Effort And Planning

It's been tough the last couple of days. My arms have been especially weak, at times simply falling at my side, unable to raise even their own weight. When this happens my elbows lock, leaving me only my shoulder muscles to work with, weak as they are. What I end up doing is trying to fling my locked arm around, up far enough to hit the armrest on my wheelchair. This unlocks my elbow, allowing me to rest my arms until they are ready to go again.

There's a lot of this kind of stuff lately, where I have to use both hands to pick up a cup, where I have to rest my arms after a few bites of a meal, where I put myself on a slope to eat so I don't have to life straight up. Right now I want a cup of water. I'm stalling, not wanting to get it because of the work involved.

Those of you who ask where my caregiver is need to realize that she doesn't work 24 hours a day. She is out for a walk right now, rightly enjoying the pleasant, warm weather here in Calgary. She is here plenty. Last night I had a midnight catheter accident. She got out of bed at 5:00 AM, came into my room, fixed me up, then went back to bed. That's a bit of an interruption. So I want to be sure to interrupt as little as possible, to do as much as I can on my own.

In reality I could have asked her to fill my water cup as she went out. She walked right in front of me, stood there for a moment, then left. It would have been very easy to ask. The truth is that I didn't think about it. I was focused on the moment, not on the absence of water. I will get my own. It will just take some effort and planning.

That's what I need to make sure I have a bit of arm strength when I need it; effort and planning.