Tag: Cerebral Palsy

Time to see the physio

Well today’s the day I go for another appointment with my physio, and I’m pretty glad about it. If I’m being honest I feel like the muscles in my legs, especially around my knees and ankles have tightened up lately. I’m not a medical professional so I can’t say for sure that they are, but it will be nice to get her opinion on things.

I won’t be surprised if she agrees with me that my legs are getting tighter, but it’s still not something I’ll be happy to hear all the same.

While I’m at the hospital I’m going to pick my night splints back up too because I’m told that they’re ready for collection after I sent them off to have some walking grips put on the bottom. This means I’ll (hopefully) be able to wear them for longer periods without having to take them off and ask someone else to put them back on. I’m hoping that I’ll be able to take some pictures to put on here too.

That’s it for today, a short and sweet update. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that I have some interesting, and maybe exciting, things to tell you all about my physio session and my night splints next week.

Using the mircowave

When it comes to cooking and making food I am a big microwave user. I’ve talked many times before along with how I struggle to use the hob, and take things in and out of the oven. I try and use the microwave as much as I can because it’s so much easier and I worry less about falling over or dropping or burning myself than I do when I’m trying to  use the oven or a pan. I even cook pasta in it.

However, while I can use one without too much difficulty, cleaning one isn’t so easy. I can do this for myself, and I can take the plate out, wash it and put it back in okay, but cleaning the back of ours that we have at home is something I find a bit tricky.

There have been a couple of times that the door has almost hit me in the face while I’ve reaching in to clean the back of it. Trying to hold on to the counter so I feel more balanced and making sure the door doesn’t spring back on me with one hand while trying to wipe the inside of the microwave with the other isn’t always easy. Sometimes I struggle to reach all the way to the back too so the whole process can take a while, but I usually get there eventually and I just have to hope that my food is still warm by the time I’m done.

If there’s someone else around, they’ll often lend a hand to sort it all out, for which I’m always grateful, but I still always like to try and do as much as I can for myself.

In need of a rest

Anyone who knows me well will tell you I’m not much of a sleeper and never really have been, not even as a baby. I’m the kind of person who is usually at their most productive first thing in the morning. I like to get up early so that I can start crossing things off my to-do list as soon as possible.

However, just lately I think my body has been asking me to slow down and rest up a little. I’m far more sleepy than normal, and I’ve noticed it having an impact. Over the last couple of weeks walking has been taking me a lot more effort than normal. I think that I’ve been moving slower too and needing to take far more rest breaks than I would usually. I know that I am lucky to be able to do all of the things that I can do, but sometimes it’s hard not to get frustrated at myself when I can tell I’m not doing as well as normal.

I’m still trying to make sure that I keep up with walking and just take as many breaks as I need to. I’m hoping that if I try and not push myself too hard over the next week or so and get plenty of sleep it should pass and then things can get back to normal.  It’s times like these that the seat on the back of my walking frame comes in very handy.

Avoiding crowds

It’s safe to say that I’m not a fan of crowded places. It’s not the noise that bothers me as such, its more that I’m afraid of being knocked over or knocking someone else over with my walking frame or my wheelchair.

I use both buses and trains on a regular basis, and I always try my best to avoid using them in rush hour times. It often means that I sometimes have to make my homeward journey sooner or later than I would like, or arrive far earlier than I need to. This can be annoying sometimes, but I feel much more comfortable doing things that way.

Yesterday, I found myself in a busy train station just after 6pm. I thought things might have been a bit quieter by then, but there were still loads of people around. I followed my mum and the man who would be helping us onto the train with the ramp to the platform, but ended up just behind them because I couldn’t weave my way through the people going the opposite way quickly or easily.

My mum noticed what was going on and started walking at my side, stretching out her arms to stop people from walking into me if they hadn’t already spotted me and started moving out of the way. The man who worked at the train station also kept hanging back to make sure that we didn’t get separated.

In the past I’ve almost had people walk into me on lots of occasions and I’ve had to let out a yelp to let them know I’m there so that neither of us end up on the floor. If someone catches the back wheels of my walking frame, that can sometimes throw me slight of balance and make me wobble too, so I have to try and be aware of what’s going on behind me as well as in the front and at my sides.

It doesn’t bother me quite as much when I’m in my wheelchair because I’m already sitting down, but I still don’t find it pleasant and I’m sure whoever is pushing me at the time doesn’t either. That said; I have almost ended up with someone sitting on my knee a few times when they haven’t seen me coming.

Making decisions

Just lately I’ve found myself thinking about how my Cerebral Palsy impacts on some of even the smallest decisions that I make in everyday life. Often, I make these choices without really realising I’m doing it. They aren’t big, important, or life-altering, but they can make thing a whole lot easier.

Take buying shampoo and conditioner for example. I will always try and pick some that comes in smaller or lighter bottles because I find them easier to lift. I’ve dropped some of the bigger bottles on my feet in the shower before and it’s not nice.

I also try and avoid buying anything that’s too expensive because I have trouble keeping the shampoo or condition on my left hand before it even gets to my hair, so quite often it will just end up on the floor and I’ll have to start again. This can be frustrating at times.

My CP also sometimes has the deciding vote in whether or not I should buy that item of clothing that I’m drooling over in a shop because I look at how easy with would be for me to get on and off. I sometimes struggle with buttons and zippers. It could be the most beautiful dress that I’ve ever seen, but if it’s one that I wouldn’t be able to manage very easily, there’s a good chance I might not buy it.

I try to keep my CP in mind when I’m choosing where to go for a day out. If I know that I’m going to want to walk on this day out rather than take my wheelchair for whatever reason, I have to choose somewhere that is a manageable distance for me to walk around, preferably with lots of places that I can stop for a rest. Although, now I have a walking frame with a seat on the back, finding places to take a break is less of an issue.

This is just a short list and I could probably go on. These are just the first few things that came to mind.