Hi My dad has been suffering with MS for around 8 years now. He also has genetic heart condition called atherosclerosis which means exercising has been very difficult for him putting pressure on his heart which is functioning at half the rate it should do adding to the immense fatigue he already has.
He also has swelling and fluid in both legs and pretty much lost the use of his left leg but still uses a stick to shuffle around everyday which has sometimes led to quite serious falls which I do worry about.
He doesn’t have any pain really as I know some MS sufferers do but he pretty much has no mobility and I would really like to somehow motivate him to work to understand the best way he can help himself. Hes a bit reading and writing shy/ technology shy so I am Putting this thread out there for him to see if there if anyone else on here suffering with simular condition and wether they have had any success eliviating some of the symptoms or more? If there are any medical or holistic professions who could offer any advice I would greatly appreciate that too!
Kind regards
Hi, it`s very kind of you to be looking to help your dad in this way.
It is a worry for our family when they dont know what to do to help.
I have zilch mobility and my legs can feel solid and lifeless.
I do have feeling in them…some is over sensitive and hurts when touched, other areas are numb to pain, but I can still feel them.
I have a weekly session of refelxology. A lymph system massage is also included.
It relaxes me and makes my legs and feet feel more alive!
Look up refelxologists in your area who do a home visit.
Does your dad have a riser/recliner chair? Mine is a real boon.
pollsx
Hi
Does your dad have physiotherapy? Or access to physio? If so, they should be able to design him an exercise program to suit his abilities. However, it does require the person to actually commit to doing the exercises. And that’s hard to do when you are essentially immobile and sedentary.
If he doesn’t at present have access to physiotherapy, does he have an MS nurse who can refer him to physio?
Or, is there an MS treatment centre near to you / him? They quite often run exercise classes, like yoga and Pilates which are good for MSers. But of course, men do tend to be a little more resistant to joining such classes (as am I, regardless of my gender, I shudder at the very idea!), but at least it might be an option. Some also have hyperbaric oxygen treatment available which might help.
He could also ask if there is a hydrotherapy pool available on the NHS. There is one in my area, and people can be referred by their GP. Hydrotherapy is a much lower impact exercise than traditional PT.
Well done to you for researching on his behalf, just don’t forget that it’s very, very difficult to start exercise when you’ve done none for years. He does need to want to do it for himself. So don’t be too despondent if you come up with a list of possibilities and he fancies none of them.
Sue
i second sue’s suggestion of hydrotherapy.
the water is really lovely and warm, reminds me of my long gone days of loving a good bath!
i went with a group of neuro patients and the physio who ran it has us just walking round the pool.
so very easy, i wondered what good it was doing.
but later that day i felt like i’d run a marathon.
i really think it would do your dad the power of good.
carole x
Hi Polls thanks for your reply, sounds as if your symptoms are just as different and complex as my dads. MS is a real crappy neurological disease! You’re right it is hard to watch him suffer, I just want to give him some hope and therefore a nudge in the right direction with out being the one to tell him what he can and cant/should do!! I do have a feeling he may be in contact with a reflexology specialist but its finding one to suit his other problems I think he finds hard. He does have the recliner chair now, finally gave into that a few months back. x
Hi Sue, thanks for your response I belive he sees a physio fairly regularly but its his heart that is limiting him or this is what he tells me anyway. As its only functioning at half the rate it should do at the moment certain things put too much pressure on his hole body.
Im a afraid its a bit of a chicken and egg situation trying to work out where to start first. Im helping him with diet and specific right foods at the moment but the hydrotherapy sound like it might be the right thing to keep him moving. As you said getting him there could be the problem. I understand he is tired all the time but that sounds relaxing so maybe he might consider it, thank you!!
M
Sounds great I think I have heard him talking about it before but he is very good at not wanting to try things due to fatigue. He seems to want to save his energy for just staying awake all day. Hard to know where his actual tiredness starts and his worry about it begins. I think this is the heart problem but maybe just floating about would give him freedom…
Will be running it by him either way thank you x
that’s good to hear.
hope he agree to go just once and then maybe he’ll want to continue.
heart problems respond well to gentle exercise.