Guest guest Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 Michele - I have a friend who's daughter with CP had hip surgery today and will be wearing a body cast for 6-8 weeks. Didn't Aubrie go through that? Or do I have her confused with Kennedy - if so, sorry to all parties! Anyway, I'd like to send my friend some hints on survival with the body cast - I remember bean bag chairs but not much else. If anyone would like to respond, I'd like to forward the messages to my friend. Thank you. Lori Myers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 Lori- Yes, that was Aubrie! We bought a huge $300 oversized bean bag chair that was wonderful for her - and we are all still enjoying it. But a regular bean bag would be really good too. It was summer so we did ok for clothes. We bought extra sized knit skirts and t-shirts and then sewed snaps in the crotch of the skirt to keep it closed - like a baby's onesie. That was much easier than trying to pull huge shorts over the cast. I don't remember what we did for pottying. If I remember, I'll ask her aide what she recalls. Aubrie had her cast for a bit of the school year. It wasn't nearly as awful as we anticipated it would be. We never got feces or anything on the cast so it was never smelly or nasty. Aubrie never complained of itching or discomfort. Everything went really smoothly. I hope the same is true for your friend. If she has any specific things come up, her questions may spark my memory. Michele W Aubrie's mom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 Thanks for the info. I sent the message to my friend. Lori RE: Hip surgery and body cast Lori- Yes, that was Aubrie! We bought a huge $300 oversized bean bag chair that was wonderful for her - and we are all still enjoying it. But a regular bean bag would be really good too. It was summer so we did ok for clothes. We bought extra sized knit skirts and t-shirts and then sewed snaps in the crotch of the skirt to keep it closed - like a baby's onesie. That was much easier than trying to pull huge shorts over the cast. I don't remember what we did for pottying. If I remember, I'll ask her aide what she recalls. Aubrie had her cast for a bit of the school year. It wasn't nearly as awful as we anticipated it would be. We never got feces or anything on the cast so it was never smelly or nasty. Aubrie never complained of itching or discomfort. Everything went really smoothly. I hope the same is true for your friend. If she has any specific things come up, her questions may spark my memory. Michele W Aubrie's mom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 29, 2006 Report Share Posted November 29, 2006 Michele, you had better luck with the cast than my nephew did!! LOL He has Legg-Calve-Perthes disease and had to have hip surgery a few times and alternated between the braces and the spica casts. He was only in second or third grade at the time, but he was (is) a LARGE child. My sister and I were both living in Texas at the time (at two separate army bases) and she flew me over to help her take care of him. The toilet thing was incredibly stressful!! We had to use a bedpan in his wheelchair. Add all of this to the fact that he also had encopresis ( " numbed " rectal nerves where a bowel movement appears before he feels it!!!!)....Oh my gosh, I don't look back on that time fondly LOL!! He'd be in his room and he'd holler " AUNTIE!!! " and I'd go flying with the bedpan, have to lift up this 100 lb. child (plus the cast weight). NOT FUN. My mom sewed velcro into the crotch of his shorts so he had his own Chippendales-style breakaway pants!! Everytime I hear the sound of velcro opening, I have post-traumatic stress flashbacks LOL. If all of that wasn't enough, she also lived in a three-story house where only the foyer was on the first floor and everything else was upstairs, and the stairs were too steep for a ramp. We had to carry him down the stairs fire-blanket style (like a hammock) everytime we left the house!! Even more NOT FUN!!! LOL I'm glad those days are over and hope he never needs another cast because he's currently 16 years old, 225 lbs and 6 feet tall!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 30, 2006 Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 , i know that laughing might not have been the most appropriate reaction to your post, but how funny!!!! And.. can we assume that the 16 year old nephew who weighs 225 pounds is NOT a CHARGEr???? pam Re: Hip surgery and body cast Michele, you had better luck with the cast than my nephew did!! LOL He has Legg-Calve-Perthes disease and had to have hip surgery a few times and alternated between the braces and the spica casts. He was only in second or third grade at the time, but he was (is) a LARGE child. My sister and I were both living in Texas at the time (at two separate army bases) and she flew me over to help her take care of him. The toilet thing was incredibly stressful!! We had to use a bedpan in his wheelchair. Add all of this to the fact that he also had encopresis ( " numbed " rectal nerves where a bowel movement appears before he feels it!!!!)