoulder level. Way back then, they called what she had rheumatism, but
in any case, she had difficulty walking and the stick was a tremendous
help........wishing you and Dave the best...Lorna

John F. Eldredge wrote:

On 9 Dec 2006 17:10:32 -0800, "Lesley" wrote:

Then I felt dreadful...I was so unsteady when I had to go to the loo I
had to hang onto the rails to stop myself falling ...I kept feeling so
sick I went outside and retched but couldn't be sick...I felt I was
going to pass out...all I could do was sit and sip water even
Evangelina was keeping more of an eye on me than patients..I was
thirsty as Hell but didn;t want a glass of water as it was going
stright through and handling the loo was a problem since I could barely
stand..My heart was pounding and my head was splitting. Dave said I had
gone pale and was worried

Possible explanations for this include a reaction to the cold
medicine, dehydration producing a drop in blood pressure, and a
hypoglycemic episode (low blood sugar), since you mention lower down
that you hadn't eaten all day.

Having had mild hypoglycemic episodes myself (my blood sugar will
suddenly dip when I'm hungry, and I'll feel nauseous, lightheaded, weak,
shaky, and sometimes faint), I would have to agree with John that this
could be the reason you suddenly felt ill. Ironically, when a low-sugar
attack happens, I often have no desire for the one thing that would get
me out of it: food. But since I now recognize these symptoms, I will
force myself to eat a little bit, and that usually breaks the cycle.

I hope it didn't turn out to be the flu!

Purrs,
Joyce

Jack Campin - bogus address wrote:

I missed the beginning of this thread, and after reading dozens of
messages I'm no nearer to knowing what condition Dave has actually
got. (For a while I thought it was clinical depression but it seems
from the last couple of postings that it's something neurological or
rheumatic). It may make a difference to what aids are appropriate.

None of us are. He got an infection in his foot, which made walking
difficult, he got frustrated and depressed, which in turn made him
worse because he wouldn't get help still thinking he could find a way
round it (like he's found ways round everything else he's had to). His
foot got worse, to compensate for being unable to walk he started
dragging himself around....Despite me warning him about the
risks...then he got a UTI (Must stop feeding him dry food!) although by
this point, his foot was actually healing and he had started to make
some progress on moving. We both got the flu, I recovered, he ended up
delirious and that's when I called time and an ambulance. As a result
he's been in hospital for 11 weeks. As he was bedridden for the first
6 his legs wasted to nothing and he's having intensive physio to get
him back to normal

I haven't needed a walking aid for disability except when I was on
crutches for a sprained ankle once, but I have done a fair bit of
hillwalking. I DO NOT like the folding or collapsible sticks of
the type you're talking about, they aren't as secure as a solid one.
The two types I prefer: (1) an old ski pole, as found thrown out
in somebody's rubbish or sold in a charity shop for a pound; (2)
a strong six-foot bamboo pole, originally used as the centre of a
roll of carpet - if you've seen Oriental pictures of monks and
peasants out walking you'll have seen how they're used. Which is
preferable depends on whether he'd rather grip a handle at the top
of the stick or grip the stick itself at a (variable) midpoint.
It won't exactly break the bank to try both.

Thank you very much for this advice. Dave himself thought they might
not be stable (He did hillwalking when he was younger) but he's going
to ask the physio if they've considered whether any type of walking aid
not specifically for physio use would help


There are more specific things available from disability-aid shops,
like those sticks with four prongs at the bottom or Zimmer frames.

And there's the rub....Dave was born without either ulnar or the ulnar
side of his lower arm and hand. In reality his right hand is a thumb
attatched to a thin single bone. He had major surgery as a kid (one
reason he wouldn't seek medical help, he was simply terrified) to
enable him to have his right elbow in fixed flexion at 45degrees so he
can wear a cosmetic hand. His left arm flexes up at the elbow with
either no or about 5 degrees of movement, his left wrist deviates
downwards and has no movement and ends in a hand comprising an index
finger and a thumb. On a day to day level this looks much worse than it
is as he has a pinch grip with his left hand and he's compensated for
it to the extent that he can play guitar, play snooker, do all the
things people do without thinking about it or using special tools

But when it comes to rehab. He can't hold a Zimmer frame and stand
upright at the same time (He can use something called a pulpit frame
and he can even walk with this but its too large to get through doors)
and with only his left hand able to hold the rail he wouldn't be stable
or safe on one. Crutches aren't designed for him either. On the
standard one the handle is at right angles to the crutch and he can't
reach it. Walking sticks are too low (if he could have used any crutch
or stick we wouldn't be in this situation I was working in an
orthopaedic hospital until a week after he was admitted and could have
borrowed a pair), There is a frame where you can have your hands
strapped in and Dave immediately vetoed that one- he reckoned if the
frame tipped he's have no way to save himself and what he can't get
through to them is that if he broke his left wrist he'd be completely
helpless- his left wrist and his brain are the most important parts of
his body as far as he's concerned

Lesley

Slave of the Fabulous Furballs