Daily Living Blog

After The Stroke

March 16, 2011 on 11:54 am | In Articles, Resources | No Comments

Sarah woke up to the phone ringing. It was her brother, Mark, on the phone. Why was he calling at 4:30 in the morning? Had something happened? Her heart began to race as she reached for the phone.

“Sis, mom has had a stroke. We’re at the hospital right now. Things don’t look good.”

“I’m on my way,” Sarah said as she began grabbing things to get to the hospital.

The prognosis was not good. Their mother had a Ischemic stroke from an obstruction in her artery. Her left side was paralyzed. The nurses were focusing on getting her comfortable and hydrated while her doctor ran some other tests. She’d be in the hospital for a few days while they assessed the situation and decided on a treatment plan. There was a bit of concern because she’d suffered from diabetes and high blood pressure for the last several years which seemed to have been factors that led to the stroke.

“What is the next step?” Sarah asked her brother.

“I have no idea,” Mark muttered pensively.

Over 795,000 people suffer from a stroke each year. Stroke is the leading cause of serious, long-term disability in the United States. Sarah and Mark are just one of the many families caring for a loved one who has been affected by a stroke.

Their question was, “where do we go from here?” While the hospital and its staff make their recommendations for the patient, families are often left trying to figure out how to adjust to these new challenges. Often times the patient will have also have various mobility and accessibility issues that were not present before the stroke.

Just today, we at Homecare Suppliers received a call from a family whose mother had suffered a stroke. Their questions were very much similiar to that of Mark and Sarah.

“She has a two-story house, how will she navigate the stairs? Will she be in a wheelchair or be able to use a walker and if so, is there enough clearance in the house so she can get around? Who will get her mail for her and do the grocery shopping? How will she take a bath or shower? What will private insurance or medicare cover after a stroke? How much out of pocket expenses are we looking at?”

These are just a few of the questions we have been asked by loved ones. Sometimes, they are so overwhelmed by the circumstances and filled with concern that they forget to ask the doctor for recommendations. Othertimes, they get information overload from the hospital, the doctors, the rehabilitation centers and their support system as they face the next weeks and months. However, over time, their questions become more narrowed as they face each obstacle and issue.

To aid all the Mark and Sarah’s, the sons and daughters, of those affected by stroke and illness that limit mobility, there are thankfully numerous websites, books and materials available. The world wide web has over 7.3 million websites that touch on what to do when your loved one suffers a stroke.

And while we don’t want to add to that HUGE number of resources, we do want to make it a little simpler to get some of the answers to the questions we hear often. We are highlighting some invaluable resources that may help as you face the day-to-day affects of a stroke.

The American Heart Association has information to aid in understanding many aspects of a stroke as well as direction for caregivers including resources.
The Internet Stroke Center also provides additional information to understanding all aspects as well as a plethora of resource links to aid caregivers. This is a wonderful resource to keep in your favorites.
Care.com gives you some personal guidance on how to help your loved one as they face the affects of a stroke.
Homecare Suppliers, LLC Stairlifts - we can walk you through the process of purchasing and/or renting a stair lift for your loved one. Often times many people do not even know that there is a way to get up the stairs and resort to googling “help parent get up the stairs after stroke”. Or they try to find a chair lift – while stairlifts can be referred to as this – this often directs them to a liftchair which is a reclining chair that lifts the user up so they may stand. A stair lift is a lifting device that is attached to the stairs and allows the user to ride up the stairs.
Homecare Suppliers, LLC Bathlifts – There are many options available right now for aiding with bath and shower needs. Walgreens and CVS carry an affordable line of shower chairs. There is also the option of purchasing a bath lift. While a bathlift is more expensive than a shower chair, often times, due to physical challenges, the user needs something that will lift them down into the tub and allow them to remain stationary while the caregiver bathes them. In this case, a bathlift is ideal.
AgingCare.com has a some wonderful articles about assisting your parents with their finances.
Stroke Information.net also has some financial resources to aid loved ones after a stroke.

Of course, we always recommend that you check your area resources for support and assistance. Often times the Area Agency on Aging as well as AARP can assist with information and resources as you traverse through these new waters. Additionally, the local American Heart Association and/or Stroke Association may be able to assist you.

Homecare Suppliers, LLC is a nationwide provider of mobility and accessibility products. They are active contributors to the community providing awareness campaigns and resources. To find out more about them visit http://www.buyastairlift.com/ or call toll free 888-252-2205.