....Oh my gosh, I don't look back on that time fondly LOL!! He'd be in his room and he'd holler " AUNTIE!!! " and I'd go flying with the bedpan, have to lift up this 100 lb. child (plus the cast weight). NOT FUN. My mom sewed velcro into the crotch of his shorts so he had his own Chippendales-style breakaway pants!! Everytime I hear the sound of velcro opening, I have post-traumatic stress flashbacks LOL. If all of that wasn't enough, she also lived in a three-story house where only the foyer was on the first floor and everything else was upstairs, and the stairs were too steep for a ramp. We had to carry him down the stairs fire-blanket style (like a hammock) everytime we left the house!! Even more NOT FUN!!! LOL I'm glad those days are over and hope he never needs another cast because he's currently 16 years old, 225 lbs and 6 feet tall!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 30, 2006 Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 LOL Pam....don't feel bad about laughing!! My sister and I recount those days all the time and laugh so hard we cry! We even have a catchphrase we use with one another: " How did that get there? I didn't even feel it!! " which is what my nephew used to say when it seemed I didn't quite make it in time with the bedpan! No, he doesn't have CHARGE but incidentally does have tuberous sclerosis (as does my niece, his sister). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 30, 2006 Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 - I know it wasn't a fun time - but your storytelling style made my smile! We also have a big old house but we were able to get a hospital bed and keep Aubrie on the lower level while in her cast. Plus there is no air conditioning upstairs and this was the hottest part of our summer. She only weighed 35 lb or so. We could lift and move her fairly easily even in the cast. We had been told many of the possible complications but had none. In fact, shortly after getting out of her cast, Aubrie was doing something sort of risky and was told to be careful cuz we didn't want to have the cast again. She replied that she liked her cast!! Michele W Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 1, 2006 Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 Gosh! your family surely has a lot to deal with! pam Re: Hip surgery and body cast LOL Pam....don't feel bad about laughing!! My sister and I recount those days all the time and laugh so hard we cry! We even have a catchphrase we use with one another: " How did that get there? I didn't even feel it!! " which is what my nephew used to say when it seemed I didn't quite make it in time with the bedpan! No, he doesn't have CHARGE but incidentally does have tuberous sclerosis (as does my niece, his sister). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 1, 2006 Report Share Posted December 1, 2006 I won't send this to my friend!!!!! Lori Myers Re: Hip surgery and body cast Michele, you had better luck with the cast than my nephew did!! LOL He has Legg-Calve-Perthes disease and had to have hip surgery a few times and alternated between the braces and the spica casts. He was only in second or third grade at the time, but he was (is) a LARGE child. My sister and I were both living in Texas at the time (at two separate army bases) and she flew me over to help her take care of him. The toilet thing was incredibly stressful!! We had to use a bedpan in his wheelchair. Add all of this to the fact that he also had encopresis ( " numbed " rectal nerves where a bowel movement appears before he feels it!!!!)....Oh my gosh, I don't look back on that time fondly LOL!! He'd be in his room and he'd holler " AUNTIE!!! " and I'd go flying with the bedpan, have to lift up this 100 lb. child (plus the cast weight). NOT FUN. My mom sewed velcro into the crotch of his shorts so he had his own Chippendales-style breakaway pants!! Everytime I hear the sound of velcro opening, I have post-traumatic stress flashbacks LOL. If all of that wasn't enough, she also lived in a three-story house where only the foyer was on the first floor and everything else was upstairs, and the stairs were too steep for a ramp. We had to carry him down the stairs fire-blanket style (like a hammock) everytime we left the house!! Even more NOT FUN!!! LOL I'm glad those days are over and hope he never needs another cast because he's currently 16 years old, 225 lbs and 6 feet tall!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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