A fall can be the worst thing to ever happen to you. It must not be allowed to happen. Many reading this have already tuned out, "I survived many falls, it wont happen to me, what is he on about .
I have known so many people who have fallen and broken a hip and my brother died from a fall. Humans are the only animal that can die by falling from a standing position. please think about that.
Parkinsons is bad enough without pileing on other health problems and for many a broken hip is inoperable and a life sentence of pain and immobility. Many can not even use a wheelchair afterwards .
If you have received warnings : lightheaded, dizzyness , falls of any kind, moments of lost awareness and you have PD than it is time to change your attitude and get serious, NO REALLY SERIOUSLY .
Vanity. I will look like a old codger with a wheeled walker. I am not ready yet. Buy one , (government assistance is available) Take it everywhere you go . When you get tired , sit on it. If there is a place you go that you can not take your walker then do not go there. A hiking trail through the forest is a wonderful thing but it can also be really stupid and regretful.
Install very secure hand holds every where in your house, garage and yard especially door ways and steps . Install rubber tiles on concrete floors like in your garage and handrail on stairs and steps and cushion floor tiles and carpet with underlay. Throw away all the loose mats and put rubber mats with suction cups in showers. Install lighting in dark corners and have your house inspected by a professional.
PwP say that even with the wheeled walker they still fall so get one that is wider and folds in the middle so you can get it in to the car and through narrow doors and situations. If you tend to fall over backwards get one that has wheels behind you. (they exist )
One women wrote that she falls so often now that she always wears knee pads and wrist pads and when she thinks she might fall she purposely drops to her knees. Others are wearing helmets and some will only walk with someone very close who can catch them .
I dont mean to preach but so many people are suffering and wishing and it will not help them now. They think that they are helpless and a burden on their family.
The saddest words in the English language "What might have been"
stay active, stay alive, be happy , to hell with how we look. People will start holding doors open for you .
People can be so stubborn, sad really. Did I make my point clear enough.
Written by
Gymsack
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Gymsack . Absolutely brilliant Public Service Announcement (PSA). Fall prevention saves lives.
Love your emphasis on fall proofing your own home to prevent or preempt falls in the first place and minimize the consequences if they do occur. I would go one step further and advocate for similar and adequate accommodations at public service establishments as well
Thanks, nice of you to be supportive. I think as the population gets older than public places will become safer places with a bit of bell ringing on our part.
So far , the information I have read indicates that spontaneous breaks are indeed a factor but the % of all hip breaks that are spontaneous is very low less than 15 to 20 % and Osteoporosis is involved.
The ads tout padded shorts for skiing. AT first I thought it silly because you're falling in snow. Then I remembered once while skiing I fell on my wallet and bruised my hip.
Figure skating as a sport has a lot of explaining to do. It is a sport that does not allow any safety padding or helmets or even warm clothing during competition . Imagine if we forced hockey players to not wear a helmet and knee or kidney pads or special gloves and to compete play in their underwear. It would probably bring a lot more people to he games but we could also do that by bringing lions to the stadium. One day the figure skaters will rebell like the Women's Beach Volleyball players did when they refused to wear bikinis during the play at the Olympic games. There is something sexist about having to wear ballerina costumes that have skin coloured components but not a padded area to be found except in practices.
Very good of you to keep hammering this very serious issue. As a PwP I know how terrible even a "simple" fall can be. Thank you!
For most folk - with PD or not - the decline to the grave is not a slow, steady descent but periods of stability abruptly ended with medical crises that give rise to very large drops in QofL, functioning, and physiological resilience.
When you reach a certain age, falls can absolutely constitute a crisis.
It's not just the initial physical damage. A stay in hospital can prove disastrous. The muscle wastage. The disruption of sleep from nightime noises and lights. The failure to meet complex nutritional and pharmaceutical needs. The emotional and cognitive upheaval.
I would love to be able to reverse my mum's dementia and PD... I can't do that but do move Heaven and Earth to avoid those crises that are, to a large extent, avoidable.
So, no falls, UTIs, faecal impactions, pressure sores. And falls is absolutely top of that list.
I agree with you 100%. I like to go bike riding outdoors & after 7 years with PD its time to wear a Bike helmet. If I walk backwards dragging something or pulling a Wagon, no matter how slow I go I fall. My sensible of Balance walking backwards does not exist.
