RE: [QUAD-L] (Drinking in bed)-Typing??

[Joan Anglin]

Hi Marji

I do use DDN Speaking version 7, but not to navigate the computer, just type. My house is normally too loud for voice activation. I use a mouthstick (homemade), and my keyboard is set up on a wooden angled stand made from a 6"x 6" chunk of pine with velcro stapled to the angled part (found that a 45 degree slant worked best for me). My mouthstick holder is a coffee cup with some nonskid rubber glued to inside, glued with gorilla glue loosely so that it has bumps inside to keep the mouthstick down in the cup. The top of the stand is flat and my speakerphone in velcroed to it (bought a speakerphone that had the on/off button in front), and my mic is twist-emd to that.Tain't pretty, but its worked for 14 years! I can't stretch far enough to dial #s so I made sure the on/off button was in front.I drive closer to dial the phone. 
What does Byron drive, and what does he drive with? The one physical thing I did to strengthen my neck was to get rid of my neckrest on my wheelchair-I fought the pain, didn't know heads were so heavy, and am so glad 14 years later that I did it. Gives me more freedom and wiggle room.

 

Joan

Marjorie Fergerson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

Joan,

What do you use to navigate the computer?  My son has Dragon Naturally Speaking, but it's not this good.  Do you use a mouthstick?  Or some other software?  He gets so fustrated, he won't hardly use the computer.  He likes me to print out things or read them to him and he'll have me type Emails for him, but he needs to do this on his own more.  Sounds like you both have about the same range of movement.  We've tried different things for the drinking at night.  Mine and my husbands schedules are so that we are up and about between the two of us about 2-4 times a night after B's gone to bed.

We've found that also, that there's not too many around that have no arm movement at all.

Marji     Mom to Byron

Injured 4/27/03 @ age 24

C4/5 complete

Never give up........Hope!

-----Original Message-----
From: Joan Anglin [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Thursday, September 08, 2005 3:29 PM
To: Lana Baugh; quad-list@eskimo.com
Subject: RE: [QUAD-L] Drinking in bed

Thanks to all of you for such good ideas about my drinking in bed (I do the other type of drinking before I go to bed -- much more fun that way). My big problem was that I cannot turn my head side to side enough to grab hold of a straw, nor do I have any movement whatsoever below my shoulders. I had purchased a camelback and tried to get it mounted so that I can reach it, but as yet hadn't come up with any ideas. I had also purchased the jam straw, and ended up combining the two. The problem with the jam straw was that it would drip on me unless I blew all of the water back into the bottle, and I couldn't stabilize the flexibility of a camelback straw. So, to make a long story short, I took the mouthpiece off the camelback, and put it over the end of the jam straw. Now I can position the jam straw so that it is right before my mouth (I can lift my head up and reach forward an inch or so) and the camelback mouthpiece prevents it from dripping on me! One major problem solve! ! d. It has been so great to be able to drink during the night. Many many thanks for all the great suggestions. Now, any suggestions on how I can feed myself LOL? Just kidding. I even looked at the self feeders -- $2500 and not very neat at all. For someone who's had to buy all of their medical supplies and equipment for the last eight years, I sure wouldn't spend money on that. Now that I am 65 I have Medicare and that is fantastic for me. But I don't think they'd buy a self feeder.

This group has some great ideas, and as for the comments and agitated discussions, if I don't want to read them there's always the delete key. Keep up the great ideas and support for everybody else, most of us are fairly isolated in our environments. I go into Reno quite frequently, and over the 15 years that I have been a quad, I've only seen three or four others who were C4 or above. We did have a quad group for a while, but that dissolved 13 or 14 years ago. So this discussion group is my chance to hear how other quads cope with the same problems I am facing. We have a great CIL here in Reno, but their activities are usually about things I cannot do. And then of course transportation in the evenings is more difficult. Reno is very fortunate in that we have a great Citi lift service, for one dollar 65, from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. they will come to your door and deliver you to your destination. You may take as many rides during the week and weekends as you want to. After 7 p.m! ! . they have a limited budget, but they have contracted with a taxi company will pick you up and return you later for the same dollar 65.

Keep up the good work, and good humor.

Joan C4 complete October 1990

Lana will play it and get out of that when Baugh <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

Joan,

 

Have you investigated switches that could move the straw toward your mouth and then move it away. Some switches now are flat and some are as thin as cellophane and could lay next to your head on a pillow.  Gabe uses a lot of switches.

 

Lana,

 

 

---

From: Joan Anglin [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Sent: Saturday, September 03, 2005 10:12 PM
To: quad-list@eskimo.com
Subject: [QUAD-L] Drinking in bed

 

Hi everyone

I have a question, those of you like me, who cannot reach for a drink at night, what you do to stay hydrated throughout the night. I only have a PCA that comes in the morning for four hours, and a private PCA that comes for one hour to put me to bed at 9 p.m.. From 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. I am dependent on various people to give me a drink. And from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. I often get very thirsty. And I just bought a drink straw (J. A. M straw) for $47 hoping that it would solve the problem. Unfortunately I do not have enough movement to turn my head far enough so that I do not have to have the straw hanging straight down over my mouth, which means that it touches me whenever I moved my face -- rather annoying. It also has a very hard end which is not comfortable to grab hold of, and if I do take a drink I have to blow the water back up the straw so that it does not drip on my face. Do any of you have a! ! ny suggestions? I live alone with two handicapped guys that have been with me fo! r 25 years. They are very good at helping me out, but this drink problem has me stifled. Looking forward to some awesome answers. Joan