Transferring

Oh, Casey...a man after my own heart. I gave up on sliding boards after I finally got home to my own house. (I’m skipping over tons of history here.) I now tie my wheelchair to my bedframe before doing a transfer. I tie it front and back, with an emphasis on getting the front wheel almost against the bedframe. I shift my bottom at almost a 45 degree angle to the bed, with my back to the bed. I get myself mentally and physically ready to fall backwards onto the bed. I pause to be sure I’m in the right position, then I shove off, falling backwards onto the bed. This is always a little uncomfortable because my bottom and tailbone are at the fulcrum point, which is the wheelchair tire. At this point, I am lying on my back, rather diagonal, toward the head of the bed. I twist a little and grab the rail at the far side of the bed. I get both of my hands on that rail and PULL. It’s like doing a chin up, but while lying on my side. Yes, I look like a stomach-up turtle, sometimes struggling and flaying. I have something that not everyone has. I have spasticity. When activated by motion, by body (from T9 down) goes stiff as a board. While in this state, I can manipulate my (one) leg from the seat of the wheelchair, over onto the bed matress. At this point, I turn myself onto my side, facing the rail (toward the far side of the bed), and I give myself a huge congratulations. I rest there for about five minutes before getting on with changing my diaper and throwing away the chuck (cover) that has been covering the seat of my wheelchair. This is my method. It has given me my independence. I go to bed and get out of bed when I want to. I hope that you will find your own way to independence. And sliding boards? To me, using a sliding board without an attendant seems extremely dangerous. Our center of balance is too high with a sliding board. And those who recommend a sliding board are likely not factoring in the 🐬surprise🔀 spasms that our bodies experience. (I use a sliding board for getting into a car, but that’s different.) I have an injured shoulder from pre-accident, and I was very overweight at the time of my accident. My therapists seemed to think that my inability to transfer alone with a sliding board was due to some kind of “moral failure”.

And, yes, a mushy bed surface would make it a Herculean feat to scoot over to the edge of the bed. Try temporarily putting some firm padding under the strategic part of your mattress, just to find out what difference it makes.

Why are you embarrassed??? I am a T3/4 and after 19 years, I still use a transfer board at different times of the day. I can get on and off the commode chair and into bed without one but I need to use one to get out of bed and in and out of the car. I go to the gym everyday and work my arms and shoulders and still need to use a board. I don't have spasms that I need it, it just makes it easier. I've fallen too many times without it (I have emergency dispatch on my ICE list on my phone).

Vintage you have posted an amazingly descriptive method of getting in and out of bed. It all sounds so fraught. Do you have a mobile with you at all times just in case of accidents? I go to bed with a mobile telephone, just in case I get a problem and I'm trapped in bed.