Carry On

Over the past two weeks I have made a point of trying to do everything possible around my apartment with my forearm crutches. Meaning I switch to my full length crutches as little as possible. My most challenging task and primary focus over the past two week has been carrying meals.

I'm proud to say, since the Easter weekend, I have only had to resort to using my full length crutches to carry a meal on two occasions. It took some trial and error and then practice once I discovered a way to do it, but I have become fairly good at carrying small plates and bowls while using my forearm crutches. On the two occasions I switched crutches, it was because I had made a meal that would only fit on a large dinner plate. Although it is still a bit awkward to carry a small plate or bowl, the large plate is much to awkward and heavy to carry. I'm really only able to hang on to it with a couple fingers and only just the finger tips. As far as the bowl goes, I haven't actually carried any liquids in it yet. So far I've stuck to things like pasta or salad.

Seeing I'm already on the topic of carrying I will tell you about what I was able to do yesterday at physio. With just one forearm crutch, modified shoes on, I was able to carry a small cup of water up and down the hallway. It was a really little cup, one of those paper ones for a water cooler. It didn't hold a lot of water but the cup was filled to within about half an inch of the top. I was kind of nervous to move at first. Not that it would have been the end of the world if I did spill a little water on the floor but I really didn't want that to happen. I love a challenge but really hate to fail. I did eventually take a step, followed by another. There was quite a bit of hesitation between steps at first but after a bit I was able to pick up the pace.

There was the obvious good feeling of accomplishing something new but I notices something else as well. A positive "side effect" if you will. As I was concentrating and paying so much attention to the cup and the water in it, I wasn't looking at my feet. At least not as much. An on going goal and obvious necessity is for me to look up while I'm walking. I do this when I'm using both crutches but still don't feel comfortable while using just one. This exercise may help get my eyes off the ground. It could even be a sign that I am getting there, that I'm beginning to trust my foot and crutch placement more without the visual confirmation.