How to keep from sliding in Bed

[Barbie]

I didn't want to hijack the Bed thread--but it made me think about how do others keep their pals from sliding down in bed. When I raise his head, he slips down even if I raise his feet. In fact, he ends up in the "valley". He doesn't want me to put a pillow behind him (he sleeps on his side) because then he can't roll over on his back. He is not very mobile in bed but he doesn't want to be boxed in to one position all night.

 

[brooksea]

Barbie, I'm sorry. We struggled with that problem too! It did not matter what we tried, he still slid down due to upper body being elevated. "The Valley" was not working for us either!

Even in hospice with a "real" hospital bed, he would ask me to adjust him further up the bed.

 

[Sophia77088]

Hi barbie. I used to have that problem with my mom because we had the air loss bed.. i order a roho cushion.. so when she wanted to sit up straight without sliding we would used that. which made a big difference. But I used to get her with a hoya lift all the time.. not sure if that help but that what we did..

 

[rachelg]

Hi Barbie

The only way we managed to stop the slipping was a bed with knee bend. So we start with the backrest only up a bit, then knee bend then raise the backrest further. We hoist Mark as far back as is possible to start with.

Until we got a fully adjustable bed it was near on impossible and every morning, Mark would wake with his feet right down squashed on the bed end board.

I am not quite sure how to combat this problem when you are lying on your side though.

Sorry cant be more help.

 

[Danijela]

Partner sleeping on his back, he can't move, stays in one position all night. He does not slide.

We have a hospital bed and air pressure mattress. We raise head part of the bed to about 20 degrees. He uses Tempur pillow, with two towels rolled up under each side of the pillow creating a wedge for his head. The rest of the bed is kept flat (there are options to raise various parts). We use pillows to support each arm (1cm away from the body, positioned alongside trunk, fingers oustretched. This helps with sliding too.

Now the legs - we use one pillow to support both legs. It is just a plump, fluffy, feather filled pillow. We place it just below the knees, with the bottom edge of the pillow ending at the heels, so that the heels do not touch the bed. Sometimes we use a rolled up towel to support feet turning out, just gently placed on the outside of each foot. This works for us very well, and L often does not need any repositioning for 8 hours. If anyone wants a photo of the set up send me a PM and I will email. Dani

 

[rachelg]

Dani - sounds a good set up - is L's spine still straight? Because Mark's is crooked he tilts to one side and his elbow hurts so we V shape pillows behind him but he does fall still to one side. Do you wedge shape the head pillow so that head doesnt tilt?

 

[momap53]

Barbie, can you tilt the whole bed a bit so that the feet are elevated? I understand about still wanting to be able to turn onto his back on his own. I'm much more comfortable with pillow between legs while on my side, but only use them for naps as I'm not ready to get KK up for repositioning during the night. without the pillows I'm still able to roll onto my back then engage the knee break with the controller to muddle out the rest of the night.


Sounds like a great system Dani! Good positioning with support for the head and limbs.

 

[Barbie]

Dani--you are such a caring partner for L--what a good system you have come up with...

CJ-- I remember you used sheepskin pads in the bed... did they help with the slipping at all? I was also thinking about those waterproof pads I had for my babies in the crib (felt covered rubber) maybe they would stop the slipping...

Deb--I WISH he didn't want to wake me LOL! He starts on side ( as high up in bed as I can get him) and he sort of rolls/falls to his back later in the night. then he wakes me up to pull him back to the side position. I don't mind once a night but get a little irkked if it is 2 or 3 or 4 times!

 

[marypat]

if anyone has a sure fire way to stop sliding down in bed i know of several hundred nite shift nurses that would pay for the secret!LOL

 

[Danijela]

Rachel,

his spine is no perfect but it is not that bad. When he is in a wheelchair his neck shows weakness and his head tilts to one side. Yes, I use the pillow to keep the head as straight as possible.

Another thing I have learned - when L tells me he is comfortable in bed I always take the covers off and check the alignment of his body. Sometimes he is not lying straight and he FEELS comfortable, but this comfort does not last, after 15 mins he needs moving. I therefore make sure his body IS aligned, as straight as possible. He initially complains that I have made him uncomfortable but in the long run this is the best solution, and he knows it. I also settle him in, leave the night light on, give him 20 or so mins to see how he feels, before checking again. This is when he tells me that his (crooked) position of choice does not work and aligning his body is needed.
Dani

 

[rosec]

I don't how keep from sliding down, but we improvised a thingamajig to help my husband slide back up. This works because he still has some strength in his legs.
We got a 24" piece of 8" diameter PVC pipe from the hardware store. We got an old blanket and folded it lengthwise into 24" wide strip. We wrapped the blanket around the PVC pipe and secured it by tying a couple shoelaces around it. Whenever my husband feels like he has slid down too much, we place this thingamajig at the foot of the bed, and he uses both his legs to push himself back up.
If you want I can post a picture.

 

[momap53]

Rosec, please post a photo in your albums on your profile page as well, so it's readily accessible for sharing with other in the future.