Little Helping Tips

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Learning to live with altered capacities can be challenging. But we don't have to re-invent the wheel every time. Our members want to share some of the little tips for daily living they have come up with.

• A few days ago I realised that my Microsoft Outlook had a reminder function, so
  I tested it out - you can set it so that at a certain time on a certain day it
  reminds you to do something...... It's pretty easy to use. (Iolanda)

• If you have difficulty being understood on the telephone, call your local
  telephone company. Many phone companies offer TDD phones free of charge.
  These phones are connected to a small keyboard. You call a special number and
  a trained operator reads the message and responses you send to the person on
  the other line. You can hear the other person talking to you as well. (Carolyn)

• The tips of the non-wheeled legs on walkers seem to wear down quickly. Take
  two tennis balls and make an X-cut in one end (you may need to have someone do
  this for you with a sharp pocket knife). Slide the ball over the walker tips.
  This also seems to make the walker glide easier on carpeted surfaces. (Carolyn)

• Having difficulty with your computer keyboard? If you are using Windows '95 or '98 you can customize the board. Go to Settings, click Control Panel, then the Accessibility Options and away you go. (Marty)

• Having difficulty remembering all the details of your conversations with
  doctors, therapists or other medical professionals? Take a small portable tape
  recorder with you. After the appointment, if you have questions about what
  exactly was said you can play back the tape. (Carolyn)
  
  

And a lot of people had suggestios for that very important subject of being able to summon help in a timely fashion:

• A small portable alarm can be worn by people who have difficulty communicating. One unit costs about $10 at Kmart. It requires one small 12v battery (included), is called "Key Alert" (Steve)
• We use a baby monitor at night. That way, if mom wakes up and needs help, she
  can call for it.
• My mom has a bicycle horn that she keeps near her bed. She has used this for 20 years, ever since her original largectomy made it difficult to yell for help. Unfortunately, she also uses the bicycle horn when she gets angry with something you've said!
• We found a system for my sister, Samantha, called Lifeline. As part of the Red
  Cross, basically, it is a button worn around the neck or on a wrist band which
  within 100 yards of a special telephone will activate several things.
  
  If Sam presses the button, and she does not reset the machine as a "false" or
  "test" three neighbors who have previously agreed to participate, get a phone
  call that my Sister needs help They will then go to Sam's house, and advise
  Lifeline if additional help is needed. If Lifeline does not hear from them,
  they will, as a final step, contact 911 in the Lake Tahoe Area.
  
  This system works well for us in that the "necklace" can be worn everywhere,
  even in the shower. This is a national program, and other than the set-up, runs
  about $50.00 per month. Other than making Samantha feel more comfortable about
  being alone in any one place, it also is reassuring for us in that if she needs
  help, the button is only a push away. This is definitely not a "ring bell for
  service" thing, but could be a lifesaver, should she take another fall, as she
  sometimes has as a result of the inherent dizziness associated with PCD.(Gerry)
  
  There is more information at:
  
  http://www.lifelinesys.com/
  
  or you can call them at (617) 679-1000 in Cambridge, Mass