My Story – Step By Step

January 25, 2011 on 6:12 pm | In Articles, Feature Story - Daily Living, Seniors | 2 Comments

Homecare Suppliers, LLC is a nationwide home medical provider specializing in mobility products. Therefore, most of our articles on this blog are from our perspective as the provider of stair lifts, bath lifts and daily living accessibility products. However, as we enter into our sixth year in this industry, we felt we should share some of the stories of those who we’ve met who have been affected by mobility issues.

Thus, begins our newest series on our Daily Living Blog – “My Story”. In the next couple of months, we will be sharing individual snapshots into the lives of those who have been affected by mobility. We hope that you will not only see their struggles, but their character and their victories as they step out to living a life unlimited!

Patricia Wayman is 71 years old and lives in Enid, Oklahoma. She is currently recovering from a stroke.

For over 20 years Pat was very active in the real estate industry, having obtained both her real estate and broker’s licenses. She and her husband were also builders in between their other jobs, working evenings and weekends to build duplexes and homes. Pat was extremely active in every phase of the homes built, managing them from design to completion. She even participated in the physical aspects of building by assisting with hardscapes, landscaping and interior design. All the while, she and her husband supported and grew their blended family of 9 children.

By age 56, Pat was semi-retired. She and her husband moved out west to fulfill a dream – panning for gold. She thoroughly enjoyed her time there. She remembers climbing and exploring the mountains alone, venturing into many remote areas. This at times proved to be slightly dangerous, yet she overcame many a tricky situation as she pursued her love of finding unusual rocks, gold and cactus plants.

After their adventures living in Arizona and California, she and her husband returned to Oklahoma and built a home on Grand Lake, so they could fish and enjoy lakefront living. However, during that time, she suffered from Guillain-Barre Syndrome. She was 59 and gravely ill. It caused paralysis and many physical complications. She truly believes it was “through the grace of God, physical therapy and her own determination,” that she was able to survive. While, her flexibility was never the same and she walked more slowly, she continued to live an active lifestyle. She even became the primary caregiver of 3 very young grandchildren while their parents were away.

In August of 2006, at 66, Pat had a massive coronary heart attack. Again, she found herself fighting for her life. Despite the grave prognosis upon arriving at the hospital in Enid, Oklahoma, she survived a 5-bypass surgery. During the surgery, the doctors realized that the veins in her legs were not sufficient to complete the by-pass. They were forced to make some hard decisions including whether or not to amputate her right leg. She explains that the surgeons performed a “axillo-bilateral femoral graft using a specialized plastic tube that they ran down the right side, thus keeping her leg.” It was supposed to allow the blood to flow to her right foot, but would later prove to cause a lack of blood flow to her left foot and cause pain throughout her right leg.

During that time, she says, “I had intense pain from the incisions that went from my ankles to thigh as well as severe bed sores and a dropped toe.” She was in the hospital for almost 2 weeks before they moved her to a nursing home for an extended period of time. She then had physical therapy, wound care treatment and later home health visits.

But the battles did not end. In the fall of 2007, her dropped toe caused her to fall and break the humerus in her right arm. The doctors advised that because of her other health issues, it would be too dangerous to do surgery. Day by day with the help of physical therapy and her own diligence, she began to recover some mobility. With the aid of a walker, bathlift, bathroom stability devices and daily living products, Pat continued to live as active a lifestyle as possible. During her recovery, she would venture out to the grounds of the church behind her home to take walks – working up from a few steps to 200ft then 400ft until she was able to walk to the end of the street and back. Throughout this time she also continued to be a source of strength for her family. During the Holidays, she cooked a huge feast for everyone with all the trimmings – pressing through the pain in her arm and leg to continue with the family traditions.

“Every morning I hoped to get better,” she explained. “My good leg hurt like crazy, I had so many things that happened. But for my kids mainly was what I thought about. I always wanted to go on for them. Because they were really all I had. I never knew love except through them and God. Knowing that, I just had to get better.” Her healing was slow and arduous with several illnesses and injuries hindering her recovery.

In January, Patricia found herself doing what she always does, taking care of another. She ventured out to make a place for a stray momma cat and her kittens because she’d heard that extreme low temperatures were coming. In the cold of the evening she suffered a stroke, her bad leg sliding out from under her. Stunned, she found her leg twisted up beneath her and she was on the ground. She was freezing in her night clothes. She called out for help but no one heard. For over an hour she struggled to get up or get help. At that point she realized she was going to have to somehow force her body to move, knowing it would hurt beyond belief, she was finally able to pull herself up. “It was the grace of God that somehow helped me to get up and get out of the cold and get help,” she says.

