Disabled man has to crawl up his stairs

marko2002

MrsE wrote: »

I'm amazed at the hostile replys & DISGUSTED that a bungalow can't be found or built for this man.

Thanks for the support MrsE

anguk

My husband is also a below knee amputee (there seems to be alot of them about ) we privately rent our house. After the amputation he got MRSA in the stump and it took 8 months to heal so he couldn't be fitted for his false leg and was wheelchair bound. We changed our dining room into a bedroom for him but our bathroom is upstairs so he would shuffle up on his bum, infact he still does now occassionally because he does have trouble with his artificial leg and gets alot of sores (his stump is a strange uneven shape because of the MRSA). We've had no special help or adaptions other than a bath board so he can shower instead of getting into the bath, we've just sort of adapted to his disability.

That said, we live in a house so at least my OH has always been able to get out and about in his wheelchair, it must be awful if you're in an upstairs flat and unable to get down the stairs. If the stairs are open for others to use I can see how it would be humiliating for him but if they are part of the house and just for their use then it's not really any different to going up & down to the bathroom like my OH?

I'm pleased that your BIL is doing something about his weight, as Rikk says that will make a big difference. My OH also has kidney failure and is on dialysis, he can gain a couple of kilos in fluid in 2 days between dialysis sessions and that can play havoc with the fitting of his false leg.

If I was them and the housing association couldn't help I would seriously think about private rental. I hope they get sorted out soon.

There's a really good forum for amputees with lots of help & advice or even just a chance to talk to other amputees:
http://www.heathermills.eu/forum/

marko2002

Hi anguk and thanks for your input, I'm really sorry to hear about the trouble you and your husband have had also, contracting MRSA was the last thing you guys needed after all that. Eddie and Angela have looked at the possibility of a private rental but they don't receive housing benefits or income support, Eddie receives DLA and that is put towards their current rent and council tax and it's because Eddie received compensation eventually because of his accident they don't have the option to claim these benefits. When Eddie was awarded his compensation a nominal amount of this was to be given back to the social security in repayment of benefits already received, it wasn't an overpayment or anything, that's how the system works apparently you get awarded an amount then have to contribute back to the system which is fine I guess but it left Eddie and Angela with what would equal a few years wages to Eddie and they have to use this to live until such time it runs out and they are able to start claiming benefits. They had hoped to use this money to make the necessary adaptions to a more suitable house but this is the problem, they just can't get one and to private let would swallow what they have left as these lets usually start around £400-£500 per month and I may be wrong but I didn't think private let wouldn't offer the same kind of security as local authority in regards to evictions or notice periods, etc, in as much as a private let could request their property back after a period of notice? If someone wanted to sell their property couldn't they request the tenants simply move out? That being said, Eddie and Angela would be without a home outright and possibly after putting out the remainder of what money they have left to adapt a private let house. Hope that all makes sense!

anguk

I understand what you're saying, private lets aren't as secure as local authority housing, they're normally on a 6 month rolling tenancy. We're lucky that we've been here over 6 years now and the landlord has a few houses as long-term investments so has no intention of selling.

I'm not sure what adaptions Eddie would need, as I've said the only special thing we've got for my husband is a bathboard so he can shower instead of getting into the bath. Other than that as long as doorways are wide enough for a wheelchair you should be able to manage.

I don't want to offend but alot of Eddie's problems will be relieved if he lost some weight, he would be able to get up and down stairs safely and even hop on his remaining leg with crutches if it was okay. Don't get me wrong my husband is a big man and when he lost his leg he put extra weight on (easily done when you're confined to a wheelchair) and I know it's hard to lose it. But I know my husband found things alot harder the bigger he was.

