Help!


4mom

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Ok I know this is going to sound crazy being as I have taken care of my mom for over 3 years now, but we started having some problems. Maybe someone out there has also experienced this and has some suggestions.

 

My mom is quadraplegic and unable to adjust herself in bed. I turn her every 2 hours or sooner if she needs it. I did it religously for 2+ years even at night until we got the new bed for her. We bought a alternating pressure matress. I am told I don't need to turn her at night and this is one of the purposes of the bed, but she still wants moved once or twice on a good night, bad nights even more. The lack of sleep heas really worn me out and I don't ever feel like I get caught up. I stay tired all of the time. It just makes me feel lazy. Sorry to get off on that but the real problem is that her bottom is so sore. She really doesn't have a open wound, but it is more like it is peeling. She is in tears at times over it and her Dr. just put her back on hydrocodone to ease the pain. Her tailbone bothers her so bad. With the peeling it is on both sides of her bottom and it almost looks bruised. I know one of the problems is the way I move her. I am by myself 75% of the time so to move her or boost her up in bed I push her by her feet up in bed and then to turn her I pull her by the chuck from side to side whatever way she needs to face. I think it is friction that is causing the peeling. She never lays on her bottom except to be bathed. She does get up in her chair but not when her tailbone is really bothering her cause it puts all the pressure on the tailbone. She has a tilt in space chair but it still bothers her when she is in this much pain.

If anyone has any advice on a way to make her more comfortable or a better way for me to move her by myself I would love to try anything. I know you learn from trial and error but I can't think of any way to change it. When my husband is home from work he helps. I won't wake him at night cause he has to work all day. Hopefully someone has experienced this and found something that worked.

 

Thanks

Ruth

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Maybe you could get one of the foam pillows with a hole in the middle.. might take some of the pressure off her tail bone and buttocks.

 

Can you put her feet so the knees are bent, and her feet flat of the matteress and then your arms around her under her arms?

 

Do you have any type of a lift? you may ask the home health store about renting a lift to help you. Or using the cushion with the hole and a foam wedge for her back. they also have wedges to put under the legs.

 

 

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Hi Ruth!

 

Sorry to hear of your problems but first of all what a good soul you are for caring for your Mom. You are such a loving daughter and I'm sure she appreciates your undying love...you are to be admired.

 

I am a survivor so I don't have the experience like the caregivers here do and I am sure they will respond to you.

 

However, when I was in the hospital and rehab, I always had a bed pad that I laid directly on. This is what I heard the staff call it and it was a square in size maybe 35 x 35 or smaller) and was not the full length of my body. It went directly under my bottom, hips, lower back and the top half of my legs. I assumed this pad was in case I had an accident and it was part of the bed accessories. But I was not incontinent and had control of my plumbing so I then figured it was put there for extra padding..... whether I was up during the day laying on top of the comforter or under the blankets at night, they always put this pad directly under me.

 

The side directly under me was like soft and cotton, much like the side of the blanket you put against your skin. The other side was more slick, sort of like taffeta (best way I can describe). I realized this pad was really not for accidents but to help staff pull you up or down in bed. The taffeta side made it easier to slide the body and it saved a patient from being pulled by the arms/legs or trunk. I noticed every bed had this. It really help the female nurses in moving me up and down if I needed to be.

 

Rehab gave me one to take home but I didn't really need it so I use it at first as extra padding on my wheelchair seat (it was folded where the soft side was directly under me and on the seat, the other side would be to slippery. I was told by staff that they do sell these pads at medical supply stores but you can also call or inquire about them at your local hospital/rehab where you might be able to acquire one. Also if you have a visiting nurses association you might call them. When I had my daughter and a visiting nurse came to check up on me, I noticed the nurse brought these pads with her to lay on my bed to check me and the baby.

 

I think this pad would help you pull your Mother up and down without shoving her by her feet or arms. And you wouldn't have to bother your husband too much especially if she is not a heavy person. Again, they are called bed pads and you should check it out and see if it would help you, I think it would. In rehab I got along great with the staff and they gave me an air mattress at no charge, I didn't need one but boy! did it feel good. It would compensate every move I made and it felt like being on air. I remember the sides would plump up and cushion again my body..it was great. the mattress stayed plugged in, I guess it was called an electric air mattress and it made a slight humming nose but it was actually soothing and put me to sleep alot. I slept very well on this air mattress..it was heaven plus these air mattresses were used mainly for patients who could not move themselves to prevent and lesson pain, pressure and bed sores. I hope this helps and good luck to you, wishing you the best and Bonnie had great tips regarding the wedges, foam pillows and knee bent. When she is laying on her side, putting a pillow between the knees helps alleviate pressure of the tail bone, hips and lower back. I have done this and seen hospital staff do it to other patients as well as myself. They do sell those full-body contour pillows

(P.S. the pads are washable)

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ruth,

 

i'm sure what you've been dealing with hasn't been easy, but you are indeed an angel for being there to care for your mother. bonnie and phoenix (shirley) have offered some good suggestions that would be helpful. i'm sure you will see more posts from caregivers and survivors with similar suggestions. all the best and please let us know how you're doing!

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  • Founder and Owner

Ruth, I know that this probably sounds strange but it has worked for me. I lay on my side, when I have to, without underwear. This allows my butt to get maximum air exposure. After lying on my side for about 4 hours I lay very flat on my back for a while. I rotate like this until my butt recovers.

 

The other thing I recommend is to not slide her. I don't know what else you can do but obviously that friction is the problem. Could you talk to your doctor about it and have an experienced nurse show you other options. My wife rarely has to slide me so this makes me think that she is doing something to not cause the friction. Hopefully, it's something that can be easily remedied.

