Feeling useless and a little embarrassed…( and also a little scared, if I’m honest )
I just dropped a spoon down the side of the cooker ( stupid hands ) , got down on the floor to reach it and for the first time ever I couldn’t get back up, no matter how I tried. My legs just wouldn’t hold me.
I had to sit there on the floor feeling pathetic and shout for my other half to come and lift me up.
My neuro recently said that I have ‘good strength’ in my legs…yeah right.
I know many others have it far worse than me , but this has really affected me.
I remember feeling just as you are now, it’s scary when this happens especially the first time. Obviously I can’t know your limitations but I can say there are techniques for getting off the floor. If I can’t get to something to assist me (chair, table, stool). I mange by getting on my hand and knees then bringing my hands toward my feet (upside down v) sometimes using a wall to assist. I probably haven’t described it properly, the point being there are ways and I’m sure you will find ways to help when in this kind of situation. Refer yourself to Neuro Physio to get their help for when/if this happens again.
Youll laugh about his quite soon, in the mean time treat yourself to some chocolate.
Hi June, the first time this happens it is scary. Janh is right about laughing about this one day…So why wait? You can laugh now.
After a fall, I crawl to something for leverage to pull myself up. It takes ages but works.
Neuro & physio tell me I have good strength but they never say what they’ve compared my strength to. They’re clever with their words so we feel better.
You are a long way off useless, but when we feel like this we can’t see anything good. So, the alternative is to look for the things you do, it’ll be a big list!I
Good strength? Bah, they want to try standing up on some of our legs!!
It’s horrible the first time you fall and just can’t get up on your own. It’s happened to me a good number of times. Now I can’t get up with my husbands help.
And yet I still have some strength in my legs. When a neurologist does a physical exam, there’s a bit of strength there. Not much in my core though. Or my arms. You need legs, core and arms to get up. And in my case a fully functioning husband.
Or the phone nearby to phone the paramedics. Which sadly has been handy several times.
We also had a neighbour help out last time I went down yelling ‘timber’ (or words to that effect)!
Your post strikes a chord with me as it does with many of us, I’m sure. It’s a horrid feeling when something like that happens. Virtual hugs from here.
I’ve been thinking about what happened and why it upset me so much and I think it’s because this is the first time I’ve really felt helpless. Like this is it, I’m not just affected by ms, but actually disabled.
I’m struggling with the whole ‘feeling helpless’ , I’m the one who does the looking after, I’m the one who gets things done, I’ve always been physically active and fit…sitting helpless on the kitchen floor isn’t me
But I’m trying to put my big girl pants on and laugh about it, because what’s the alternative, right ?
My partner has been and bought me chocolate, bless him
Yep, I got stuck in The Works yesterday then had brain fog, bought something too big to carry as my hands didn’t work then had to hold the queue up whilst I put it back and got a refund. Then I lost my car park ticket so had to unload all the stupid things I couldn’t carry properly on the works floor, found it then got the heck out of there feeling a right nini. That was after I tried to pick myself up and legs decided to have a bit of a pause.
I had decided not to be ill yesterday but to go out and be among people and shops, well! What a cock up, I did however get three new pairs of pants to enable confiscating of grey raggy things in the drawer so I achieved something. It is all very tiring sometimes isn’t it!
Oh I forgot, I got back to have some tomato soup for tea, the ruddy ring pull didn’t work so I ended up hacking at it till I made a hole for the soup to come out of the tin. I tried my jazzy automatic tin opener and my hands were shaking so I couldn’t put it on properly grrrrrrrrr! Oh, then my Plegridy pen failed so I spent hours sitting, talking on the phone trying to get some sense out of people which then really beggared up my spine. I did stand in the garden in the sun for a few minutes later which was lovely and had a giggle as a chap asked if I wanted my drive doing and he would do it for 500 pounds ha ha ha ha ha ha. I had a good laugh at that one.
Today, given in, in bed with warm socks, books, not getting up. Today I am listening to my dodgy legs and giving them a rest and not having soup. I might watch some violent sort of film to cheer my up I think.
Mind you putting it into perspective my mate doesnt have MS, and this happened to her similar. she had to get something from the side of the cooker (havent we all done that over our lives lol), and couldnt get back up for the life of her. Her hubby had to help.
she suddenly had a terrible pain in her knee which locked and made it impossible to get upright. she said it was really scary and now seeing her GP. Sadly ours is down to old age lol.
keep a little stool in your kitchen you can buy the ones that fold down and if it happens again make sure it is to hand so you can use it to raise yourself back up slowly bit by bit, some of it is down to our fatigue in our bodies too.
You did it and lived to tell the tale. Now no more spooning lol. xxxxxx big hugs. xxxxxxxxx
I love how you enjoy the victories in what otherwise sounds like a naff day out. I don’t think I am paranoid BUT sometimes it does feel like there is a conspiracy to make our lives that little bit more “interesting” Between gravity, trip hazards and idiots we do not have a great chance.
Enjoy having a toasty day off , The Bourne trilogy or any Die Hard should provide some light relief, unless you meant “proper” violent film.
Giggling is very useful, which is why I waste a lot of time on the Brain Fog thread.
As you can see, we’ve all had that moment. For me it was 2006 and I fell in the garden. Couldn’t get up. Had to yell and yell for my son, who was indoors and upstairs and probably had headphones. After that, I started using a stick.
Its a comb of shit balance, inability to bend enough and lack of strength. Advice would be get a grabber for those hard to reach objects. Or wait, ask someone more bendy. That’s what I have to do. You reach a point (mostly when your on the floor and can’t get up) and you think - well I won’t do THAT again. So thats kneeling down for me (nope not gonna happen). Running - ditto. Acknowledge that you have limitations and work within then or around them.