Just a thought but does his wife get carers Aloowance? If Eddie gets the middle or higher rate care componant of DLA she would be entitled to claim it.

marko2002

As it is just now Eddie isn't meant to weight bear on his remaining leg due to his recent operation although the reality of it is he has to on occasion as practicalities often get in the way of doctors orders although other than this his adaption need would be the same as anyone in a wheelchair, such as those you already mentioned like wider doorways, and obviously no mass of stairs to get in and out the house. In time, obviously, as Eddie starts getting his weight down he can concentrate on his artificial limb, or if his other leg has to be removed, then his limbs, and attempt to gain some form of mobility although his operations in the past have been fraught with complications and this together with his weight have just exaggerated the problem. I understand when you say his weight is a problem and Eddie knows this himself but this is partly a result of years of basically being "left to it" as well as the sorry state his bones have been in through the multiple operations. It's all too easy for us to give excuses as to why people end up the way they do but at this stage in Eddie's life and the lives of his family he realises it's now or never and this is why we're all pushing the way we are, to show both our support and highlight the reality of Eddie's basic needs and others in his position. As for the carers allowance this is something I'm not actually sure of but again, thanks for the mention of it and I will make sure Eddie and Angie are aware of this and in a correction to my last post they don't actually receive monetary DLA but instead have the car option.
Thanks again for your post and I wish you and your husband well.
Mark

Rikk

I understand when you say his weight is a problem and Eddie knows this himself but this is partly a result of years of basically being "left to it" as well as the sorry state his bones have been in through the multiple operations.

Sorry but no...it's the same for him as anyone who is fat...stop blaming things outside his control and start doing something about it. Sorry to be blunt but this is one of my pet peeves.
If Eddie knows it, Eddie should do something about it...not tomorrow, not when when someone tells him to, but TODAY.

My injuries :-
Left tib/fib compound fracture (plated)
Left Femur compound fracture (plated and pined, broke again due to wrong screws)
Left hip 1/3 of ball broken off (wired)
30% muscle loss on left side due to injuries
Right below knee amp
Right femur fractured (plated and pined)
Punctured lung
For 20+ years I’d been walking on tip toe due to the muscles and tendons in my left foot shrinking.
Chronic arthritis in left knee/ankle

Three years ago I had an ankle operation to extend all the tendons in my foot as walking on tiptoe was causing me a great deal of pain due to all the other joints being put under strain.
Four weeks after the op, still on crutches (I was for 6 months) no weight baring on my "good" leg so crutches+tin leg I was down the gym 3-4 times a week.
If I couldn't go down the gym for whatever reason I would bum it up and down the stairs till i physically couldn't any more for exercise, if I coulnd't do this I'd get a large tin of beans in each hand and use that, sit ups, swiss ball anything...

If you want to do something you'll do it.

marko2002

Rikk, I'm in agreement as per my statement after your quote ...

It's all too easy for us to give excuses as to why people end up the way they do but at this stage in Eddie's life and the lives of his family he realises it's now or never

When you can talk from experience, as you obviously can, it's appreciated and taken on board. Eddie knows his weight is a problem and he IS doing something about it now but it takes time. Nobody owes Eddie a living and he doesn't think this way, nor do we, and if that's the impression I'm giving out then I apologise but one problem in their lives have led to another and as I said before even we didn't realise the extent of the psychological problems Eddie and his family were under and I know as someone who has been through this you also must have had your own obsticles and troubles to overcome and by the sounds of it you have and I have nothing but the utmost admiration for you, and Eddie has came along way also to this point and battled his own demons and is now ready to make a difference himself. I'm not making excuses, I'm simply trying to explain where Eddie has been in the past few years and as I said in a previous post we all deal with things differently, some can brush off whatever life throws at us, some can't, some have one issue to deal with, some have multiple, and it's never quite as easy to simply tell someone to stop feeling sorry for themselves as anyone who has suffered depression will tell you - what matters is turning the corner and seeing the sun, realising there is a life to be had and this is where Eddie is at the moment. I know it's easy for people to see Eddie as simply fat and not doing anything for himself but he is stepping up to the mark, that's why we're doing what we're doing and if we thought he wasn't interested in change I doubt anyone would be interested in supporting him.

Eddie HAS been let down in the past by those who should have been able to provide the support and assistance he and his family required to overcome their issues, that's fact and not an excuse as I've said before, and I'm sorry but the whole 'feeling sorry for yourself' issue doesn't come into it for me, if your car breaks down can we fix it ourselves? If you computer stops working what do we do?. My point here is when something breaks we ask those who know how to fix it to do their job. Despite asking for help, Eddie and his family weren't given the advice and support they needed to started "fixing" their issues and didn't know how to fix it themselves and so started the vicious circle of frustration and depression. Only now are they receiving the support they need and being helped to help themselves.

Mark