Living the life of a Carer

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The things you don’t even think about until you become a carer

The things that you don’t realise or have never even thought about until the reality of being a carer kicks in.

The things like the set up of the bathroom, the ease of getting in and out of the shower. Like having to get rid of the bathtub and have a walk in shower, to the way the setup is around the toilet and including rails for safety, non slip floors and all in between. Finding out the tiles that you love cannot have non slip products applied to prevent slipping because they were polished.

The way you get in and out of the house, do you have steps in and out of the house, are rails needed.

How is the pathway to the house, I realised the hard way that I cant pull the wheelchair up or down the front step even though the person I care for insisted that it was possible, until the wheelchair went down however he slid right out the wheelchair and luckily grabbed the handrail and the wheelchair slid away. Or the other time the person I care for said you can pull me up the step and the wheel got caught in the grove of the tiles on the verandah and I managed to stop the wheelchair moving and helped stop the person slipping only because someone was nearby to help and the person in the wheelchair had the biggest wedgie and it was the first thing I could do was to keep them upright was to grab hold of the clothing and yank them up, if I had of let go I would have knocked them to the ground and run over them with a runaway wheelchair. Really not a good look.

Things like the size of a car, having 2 doors really isn’t practical when you travel with three people in the car, and then fitting a wheelchair into a boot of a car. Wheelchairs aren’t really that compact especially the older style ones that have fixed wheels.

Pathways how gravel pathways aren’t always great especially after rain, or when it is wet and you have to take the wheelchair that is wet and muddy either inside or packing it away leaving mud and gravel everywhere.

Gardens and things like grass aren’t that practical for pushing a wheelchair and pathways need to be a certain width.

Location of things in cupboards and the height of storing things.

Even just opening of plastic storage containers can be an issue for a person with disabilities.

You often need to be two steps ahead.

The lack of sleep and being needed at any time of the day and night.

The role of a carer is often a 24 hour a day 7 day a week roll.

New Car Demographics

New Cars are targeted to a range of demographics however car companies seem to be driving a couple of demographics away from the market.

You used to be able to purchase a car and still have a smallish car with a large boot space; you could purchase a station wagon for a little more space, however now you are alienating the older market who want small cars with a large boot to carry a walker or wheelchair. Some people look after grandchildren and still want a small car however now the market is very limited. People want SUV’s as they are higher and easier to get in and out of, which isn’t always the case in question. Some people have knee injuries that struggle to lift their legs in and out of the car, or others have a wheelchair to fit into the car however some wheelchairs weigh 20kgs and have to be lifted high to get in and out, which isn’t always easy and practical, especially when you have someone parked right up on top of you and you have to try and slip in between the two cars and place the wheelchair in the boot space. Not all wheelchairs have removable wheels and even if they do you don’t always remove the wheels especially if you are going to need the wheelchair soon. Often it is bad enough that you have to remove the footplates to fit the wheelchair into the boot space.

I am one that often has three adults in the car and the possibility of a dog and you certainly cannot place the seats forward when someone is sitting in the back to accommodate a wheelchair. However when looking for a new vehicle and I will open the boot and say that is not possible some sales people will then say oh you can move the seat forward like it is so simple, however then I have to say no well actually not when someone is sitting there and the looks on their faces are like you have an answer for everything, when in fact you are actually the one who has thought one step ahead of them.

It would be great if cars were designed to fit a wheelchair or walker into the boot space. As people are ageing these things should be considered to better accommodate for wheelchairs and walkers. Even small SUV’s are often too small to accommodate a wheelchair or walker pushing up the price bracket for purchasing a vehicle and often the larger SUV’s are not what is wanted or needed by people in this age group.

I however do not fit into this age group however as a carer and someone who likes a small car for economical purposes, would have loved to be able to go and purchase a new small low budget car for myself. I however am not as worried about the size of purchasing a new vehicle I would in fact love a large vehicle however cannot justify the cost for the amount of use the vehicle would be getting used for, especially when going somewhere and finding that parking spaces are actually getting smaller, meanwhile vehicles are getting bigger and higher. However have found that purchasing a car that is suitable and is available on the market, not advertised as being available however ringing around the dealerships being told they haven’t been around for months or are a rare car and they are unable to get stock in isn’t what you want to hear.

So start thinking about your market and the lower end of the market not forcing people into vehicles that are too large for them to handle and within budgets. I know that some car dealers want to push finance arrangements onto people and not interested in people who can actually afford and have saved for this large purchase, as they are not making as much money on them.

