The Flip Side-Riding in a Car

My son, keep your father's command, And do not forsake the law of your mother. Proverbs 6:20 NKJV

It wasn't that long ago, I was helping my dad, as his caregiver, get him into the car. It's wasn't easy getting his body to bend in the right places to fit into a car. Parkinson's Disease can be like that, making the body rigid just where it needs to bend. Now, that I've broken my heel and was told I couldn't walk for three months, I became the caregivee and my husband was trying to get me into the car.

 At first, the Orthopedist Doctor wanted me to sit in the backseat on trips of an hour or more. I was supposed to support my leg with the cast on several pillows. Initially, I was told to keep my injured foot higher than my heart. I think that was so I didn't get any blood clots. The tricky part was getting a seatbelt around me. I tried to extend the seatbelt as far as I could, so it could go around at least part of me.

 Once the Orthopedic Doctor told me I could ride in the front seat, I had some new issues to handle. How could I get my cast and, later, my aircast into the car and in the spot under the glove compartment. It was of special concern if we were riding in my husband's car, because there was even less leg room, because of something that looked like air conditioning tubing.

 I watched all types of YouTube videos about getting into the car with a cast. God always knows our needs and led me to one that made it possible. They used material to make a sling to put your casted leg in, so you could guide your leg to the correct place as you held each end of the material and directed it into position.

 I found a way that worked even better for me, based on that YouTube video. I used an old, stained pair of stretch pants. I would put the V part of the pants where the two pant legs connect right under my cast. I could hold on to each of the pant legs with a different hand and guide my leg in my make-shift sling up and over and down into the narrow spot under the glove compartment. Fortunately, the pants rolled up and didn't take up much room, so I could keep them in my car.

 Additionally, I found that I liked having a little mini pillow to rest my casted foot on when I was sitting in the front seat. I found that when I wrapped the little mini pillow in a plastic grocery bag and knotted it, I didn't have to worry about getting the little mini pillow dirty when I put my foot on it.
Since these are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my experience, they may not reflect the whole meaning of the verse.

I'm including You Tube Video clips on caregiving that I found interesting, inspirational, or might be helpful to others, but am not responsible for the content in the videos. Always check first with a physician before trying any suggestions mentioned.

Caregiving Video: Healthy Diet for Older People
By: HealthyBalancedDiet via You Tube


The Flip Side- The Power of Thank You!

 A wise son makes a glad father, But a foolish son is the grief of his mother. Proverbs 10:1 NKJV 

I  have been my dad's caregiver for the last four years. The first year he lived with us, I was his full-time caregiver. After that, the doctor's said Dad needed more medical care than I could provide. Now, Dad resides in a nice Veteran's Home where he has the skilled nursing services the doctors wanted him to have for his Parkinson's Disease and frequent bouts of pneumonia. Now, I just oversee his care and visit Dad weekly.
Things have somewhat flipped in the last six months. Now, my husband is my caregiver because I broke my heel and was told I couldn't walk on it for three months. My wonderful husband has been doing the cleaning, the cooking, the laundry and picking up the grankiddos from school. 

 Although he's been very patient, I know from all my A Christian Caregiver research, caregivers can easily become overwhelmed and experience burnout. Knowing this, I decided that I needed to tell my husband thank you, frequently.

 I never dreamed of how much help I would need from getting me water refills to bringing me clean underwear. We tried to use water bottles, so he could refill several at a time and I used a small rolling bag to put my clean clothes in, which helped limit some of my requests for assistance. I tried to thank him every time he did something for me, but there were times when I forgot to thank him. During those times, I got the impression he felt unappreciated for all he did for me. Those times would reinforce my resolve to make sure I thanked him more consistently. At times, it feels you are saying thank you, thank you, thank you every five minutes of the day, but you don't want your caregiver to feel unappreciated.

 Additionally, I needed to remind him periodically of how blessed I feel to have such a supportive husband to help me through all of this. 

Since these are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my experience, they may not reflect the whole meaning of the verse.

I'm including You Tube Video clips on caregiving that I found interesting, inspirational, or might be helpful to others, but am not responsible for the content in the videos. Always check first with a physician before trying any suggestions mentioned.

Caregiving Video: The Voice of the Healthy Aging
By: Dr. Bernice Harper, Gladys Lanio, Mitra & Dr. Ramaswamy Rangaragan, Todd Lewers, Dr. Samuel & Bernice DeShay, Roslyn Goldstein, Dr. Yann King, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion via You Tube

The Flip side- Bathing

He who gathers in summer is a wise son; He who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame. Proverbs 10:5 NKJV

I was so blessed that my Dad's shower bench was still here from when I was his full-time caregiver. Dad now resides in a wonderful Veteran's Home where he can get the skilled nursing he needs for his Parkinson's Disease and frequent bouts of pneumonia. I, on the other hand, have become a caregivee as my husband takes care of me after I broke my heel and couldn't walk for three months.

