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Now stay at home dad

Active member
Joined
Oct 7, 2015
Messages
33
Reason
PALS
Diagnosis
09/2015
Country
US
State
CA
City
Coarsegold
Hello,

I've been diagnosed with ALS for two years now and I have a hard time getting comfortable in bed. I have pain from my hips to my knees. I have a hospital bed with the circulated type air mattress. I sleep on my side and I can manage to get on stomach when the leg pain sets in. Then I can manage to get back on my side when my arms and back start to hurt from being on my stomach. This goes on five to ten times a night and isn't easy to do. Sometimes I have to wake up my wife to help turn.

Sleeping on my back is sometimes painful and I get restless and want to turn on my side (but I can't on my own). Is this something I need to just learn how to do? Sometimes I just sleep in my PWC and I am pretty comfortable. Curious if anyone does that regularly.

Thank you for any advise!
David
 
Some of these may be less applicable to a low air loss mattress -- we didn't have one, and my husband stayed on his back, so would need adjustment. But to consider:

--Prevalon pressure-relieving boots (with or without socks), tied together with sash to keep feet aligned
--foam belt around lower thighs to keep hips aligned
--sufficient support for elbows and arms (we used foam and small travel pillows), as not having that sends pain down the body

Also would make sure both head and legs are at slight angle -- will take trial and error to get most comfortable. Try for at best going from back to side as stomach sleeping will ultimately compromise your breathing and make it harder to adjust to BiPAP.
 
I now sleep pretty much sitting up.

As Laurie wrote...

"--sufficient support for elbows and arms (we used foam and small travel pillows), as not having that sends pain down the body."

I found supporting my elbows at my sides really makes a difference.
 
On my back but with knees bent and on side. And head sideways.
 
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