Lucinda I am a C4 complete. October 1990, fell off scaffolding in my barn. Shoulder shrug is it. I have had to have three tracheotomies, but fortunately for me I was able to get off of each trach within a couple of weeks.
I have an omega trac wheelchair, very powerful even if it is not very fast, and have not tipped myself over since I bought it. It has given me a very confident and safe lifestyle, especially now that I have a German shepherd puppy-now eight months who is already helping me out. She can open most doors, is very calm in stores, loves children and will sit to shake hands with them without command, and of course she is a great conversation opening. I have always been an independent person, and really enjoy getting out by myself. With my cell phone, Elfie my German shepherd, and my omega trac Im good to go. We have joined a German shepherd Schaeferhunde Gruppe (in a former life I trained German shepherds in Germany, and I am very much looking forward to taking Elfie through her SchH1 degree in a couple of years. However, I will be the first one to admit that it is a whole bunch more difficult training a dog when you cannot use your arms. She has had to learn to step up on my wheelchair to get a treat from my mouth. I am now working with the silent whistle as my whistle left me when I broke my neck. J Sorry to go on. I am just very excited about all the things that seem to be happening in my life. I'll be 70 next April, and we are trying very hard to get me certified to go scuba diving in Honduras. Everyone around me scuba dives, and now I figure it's my turn. Have a great day. Joan From: LTeasley [mailto:ljtbe...@yahoo.com] Sent: Sunday, December 21, 2008 2:12 PM To: quad-list@eskimo.com Subject: RE: [QUAD-L] Exercise Joan, what level is your injury? using a chin control suggests pretty high, but with your prior talk of going around the property, i thought somewhat low. regardless, it sounds courageous. lucinda c45 complete? july 31, '05 mpls., mn --- On Sun, 12/21/08, Joan Anglin <poaj...@sbcglobal.net> wrote: From: Joan Anglin <poaj...@sbcglobal.net> Subject: RE: [QUAD-L] Exercise To: "'Merrill'" <merril...@cox.net>, quad-list@eskimo.com Date: Sunday, December 21, 2008, 12:00 PM Ouch, the suspender idea could be very uncomfortable? Of course, my solution for the quad gut is a bodysuit, which is not uncomfortable for me, but is difficult for my attendants. I?ve gotten so used to it that I feel uncomfortable without it. And I agree with Lori, that one of the biggest problems it is my butt spreading sideways. LOLI still wear a size 10, but I definitely hang over the 16 inch cushion. Oh well, it could be worse. As far as exercise, my greatest achievement is successfully blowing the hair out of my eyes. Seriously, although I cannot do more than a shoulder shrug, I really bounce myself around just going around the property. So I guess that would qualify as exercise. I still do shoulder exercises with my arm in a sling suspended from the ceiling, I?ve never gotten any return, but my neck and shoulder muscles are still quite strong. I do not use a headrest, since I use a chin control I did not want to be smacked in the mouth by a chin controller and on the back of the head by a headrest, and that has helped to keep my neck muscles strong. Those of you in the northeast states stay warm. It?s been cold here, but for the most part sunny, with highs in the low twenties. We finally got snow several days ago, and it is still hanging around, but nothing like the northeast states-thank goodness. I hope everybody has a great day Joan No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG - http://www.avg.com Version: 8.0.176 / Virus Database: 270.9.19/1860 - Release Date: 12/21/2008 3:08 PM