Pat was taken to the hospital. She was informed that she had indeed suffered a stroke. The surgery that would be typically recommended in this type of situation, was determined to not be an option for her. Her surgeons informed her last week after their final tests that her carotid arteries were significantly blocked and that any surgery would be too dangerous at this point. She was released to go home.

She continues to have pain in her legs and now has limited mobility to the right side of her body including dexterity issues with her hand. “You go through the pain so long and you try everything in the world and nothing can help it. And then they tell you that you have Critical Limb Ischemia and there is nothing they can do. No operations. You just have to go on,” she states.

Today, Pat awoke knowing that she can and will go on in spite of the suffering that she endures. As we speak, she answers the door to greet her neighbor. She daily chooses to reach out to those who come into her life. She offers wisdom to her children when they call. She continues to feed the family of stray kittens that find their way to her door. Her daughter now checks in on her every day. Her neighbor ensures that she has what she needs. Her other children call and visit as often as possible. Pat takes it one day at a time, step by step!

“I pray every morning that I will never have another stroke,” she explains. “I don’t know if I will be here the next day or not. Half the time I’m scared and the other half the time I’m praying and I find peace.”

Patricia Wayman is just one of millions of Americans affected by mobility issues. While she is not able to do fully what she used to do, she understands she is blessed with what she can do today. She is able to live independently with the help of her family and the mobility devices she uses.

Homecare Suppliers, LLC is a nationwide provider of Home Medical Equipment. Our headquarters are in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. Our website is http://www.buyastairlift.com.

Camp Barnabas Reaches Across Barriers

June 8, 2010 on 12:57 pm | In Feature Story - Daily Living, Media/Articles | No Comments

What is in a name? Does it describe our personality, our character? When a parent chooses a name, is that baby already that person or do they grow into it? What about a label? Poisonous labels warn us to stay away. Sensitive skin labels affirm that anyone can use the product. Labels have the possibility to warn us, restrict us or release us.

There are names and labels throughout our society that are placed on things, places and individuals. Old, Geriatric, Disabled, Autistic, Handicap, Dementia are each words that label. They can be descriptive terms or defining terms. Each of these terms can be used to characterize part of a person’s identity. However, they do not define the whole person. The range of each label is vast, enormous and truly undefined. For example, “Old” can be someone further along in age than you (teenagers call their parents old) to someone who is the oldest living person.

However, often times we see that these labels are allowed to not just define but limit a person. Stereotypes are fixed on the recipient. These labels can become so defining that they mold everyone’s perspective to the negative and the impossible. This is especially true with children who have been diagnosed with a disability or are suffering from chronic illness. The diagnosis becomes the focus, the label and the limiter.

I had a conversation at the end of last summer with one of the founders of Camp Barnabas. Camp Barnabas is a summer camp that provides life-changing opportunities to people with special needs. Cyndi and Paul Teas, are the founders of Camp Barnabas in Purdy, Missouri. Cyndi explained that often those who attend camp consistently hear what they cannot do and are often labeled by their medical prognosis. She said that “many are hearing what the world is telling them – they don’t fit the norm.” But Cyndi pointed out that there are a lot of variations within the “Norm”.

Cyndi said that one of the most limiting factors for people with disabilities is attitude. “People’s attitude toward the child that then forms their attitude toward themselves.” She shared that it is rare for them to see a child so empowered that their disability does not hinder them, but in those cases the child is so much further along.

Camp Barnabas’ respects the difficulties and joys of parenting the special needs child. Their philosophy states “we strive to bring new experiences into these families. We seek to promote a sense of normalcy in the lives of children living with disease or disability. We recognize that disease and disability impact the whole family and we therefore minister to the sibling of a child with special needs by inviting them too to join in the camp experience.”

The camp experience is tailored for each group attending. Every activity is adapted to meet the needs of the campers. There are 9 terms and each term of camp is for specific groups based upon diagnosis including Developmentally Disabled, Physically Disabled, Autism, Hematology, Oncology, Burn Patients, Chronic Illnesses, Diabetes, Sickle Cell, Hemophilia, Amputees, Craniofacial Syndromes, Blind, Visually Impaired, Deaf, and Hard of Hearing. The age is from 7 years old and up.

