On the first of each month I will be blogging about some aspect of living with CP as part of the CP Connection. Last month's blog was about life in our house with CP and this month I'm going to talk a bit about how we adapt Oksana's environment to give her as much independence as possible.
I'll start with our handrail because my husband just installed it this morning and the independence that it gives her to get in the house by herself is fantastic! Going down stairs is much more challenging so we are still holding one hand to go down while she holds the rail with the other.
Another thing we adapt is how she gets in our van. This tiny step stool allows her an extra step so that she can get in the van all by herself. Of course we still stay near because the one down fall is that the stool can be a little unstable.
A new addition to our house is an adapted bike! This was given to us by our pastor who also has a daughter with CP. She has outgrown it and it's probably a TINY bit big for Oksana so it will last us for a long time!
Here is a video of her riding it for the first time. She can ride independently if it is a bit of a downhill grade. A flat grade is a bit more challenging, and she needs help with even a small uphill grade. She will get stronger as she uses it more.
Those are just a few ways that we adapt. We also use an insert for the toilet but I didn't figure you needed a picture of that ;). If you have any other ideas I would love to hear them!
5 comments:
That is the coolest bike ever!
I love the bike! Wonder where they got it?
I have been thinking we need to adapt the bathroom better. It is the one thing that I feel is important as we continue to work towards independence.
For stability for Jillian when getting into my SUV, I use one of the 'steps' from aerobics. It provides a wider base, more stability and could be adjusted for various heights!
Adaptation looks a lot like Freedom. Impressive. I'm over from CP Connection.
I've spent some time this week getting caught up on your blog. Love this post! And the bike...would love to know where your friends bought it. I agree with Ellen, too. I was just wondering today, as I bathed Vera, when I will be able to tell her to go take a bath and she'll be able to do it on her own. I wonder what, if anything, would help her be independent with that.
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