Gadgets

Kitchen Play Station!

This is my multifunctional Kitchen "Play Station". I purchased this so I could feel of more value and be of some use in the kitchen.
Items such as these can be purchased from any reputable supplier of goods for the disabled.
After two years I still have not got a functioning right hand, so this gives me some kind of independence.


This multi-functional aid is ideal to provide assistance with everyday tasks.
The vice-like contraption that sits in the middle of the board opens up to hold any object in place: bowl, tin, vegetables or bread.

The removable slicer and grater unit has a protective cover when it is not in use. I find the slicer particularly good to peel potatoes. At the right hand side of the board are removable spikes, (they are inverted when not in use), and these can be used to secure fruit or vegetables for peeling, slicing or chopping. The L-shaped corner is very useful to keep bread or toast in place when it needs buttering!

The black coloured piece of equipment is a left handed tin opener. Yes, there is something to aid every function and to make one feel some sense of purpose.

Shopping Bag

Before my hand was more able to do things, however small, I used to get really frustrated at being able to go shopping and then not to be able to carry purchases home. Initially, I would purchase a newspaper and one or two items and then would find that I could not juggle carrier bags, a walking stick and have my bus fare ready. One of my son's bought the shoulder bag, as pictured, which immediately gave me greater flexibility with purchases, but I now have to be mindful of how much I buy due to the problem of carrying too much weight which can unbalance me.

Botox Injections - 22nd September 2011

I have always worked as hard as I possibly can to aid my recovery, sometimes exercising when I know that I am not really "on top form".
I have come a long way on my journey but could not have achieved this without my husband, family and friends but most of all through the investment and time which the hospital has afforded me.

I have seen a Consultant twice to discuss and be reviewed for Botox injections, something that up until September 22nd did not seem to be appropriate. However, having now come to a slight impasse, it was agreed that two injections into my lower arm at this time could now be beneficial.

I was advised that a low dosage would be given initially and not to be disheartened if no real change was observed. The optimum time to begin any exercises with the Dynamic splint would be around a week to ten days, when the fingers should be in a relaxed state. The injections give a window of opportunity to work on straightening the fingers and so reduce the "clawing".

Around five days after the injections my arm did begin to feel relaxed and my fingers also seemed to loosen up, so feeling more comfortable. I collected the splint from hospital and began the work - bending my fingers and letting them pull back and relax. After another week I returned to see my Physio who could check any progress and give further instruction on any other ways of exercising with the splint. She seemed pleased at the initial progress and I cannot thank her enough for guiding me through my recovery to date.

I return to the Botox clinic in December, but up until then I will strive to achieve this next part of my recovery.

The Dynamic splint at first was difficult to put on, my hand definitely did not like the idea and offered as much resistance as it could. I found that the only way to succeed was to do finger and arm exercises before to stop everything tensing up, now thankfully it has become more used to it and now this is no longer necessary.
Once I have got the thumb into position I put on the leather cuffs at the top digit of the fingers and then fasten the three straps around my arm and hand. It does not take long for the fingers to stretch out and relax and then I can begin exercising.

As you can see from the photographs on the previous entry the splint is spring loaded and so you have to work hard at the resistance that this creates. One exercise is to bend the fingers over and then pull them back until they are straightened out and the other is to try and separate the fingers out whilst maintaining them in a horizontal position - this I find quite difficult. I wear this splint to "work out" 45minutes twice a day.

I have also come to realise that when putting on my Resting splint at night time my hand no longer tenses or the fingers claw, it is much easier to fit - another definite advantage.

Taking everything into consideration at this particular moment in time, I am optimistic about these latest developments and also of the merits of Botox.

Splints

Dynamic Splint

Used in conjunction with Botox injections, this splint is helping to straighten my fingers through exercise.

Resting Splint

I have been wearing the above splint for two years - I wear it overnight and when I am travelling as an aid to relax my hand and fingers.