"lightheaded, dizzyness" - If experienced when moving from sitting to standing position this is a sign of orthostatic hypotension - "OH". OH can cause fainting in the standing position which results in loss of consciousness and uncontrolled fall. OH can be treated and must not be ignored.
Brilliant Gymsack...really. I'm not sure I know anyone who falls as much as my husband, 0 to 10-15 a day. He wears kneepads all the time. He's true young onset active and fit normally biking or exercising every day and at 61 yrs he thankfully has not had any breaks.He has been recently to falls prevention with a jiu-jitsu trainer.....just brilliant. He learned to fall, to anticipate a fall, to try to stop a fall...uff now that is not easy but he did it all. As much as going to the knee immediately a fall was being felt works, at 6 ft 3" it was a long drop down and he couldn't drop into it, also stiffness. Its scary to deliberately take yourself down, but in the gym he did. He was awesome. The unfortunate thing, he CANNOT take it out of the gym as when he is outside too many things take his attention. Unless I am with him then prompted by me eg: stop, down, or i put my finger on his chest (yes amazingly). Then falls lessen. Its the most bizarre thing
A walker in the home would I'm sure help his forward tippytoes. But his spins are the worst, as r the backward most dangerous.
To end, we bought recently the Nushu X gen shoes from Switzerland to help with walking... We thought why not try to see if they help.
Great article, not preaching and so what if it was, sometimes pwp need a wake up call.. I wish you well.🐰
Yes they are expensive, the Pro Package 1650 euro which includes X Care which gives you a 2nd pair after 2 years free when you send them back is really good. The ability to track walking patterns and upload data to share information is really key we felt. You have to have an I Phone though which we didn't realise at the time so had to borrow one to download the program into the shoe. It was all very simple. If it had worked we would have bought one. But for falls prevention these shoes do not work for him. For someone else they may. The team at Magnes are really wonderful.
Overall they are a very comfortable fit, custom made to your foot. They are basically to help people better their walking patterns and walk more normally. The vibration works by initiating/triggering the step. If walking is a problem then I feel its definitely worth trying. The swing vibration may help to instruct a person to have a broader swing. So, the shoe can help encourage a more natural swinging motion as well.
My husband doesn't have a walking problem, he has a falls problem and it wasn't clear when we bought them that it wouldn't help. We tried straight line walking with the Nushu X shoes and then with his own shoes and his falls afterwards were still happening.
You have to try these things... it was a good experiment for us. We were able to return to them within the 30 days and get a refund less a %.
My major "malfunction" is freezing. It's so frustrating as I never know when, what time of day it is going to happen. I also have the shoes with sensors that throw out a laser, so when I have "Off times" I can practice in the house and get my step/gait pattern back to more normal. These shoes were also expensive..approx 1 ,000, and the company had a "grant" avail for 500.00 so that helped. Walk Path is the co. My meds for "off times" help. apomorphine..waiting for the 'Pump" to get to the US, neuro said approx by this Christmas??
Freezing is a difficult thing isn't it. Luckily my hubby doesn't seem to freeze, it's more sticky movements. Not sure that explains well. But its' really interesting how you can practice with the lasers. Wonderful there was a grant as well. I can't see Walk Path unfortunately on my phone. I don't have an Iphone and won't be buying one at this point. My husbands falls don't make any difference whether he is on or off unfortunately. If he is tired, for sure the falls are worse though. The apomorphine with it being an Agonist, his Neuro was against him using, because of impulse control issues that can occur as well as Nausea (can be helped with Tigan apparently).
Sorry it is Walk With Path, and I looked into "vibrating" insoles, just to try, 99.00 vs 1200. Vibrathotics. I am sure they won't be as nice and work as well, just a starting point. i also use a "vibrating" board that seems to loosen me up and get the body flowing. I think "vibration" helps.
Found it by searching online. It's an Apple product so I can't download. I actually do know the shoes with lasers on top now that I've seen them online. Saw them a while back, a bit like the vibrating insoles. They are quite different to the Swiss shoes which are very high tech with the software and multiple ways to change the vibration on different parts of your foot, depending on where your walking needs it. The company is a software company pre-dominantly and it was pretty darn innovative. I think for people with walking issues, not falls issues, they are brilliant.
It's great you get the vibration overall to help body flow. I think that's really important and the vibration on the foot also makes me think of Reflexology and trigger points, so I do wonder if there is a connection.
