So True Marty
I end up feeling much anxiety in a crowd of people. I finally figured out it's because I can't move as fast as others, and am somewhat afraid of getting knocked down. Yes, I'M OK, everyone else, not so much...,ha! I find myself waiting in my car, before getting out to go into a store, if there's anyone else around. I do find most people to be very thoughtful and kind though, as I use a cane. They hold doors open for me. One guy was talking on his cell phone and noticed I was carrying a take-out in my left hand, trying to open my car door with my cane in the right hand. He opened my car door for me, while continuing his phone conversation...,talk about multi-tasking...,ha! I was very grateful though!!! Tis' people like this that make the world a better place (especially for the handicapped)... ;o)
Cute story Rose. I wait to before entering into someplace. Wait till I feel comfortable. I hate it when I'm in a restaurant and I have to use the bathroom.
There are thoughtfull people out there. I was out shopping one day with my walker. The ailes were real narrow with people filling the aisles. This Canadian saw that I was trying to navigate the isle and he guided me down the aisle warning the people I was trying to get thru.
Marty,
I've done my share of stair crawling. Things are mostly better now, but if I have an episode I'm back to stair crawling.
Forget the escalators. That is NOT happening! Going down is worse than up, but I still use elevators.
Back to shopping online.
I hear you Lori and feel the same way!!! After sitting for a while, my muscles get really stiff, so it's hard to stand up, situate myself, get my cane and head to the restroom...,ha! Use to be much easier, right? Oh well, it's the way it is..., ;o)
Don't be so hard on yourself Lindilu, as I'm certain your family is happy to help you. If not, I'd get a new family...,ha! Seriously, it's very difficult to give up your independence. I understand how you feel, as I have to ask for help with certain things also. Before ataxia (the good old days), I could do it all and I mourn those days!
Thinking of you..., ;o)
I won't do "down" escalators either Julie. They move too fast for my liking. Just THINKING about them causes my heart to skip beats...,ha! Occasionally I'll do an "up" one, as long as it's not going at lightening speed! As a rule, it's elevators for me. That's a safe way to travel! ;o)
Hi, I cannot do escalators now - not down - I just cannot get on them - I've tried, and tried - no good. I sometimes can go up on one. I cannot do slopes going down. I have great trouble in rain, wet surfaces - coloured concrete - wood block flooring -supermarket tiles - or tiles in any stores - avoid yellow line on roads - and chose to step off of a pavement, rather than walk on the slope provided for wheel chairs - funny, or what.
Take care, Doug, Bristo, England.
Julie Hahn said:
Marty,
I've done my share of stair crawling. Things are mostly better now, but if I have an episode I'm back to stair crawling.
Forget the escalators. That is NOT happening! Going down is worse than up, but I still use elevators.
Back to shopping online.
Hi Jeannie,
I have trouble walking in public places too. If anyone brushes me I tend to fall and now I find it hard to walk without a walker. I rely on my family for stepping out and as I live in India it is very difficult for Ataxians to move out as the place is not designed for the handicapped!
Colorado Doctor Finds Way To Treat Common Vertigo
AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) – More than seven million people in the U.S. suffer from vertigo with 50,000 in the Denver area alone. The symptoms include feeling surroundings spinning when nothing is moving.
Now there’s a new do-it-yourself way to treat the most common form of vertigo. CBS4 Health Specialist Kathy Walsh met the doctor who discovered the maneuver. Dr. Carol Foster is at the University
of Colorado School of Medicine.
Foster’s recently published research is a breakthrough in the treatment of vertigo and could be life-changing for people who are disabled at times by extreme dizzy spells.
“You’re rolling over in bed and suddenly you’re hit with this incredible spinning and you see the room going around like you’re in the inside of a washing machine,” Foster said.
Foster has experienced the most common form called positional vertigo. It happens when particles in the ear that sense gravity get dislodged and end up in spinning sensors.
“It can make people have falls, they can be unable to go to work because they’re so dizzy, they can be vomiting,” Foster said. “So it’s very, very unpleasant.”
Foster is director of the Balance Laboratory at the CU School of Medicine. One morning, in treating herself, she came up with her own spin on how to fix vertigo at home. It’s called the “Half Somersault Maneuver.” Patients put their head upside down like they are going to do a somersault. They wait for dizziness to end then raise their head to back level. They then wait again for dizziness to end and then sit back quickly
Dr. Carol Foster instructs how to properly do the Half Somersault Maneuver (credit: CBS)
“And that causes the particles to leave the semicircular canal,” Foster said.
A six-month study showed patents preferred the exercise over the one commonly used by doctors.
“I was surprised at how well it worked,” Foster said.
Foster has posted the breakthrough on the Internet.
“My goal in life is to basically get rid of all dizziness on the planet Earth,” she said.
She’s on her way — one half somersault at a time.
People liked the half somersault because they weren’t as dizzy and had fewer side effects. None of those patients returned to the doctor for dizziness treatments.