Balance, balancing
All very tricky for me
In my case, balance has been a very physical issue since my stroke in June 2023. Learning how to get back my equilibrium has been, and continues to be, a long battle. The stroke occurred on the right side, but my left side was the side physically affected.
The first thing I noticed was that my left foot seemed to have a mind of its own.
A malfunctioning left foot makes it really tricky to balance, so immediately after the stroke, I began working on getting back full feeling and full responsiveness. Well, it’s improved. I would say now it’s 90% of the way there, but full control of the left side and the inability to balance are still huge problems.
For example, I could be walking along through a room just quietly, everything‘s fine, and suddenly I lose contact with my left side. My left foot just spontaneously does a little kick to the side or front, and of course, that’s a TTAFH (true trip and fall hazard). 😖
So, I practice balancing exercises every single day. I practice standing on one foot while holding onto the wall or the door frame with one hand. Alternate the feet and hands so both sides get equal opportunity for balance.
I practice standing with my feet close together and with my hand on the counter or something else solid — table or shelf. I then try to free stand by releasing my hand hold, carefully, and always remain close to support for safety.
The next one is feet together, then slide one foot halfway ahead of the other. Hold support, get solid, release support, hold for a few seconds, and change feet.
I do each of these for a count of five, then I rest, and I do it again. I’ll do this 5 to 10 times every day. These balancing exercises are really irritating and boring, but with repetition, I am finding that I can free stand for few seconds longer each day. The goal is to free stand with my eyes closed. Now we are talking real challenge.😎
My lack of ability to balance is very evident if I attempt to stand on a stool — it’s OK if it’s a small ladder where I can hold onto something in front of me — like if the ladder has a hand hold of some sort. I can do it very carefully and slowly, but if it’s just a stool, even if it is close to a wall, I’m very uncomfortable. I feel very insecure, no balance whatsoever. (In case you are wondering, I do not do that often.😜)
Sometimes, just getting up from a lower seated position, like on a couch, is very tricky. I have to use my cane to assist me as I get up, and that little moment between when I get off the couch and when I’m upright is very dangerous because at that point, my balance is right off, and I am in a perfect position to fall down.☹️
I’ve always been rather tip tippy, if you will. I’ve always been a person who would fall down for no good reason, but in the past, falling down has just been a laugh. I’ve just fallen down, rolled about, and got up. I can’t do that now. I can do the falling and the rolling around, but not the getting up. 😕☹️😖
Once I’m on the floor, it’s very very tricky for me to actually get up on my feet, so yes, balance is an issue.
To be continued…