 The shower bench is wonderful. It has a big, long plastic bench seat with legs that attach to it. Ours originally cost about $100 from a discount store. Two of the legs are in the bathtub on the opposite side of the tub. Two of the legs are on the outside of the tub touching your bathroom floor. 

 Make sure you have another adult assist you the first time you do this. That way, you can make sure you're safe and they can get any forgotten items such as a wash cloth.

 You back up to the part of the shower bench that sticks out of the tub. When you can feel it on the back of your thighs, you ease yourself down onto the bench holding onto the bench's hand grip for added support. Once you are seated, lift your legs one at a time into the tub or you can assist them with a durable piece of material you use as a sling to lift them and move them individually where you want them. (I was only able to put my non-injured leg in the tub, because my injured foot was in a cast. I tried putting it in a plastic bag a couple of times when we stayed in a hotel, but usually left the leg out of the shower at home, trying to tuck some of the shower curtain under my thigh, so I didn't get the bathroom floor so wet.)

 We were were blessed to have a dual shower system which you can buy at most stores that carry hardware supplies. If you turn the dial in one direction, you can use the traditional shower head to take a shower and wash your hair. I, on the other hand, turned the dial to use the hand held portion of the dual shower system. I turned the water on to get it to a comfortable temperature. I let the hose with the showerhead dangle down by the drain while lathering up my hair. Then, I would reach my hand out in front of me. When I felt the hose, would pull it up a little, and take the hand held shower head in my hand to rinse my hair. You would use the same process for the rest of your bathing.

 After bathing, you remove your legs from inside the tub to the outside in a similar manner to how you got them into the tub. Then, you take your nearby towel to clean up any water that may have gone onto your floor during or after your shower, so you don't slip. You move yourself from sitting on the edge of the outside of the bench to your mobility device: wheel chair, walker, crutches, transport chair etc. I used it to transition onto the toilet where I could finish drying and dress myself. Note: In between showers, I would take a sponge bath to wash down, as needed.

Since these are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my experience, they may not reflect the whole meaning of the verse.

I'm including You Tube Video clips on caregiving that I found interesting, inspirational, or might be helpful to others, but am not responsible for the content in the videos. Always check first with a physician before trying any suggestions mentioned.

Caregiving Video: Health Promotion and Wellness for the Elderly
By: Aging and Disability Resources via You Tube

The Flip-Side-Appreciating Blessings

A wise son heeds his father's instruction, But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke. Proverbs 13:1 NKJV

An important thing now that my life has temporarily changed, since I had broken my heel and couldn't walk for 90 days, is to appreciate the  many blessings that Christ has given me during this time. First of all, my injury with falling down four stairs could have been so much worse. I could have broken my hip or worse and could have needed surgery. I could have been in extreme pain, but I don't handle pain meds well, so I prayed and asked God to handle the pain and He has and continues to. I did take Regular Strength Tylenol for about five days, as needed plus chopped ginger root for inflamation.

 Another of my many blessings, my dad's medical equipment was still at our house and made life so much easier, because everything was good-to-go! I had use of my dad's transport chair, which is something like a light weight wheelchair someone else uses to push you. We primarily used the transport chair for my husband to push me around the Veteran Home halls to go see my dad each week. That brings me to a Major blessing, my husband! He has mostly  very graciously done all the cooking, cleaning, laundry and picking up the grandkiddos from school- which is another major blessing!

 Back to the medical equipment. My dad's shower bench was here plus two different walkers, a rollator walker with four large wheels, and a beside commode, which we call a porta-potty. Additionally, some extended family had installed lots of bars in the shower for my dad, which worked out being very helpful for me. We had also put a hand held or regular shower head in that bathroom, which allows me some option, should I need them.

 I've been blessed with family that has gone that extra mile to make things easier on me. The list of blessings goes on and on. If you're really prayerful about it, you can see how Christ has provided so many blessings in our lives!

Since these are examples of how I've applied these Bible verses to my experience, they may not reflect the whole meaning of the verse.

I'm including You Tube Video clips on caregiving that I found interesting, inspirational, or might be helpful to others, but am not responsible for the content in the videos. Always check first with a physician before trying any suggestions mentioned.

Caregiving Video: Healthy Aging for Seniors
By: Megan Wallace, Bauni Mackay, Dennie Hycha, AHS Channel, via You Tube 

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