There is a buddy counselor assigned to each camper for the entire week. The camp is structured so that each camper can successfully do the activities. They adapt everything, from the ropes course to games. Cyndi says, “We see a different way to do it – so that they are able to participate in every way. We don’t want them to sit on the side lines.” This philosophy is proving itself time again as campers state, “I never knew I could do that” and parents are in awe exclaiming “I didn’t know they could do this.”

For many of these young people, their diagnosis has completely limited their lifestyle and their identity. Cyndi says many of these kids haven’t been allowed to just be kids. But Camp Barnabas is that – a place where they can be celebrated for who they are and be a kid. “They need to know that God has a plan for their life. People keep making plans for their life based upon what they think they can do.”

Camp Barnabas’ success is measurable in many ways, including by the sheer number of campers that come back. 98% of the campers return year after year. Since their beginning in 1995 they have had over 10,000 campers. Children, youth, adults who have come through the gates of the camp to the tune of 150 volunteers cheering, calling their name and celebrating their life. These campers leave with an understanding that they can do anything, they just might not do it like someone else.

Camp Barnabas, the founders, the staff, the 1800 volunteers and the 10,000 campers and their families truly reflect Living Unlimited!

To find out more about their camp please visit their website at http://www.campbarnabas.org/. Or to make a donation or volunteer you can contact them at 417.476.2565.

Limitless Living On A Personal Level

December 23, 2009 on 12:44 pm | In Aging In Place | No Comments

As the Holiday seasons began, I had a sense of being slightly overburdened. Was it being the mother of 3 young children? Was my feeling related solely to the fact that I am a homeschool mom who also does freelance work pretty much full time? Maybe it was the added stress of the big project my husband is working on that required more of his time and less time to help us at home? Then there was the concern for my mother-in-law and her needs. While far away she’d been in need of more time to listen as she works through this first Christmas alone and disabled – and we were busily trying to get our “life” done so we could take time off to visit her during the Christmas break. Maybe it was the additional time it took to help loved ones who lives nearby but couldn’t manage some of their usual Holiday activities on their own? Perhaps, it was all of these things plus the general stress of the holidays – stress that we put on ourselves by committing to too many things and making things important that just aren’t.

Whatever caused the burn-out…it came. Last night, just 2 days before Christmas, I realized I’d failed miserably to get it all done. I sat analyzing the lack of sleep, irritability, messy house and a physically unfit body and mental attitude. It took a bit to get my perspective straight.

Then I realized that with over 37.3 million people over the age of 65 – there are a lot of people that are walking exactly what I have walked the last month. There are certified caregivers. And I am sure there are a lot of sandwich generation individuals caring for their young children and assisting their aging parents.

My recent experiences have caused me to look at what priorities are most important. I have the flexibility to say no to a lot of what I do. Some do not – as they are the only one available to care for an aging loved one. I am blessed that my mother is able to be very active still. Those I assist are for the most part able to take care of their basic necessities. And my mother-in-law is blessed with family that loves her and many live near her to take care of the daily needs, while we provide the ear to listen and the visits as much as we are able.

The question I asked myself yesterday was, “do I have my priorities right, so when things change and more of our time and resources are required , we will be ready?” I think this was a valid question for us now. I remember watching this play out in our home when I was in college – my 95 year old grandmother was no longer able to live on her own – my parents had to rearrange everything to care for her.

So, this morning I did what I always do. First I began to analyze my current walk and life. Second, I made a list and began researching how to incorporate changes into our life. Thus, here are some things I need to make priorities.
• Get physically fit and daily exercise: This serves many purposes including aiding us in not being physically exhausted by change in routines, activities and helps decrease stress. Additionally, it will serve as a model to both my children and my aging loved ones. If I’m making it a priority – maybe they will too.
• Stop over-committing! Prioritize what is vital in our daily life. Allow room for spur of the moment needs (like taking someone to the doctor).
• Communicate more with the rest of the family. Keeping each other updated and addressing care issues as they arise. With open lines of communication we can better assess who can do what if the need arises.
• Promote healthy living for every member of our family – from the youngest to the oldest.
• Stop & Smell the ROSES. What a blessing to spend time with my loved ones. They are here and such an important part of our lives. NEVER should they become an obligation or burden.

I guess that one could say that these are resolutions but not just for the New Year but from this day forward. Limitless Living is not just about those who are older or disabled – but all of us!!! So here is to a brand new season of Living Life Unlimited!