People shouldn’t be treated differently however they wish to purchase a vehicle, however the credibility of some dealerships should be looked into as they are complaining that they are not getting customers buying should take a long hard look at themselves, as well as if potential customers ask for a test drive and a car brought out to their homes they shouldn’t be objecting to this as people may not feel comfortable and nervous in an unfamiliar vehicle and not within the area that they know well.

I in hindsight should have become a person who reviews new cars and can look at the vehicles from a perspective of a carer, and how accessible vehicles are for people with disabilities and also from the prospective of how ease of use the vehicle is and accessible when accommodating items like wheelchairs and walkers.

Dealing with the heat

As you will find that we are coming into the hot weather, here today the temperature is due to hit 40 degrees which is the first of many days to come as we are only in November.

The heat affects most people and animals however people that have medical conditions, the elderly and people who cannot take to the heat can often become quite unwell very quickly.

Trying to keep as cool as possible and hydrated is one of the solutions however some people that we care for may require medication that removes fluid from our bodies or are on a fluid restriction and still need to find ways to keep in enough hydration to help cool and stay hydrated.

Having fruit that is cool can help having cool fruits from the fridge or freezer like Apricots, Peaches, Nectarines, Watermelon, Grapes, Mangoes.

Oranges, Mangoes and Grapes and grapes are also good frozen and provide coolness and help with hydration especially good for people with fluid restrictions to keep hydrated.

Icy Poles are a great option you can buy them commercially or make your own and add flavours that are well like. Or just plain ice blocks are another option to suck on.

You can get a cotton bud and dip some water and rub on the lips and inside of the mouth.

You don’t need to eat a hot meal something light is a good idea. Ice Cream, Jelly, Fruit, Biscuits / Crackers, Salads. Even if you graze on foods. Don’t force a person to eat especially in the heat, as the food may actually make them feel unwell.

A cool face washer or towel is a great option for cooling off, and wiping over your skin or even laying on a towel down.

A cool misting fan, or a container of water near a fan. Air conditioning if available.

Close up the blinds and curtains to keep the heat out and the cool in however don’t make it too dark that people cannot see which in turn can create more of a hazard.

Also take into account that we are going to be experiencing heat waves and also blackouts and we need to try or best to maintain the cool environment.

If you really need to go out, go out very early in the day and think beforehand can it be done on a cooler day rather then on a day of high temperature.

If you need to go outside wet a hat to keep a little cooler.

Try and stay inside out of the heat. Think twice about going outdoors.

The difficulties in finding a suitable new car.

The difficulties experienced in trying to find a suitable new car that can easily carry a wheelchair in the boot.

The problems when you are looking for a car online to do your research and find a vehicle that is within your budget and is also suitable to fit a wheelchair into the boot. That is the experience that we have been experience of late. We were excited that we had found a small car that I met the requirements of having four doors as we often have three people in the car and could also fit a wheelchair in the boot. We had found a car we liked only to ring around the dealers to be told oh sorry we don’t have any in stock, ring the next dealer and be told the same, oh but we have a used one with only a few kilometres 40,000, no sorry only want a new car, especially that amount of kilometres would take us years to clock up. Ring next dealer oh sorry no Hyundai Accent Sedans available only two in Australia and the dealers wont let us have them. Until today Hyundai still have Hyundai Accent Sedans advertised on their website.

So now back to the drawing board however that also means a much higher jump in price. Now what to look at now oh a sedan or a hatch, oh do I have room to get the wheelchair between the boot, watch out for the hinges, is it too narrow or not. Hatch is the boot deep or too narrow. Or do we need to look at an SUV so what should have been a simple task has become a never ending headache, especially when you have to find time to actually go and look for vehicle between caring, shopping, cooking and cleaning, and juggling appointments. Then when you do go to a dealer and then you need assistance and are waiting for thirty minutes standing around and nobody even cares that you are actually wanting assistance and you are joining a queue of three to four other parties that are all wanting assistance.

So the saga continues and you end up leaving as you don’t have the time to wait any longer as you have to be at appointment and still do the shopping.

So back to the drawing board of finding a car that can fit a wheelchair into the boot.

A note to take a tape measure and when a car dealer hands you a book and tells you the dimensions are in place they usually are only in litres and not in metres or feet and inches.

So take your tape measure with you.

Hopefully one day I will be able to tell you that I have finally found a car that is suitable for all parties involved.