Thanks, Gymsack for your PSA. Very timely for me as I just had my first non tripping over something fall while drying myself off post shower. This fall did occur after pushing my limits by being out and about too long and not drinking enough water.I landed with my butt in the tub and my feet on the floor. there are multiple grab bars within reach but I called for my partner who pulled me up. Fortunately no injuries, just a bit of soreness in a few places. I just got a smart watch with fall detection and gps capability plus Alexa service but getting help after the fall is not as important as prevention. I have to accept my limitations and not try to push past my comfort zone especially with non PWP friends. I now keep a quad cane by the bed for those groggy nocturnal trips to the bathroom and wait at least 20 seconds before standing up. Also be super careful just before c/l dose. Biggest problem is my ego not wanting to announce to the world that I'm disabled if I use an assistive device in public. Thanks for the wake up call. You may have saved my life.
Lionore hi, sorry to hear you have falls, definitely a wicked thing for my husband as well. What is this Smart watch you have for Fall detection if you don't mind? Very interested if it's a watch that helps prevent falls or just makes note of the falls that happen.
Apple Watch. I’m still learning about its safety features. I don’t think it’s able for prevent falls. I just have to not over commit in social situations.
Good , a broken finger you can live with, I have one also. A broken hip can last forever and you will never walk again. People do not use the walkers when they should and instead they ride the ambulance while the walker remains unused in the garage. The reason I come across so strong on this subject is the number of people I liked who refused to listen and are now dead. One fall in church and life is changed forever .
Unfortunately the walker may not be enough, padding may also eventually be necessary in the end game. Imagine showing up at church or your club lunch , wearing a helmet and knee pads and padded shorts. Well it will be a lot more accepted when the Baby Boom is finished with this problem and it is going to happen. They will not miss their lunch because they look funny. Damn the torpedoes full speed ahead wearing any protective gear you want . Fast walking ? wear protection.
Good afternoon and a good topic to bring awareness to for sure! I would like to add however with regards to breaking a hip and living with that forever, you can not! My husband is a total joint surgeon. The issue is if you do fall and break a hip there is NO option besides a replacement. You can not live with a broken hip. So, def prevention is of key significance. Just a side note, John operates on many seniors with a varied degree of physical limitations. The recovery is not bad and often times seniors function better after having surgery to replace the joint. Not really so much PD patients because the issues there are neuro mobility related. My mom is 83 with PD 9 yrs. She broke her sacrum 1/1/23 and has not been fully mobile since. She had to heal naturally over many months which was a huge set back!
Her biggest issue is the stopped posture due to instability that has now developed into serious lumbar concerns. S1-L5 so basically her entire lower back is deteriorating. If she could do it over from day 1 of Pd symptoms, she says she would have focused on walking more and faster as well as upper torso strengthening and balance exercises. Not giving in…now she is weak and suffers from sarcopenia. We do therapy and stretching exercises but it seems to only persist. It’s a horrible scenario for pwp and heart breaking to feel so helpless watching those you love struggle. I pray everyday for new options new research and one day a complete cure!
Nice answer Johi - definitely agree with your Mum, focus on the strength building of upper torso and balance for postural instability. Certainly where my husbands issues come from. Hope she is doing ok.
Very soon, well perhaps now, people will start discussing on HU which type of Knee and elbow pads and helmets are best and if you should wear the hip pads under or over your shorts . The answer will be under your shorts so you can use your pockets and observers will just think it is an adult diaper anyway.
We need to ring some bells. Change some norms. Take over the world again because , those X generation kids ( our children ) and their children ( while they are very smart and beautiful ) are a bunch of spoiled wimps worried about how they look and what people think of them.
My husband has been wearing double black knee pads for years now in Summer he looks like a skateboarder 😄😜 It looks fine. In the end it protects his knees so he just doesn't care what he looks like. Shoulders and wrists are the other areas that take a hit with falls, but there is nothing much to help there....except learning to fall differently ( not so easy). He tried hip pads in shorts but they didn't help because basically he doesn't fall on his hips.
In Winter he has the pads under his trousers, doesn't make sense on the top.... finding trousers wide enough in the knee was an issue, but sorted now. So my trou these days have stove pipe legs 🤣🤣🐰 As long as it protects doesn't really matter what it is.
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