 

You are welcome to call my wife, if you like. Let me know.

 

God Bless, I will pray for sleep for you! :tired:

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hi ruth. your mother is very lucky to have you caring for her. i know it is not an easy job. when i used to work in nursing homes we had what was called a sheepskin that the patients laid on and it stretched across the bed like phoenix's bed pad but the sheepskin was very soft on one side and was washable it didnt cause any irriration to the skin. it also enabled you to pull the patient up in bed. pillows and wedges help under her kness as the others have said. are her sheets soft enough to help with the friction? i hope you can find a solution soon so you can get the rest you need. the pillow with the hole in it is great for when she sits in her chair. good luck and god bless you and your mother.

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You've got plenty of great replies, here's my :2cents: :

 

I have had a brainstem stroke that has left me unable to help much by moving around in the bed. I haven't had any skin breakdowns yet and we are hoping that won't happen. On my tail we use a creme that toughens the skin. I almost always lay on my back, but like to lay on my stomach too.

 

Anyway, I have a gaitbelt that I wear (unhooked) under me when I sleep, no I can't feel it and I have complete feeling. My bed is an adjustable bed because I have to sleep kinda on an incline because of a breathing problem. So when my wife has to scoot me up in bed (I'm 6'1'' and about 270, she's a smallish 5'2'') she hooks my belt around my chest, climbs on the bed, standing up she faces me, and while looking in the direction of my head lifts with her legs and proceeds to move me up in the bed.

 

Before she does this, she raises the foot of my bed to help her with gravity. She swears that this is easy on her back because of the way she doesn't 'tug' on me, really all she does is straighten her knees and then move me in the direction she wishes with her arms.

 

Hope these ideas help.

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Hi all,

 

I too had a brainstem stroke but my right side is affected. I sleep in like a bunk bed which has a double below and a single on top and a metal frame. Even though my balance is badly affected i can use my good arm to pull me up and turn me from side to side using the frame of the upper bed.

 

My rear end sometimes gets sore but the only thing i have found that works is "Drapolene" baby cream, i hope this helps

 

Mike

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  • 1 month later...

Thanks so much for everyone's wonderful advice. I have been so busy lately. My dad got sick and was in the hospital so I had both parents sick. It was crazy going from one parent in a hospital bed to the next. Trying to line up someone to come sit with my mom so I could go be with my dad. Ya know it is funny cause when someone is sick they just don't seem to be able to remember what the doctors say so with my dad I needed to be there when the Dr. came in and boy do they take thier sweet time.

We have made some progress with my mom's bottom. I put a big garbage bag under her sheet that we use to turn her and it helps. She slides so much easier. Her bottom has started to heal. She saw the Dr. today and she reffered her to a dermatologist. He looked at it and said it is a stage 2 pressure ulcer. He said that it is because it is right under her bone and would not be caused from me sliding her to move her. He said there was a problem there to begin with and that the friction obviously did not help once the breakdown started. He is also sending her to a wound healing clinic next week so we will see what happens with that. I will let you guys know what happens maybe they will have some useful ideas.

 

Thanks

Ruth

 

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hi ruth, glad to hear about you getting some help with your mom's problem. sorry to hear about your dad though. i hope he is better and back home soon. as bonnie said, you need to take care of you too, i know you're thinking where will you find the time, you just have to make time somehow. i wish you and your mom the best with her treatment for her wound.

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  • 1 month later...

upadate time! Ok mom went to the wound healing clinic and I must say I realy wasn't to impressed. I wasn't real impressed because all they did was clean it and take pictures and they wanted het to come back every week. I don't see the point personally. They seemed to scrub to hard and take all the new healing skin off and then she was in so much pain for the next several days. They did however make a couple really good suggestions. There is a cream that is sold over the counter at most drugstores but you have to ask the pharmasist for it. It is called calmoseptine cream. It has really helped. They did end up saying that yes it is caused by the way I move her. They called it a pressure ulcer with sheering. The other thing that the nurse suggested is this thing called a slip pad. They say you are able to move a 400lb. person with one person. Boosting or repositioning. It says it takes the friction away. I had a hard time finding the one they recomended but did find one called mooveez. They call thiers a slider sheet. I think it is the same principal just a different name. I ordered it last week. I will let everyone know how it works when we get it. This sounds like a god send product. I can't wait to try it. I will let everyone know.

 

Ruth

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thats good news ruth, i hope it will be what you need for your mom. is your dad doing better and back home now? take care of yourself too. bless you for all that you do to help your parents.

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hi ruth

i am a quad and for 13 years never had a bed sore but almost did several time. i use a body pillow and if my nurse saw a black & blue mark that ment a bed sore was on its way. heres my ruiteen, stay on my lift for 30 min. put me in front of tv to watch news. meanwhile the infected area got a rub down applying a & d ontment. the rub cerculed fresh blood the a & d -rotected new skin healing and my lift let area air out. my lift not complicated. i am 6'2" waieghing in at 280. my lift is designed for heavy people and lift with ease. try going to a skin specilist for treatment.

 

when you turn a quad you ask a theripist how to move a person. i put one leg on top of other and both arm facing the turn have hea top of her head facing you. by doing all this takes well for me 100 pounds off when turning 280 pounds now turn her. i wish i had that url that has diagrams for you. its way more understanding.

 

far as moving goes head of bed up to pull down and to head of bed down with foot of bed up to slide up. use that gadget u ordered to pull with.

 

if you want more details i can work on getting it

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