40 replies to this topic

[Ches]

Been searching the net with Jerry and Trinity. Im just trying to get an idea of whats out there, and what works for you paraplegics.

I want to take a bath, and just relax, but I dont want to spend an hour trying to get in and out.
I found a few pics of some bathtub pics around here.. anymore would be appreciated. Or better yet, A pic and an explanation of why you chose that design, and how you manage to get in and out.. and lastly is it worth it, to you?!

[Jax]

Ches, on Mar 6 2009, 11:14 AM, said:

Been searching the net with Jerry and Trinity. Im just trying to get an idea of whats out there, and what works for you paraplegics.

I want to take a bath, and just relax, but I dont want to spend an hour trying to get in and out.
I found a few pics of some bathtub pics around here.. anymore would be appreciated. Or better yet, A pic and an explanation of why you chose that design, and how you manage to get in and out.. and lastly is it worth it, to you?!

I use a plain old bathtub. If I want to shower, I have a small shower stool. If I want to take a bath, I just pull straight forward and put my footrest against the side of the tub, lock the wheels, throw my feet over, and transfer onto the side of the tub. Then, I lower myself into the tub. I use one of those little floaty mats made out of that funnoodle kind of stuff in the bottom of the tub under my butt. Just have to get in before starting the water. Have one standard issue rail along the wall on the other side of the tub. It can be quite relaxing, and is definitely worth it. My wife and I live in an apartment, so modification wasn't really an option, and the only "apartments" that are any more accessible are pretty much assisted living centers (read:retirement homes) here. Sorry I haven't figured out how to get the pics on here. If somebody can fill me in on how to post pics, it would be greatly appreciated.

[greybeard]

Ches, on Mar 6 2009, 05:14 PM, said:

I want to take a bath, and just relax, but I dont want to spend an hour trying to get in and out.

If you manage to solve the getting in and out problem, I can strongly recommend a good quality whirlpool bath. Great for relaxation, but you would have to get a safe electrical supply into the bathroom which adds a bit to the cost.

If you go for a bath lift, you need to consider whether the water/air jets would be obstructed.
An add-on is an electric heating element built into the whirlpool bath's plumbing that helps keep the water temperature up so you can soak for longer. Nice! Bath oil, a few candles, bottle of brandy and you're away.

This is an example. It is 1800 mm x 800 mm with water and air jets.

Edited by greybeard, 06 March 2009 - 09:06 PM.

[Ches]

Sounds nice Greybeard, the jets and all.

How practical do you think it would be get a sunken tub.


I was just brainstorming, maybe a few inches higher than that with a wider ledge. I would rather not have a lift, or hoist.. I figure the wall would help to reduce the transfer down.. and to pretty much ensure I can crawl my ass out of that bathtub if I had to.

Anyone have a tub similar to this?

[greybeard]

Ches, on Mar 6 2009, 09:53 PM, said:

How practical do you think it would be get a sunken tub.

That would depend on the construction of your home. An alternative would be to raise the floor level round the bath. You'd still have some shuffling about to do, but it be just as easy to get in and out of as sinking the bath into the floor. Again, it depends on your home. Fitting the bath into a raised plinth, and giving you chair access, would take quite a lot of floor space.

[twisted_ophelia]

Plain old bath for me. And I love baths. I just take out my shower chair, which is small and light (an Invacare, don't know the exact model though) and this is probably not safe at all but what I did was put those strips down all over the tub floor and the rim of the tub (the things you stick on that feel kind of like sand paper). The strips are really long and there are so many of them stuck all over the tub that you can barely even see the ceramic anymore but the way I get into the tub kind of requires it because if I slip, I'm toast. I just transfer onto the rim on the tub and lower myself ass first into it with my arms on the floor of the tub--like a crab, sort of, making sure my legs just slide along with me into the water and don't get stuck on the rim. Does that make sense? Like I said, it's probably very unsafe but don't really want a bath lift or anything like that. To get out, I transfer back onto the rim and go from there. This does not require any twisting. My twisting abilities are limited due to the hardware in my spine. It sounds a lot more complicated than it is but does require good upper body strength. The only thing is that when my back is really bothering me and I'm in serious pain, I need someone to help me in and out if I want a bath. Great for when I was married since Ex Hubby was around. Not so much now.

Edited to add that that sunken floor tub looks pretty damn cool! I'd love a bath with jets.

Edited by twisted_ophelia, 07 March 2009 - 05:05 AM.

[Ches]

Greybeard, we are pretending I have all the room in the world for that tub! If I found the perfect solution, I'd make room!

Yeah TO those sunken tubs are so posh, I just love it. Probably would hate one in reality, but damn they look good.

When you get out of the tub, are you going legs or arms first?

I hate the thought of wet porcelain. All my encounters with bathtubs, post injury, have been agonizing to say the least.

[twisted_ophelia]

I found that there have been less disasters by going in and out arms first. But it does take arm strength and pretty decent trunk control. I told my OT how I get in and out of the tub and I swear she paled a little bit and told me that it's a stupid, dangerous idea. But it works. I've also had some porcelain encounters that have been.. umm... hellish, to say the least, over the years. But my love of baths has overruled all fear! This is why I've basically coated my bathtub in those sticky strip things. Less chance of a face plant. I've managed to figure out both the in and the out pretty well now after some trial and error. Now I take and enjoy baths all the time, particularly in the winter. Those sticky strip things also keep my ass from slowly shifting downwards and sinking deeper into the water so I don't have to sit completely upright. Whoever invented those things is a genius. I have enough of an area to grip on the tub on the side closest to the wall so I can basically hoist myself back out, shift my weight and end up on the outer rim. Make sense at all or not so much? That sort of day to day stuff that we all figure out for ourselves to make life work out better is really hard to describe.

[greybeard]

Ches, on Mar 7 2009, 06:05 AM, said:

I hate the thought of wet porcelain. All my encounters with bathtubs, post injury, have been agonizing to say the least.

Why not consider something less slippery. There is a company in UK that makes tubs out of slabs of teak. They cost a fortune, but they look terrific. Maybe you could find something similar that side of the moat.

(Added) -Here's one from here but they are made worldwide if the number of Google returns is any indication.

http://www.williamga...e/pdhelio.shtml The Geo deep double looks cool.

Edited by greybeard, 07 March 2009 - 03:37 PM.

[russ1]

I'm guessing you've already seen my posts, but I'll repeat them below for completeness;

Here's my bath


I have the hydro therapy jets in it (air coming up) but not the jacuzzi type water jets as these can lead to pressure problems if you sit close to them for any length of time with no feeling.

Getting in - park up next to bath, put one leg in tub (sometimes I do both depends on how I feel), transfer across onto bath side, put other leg in and then lower myself in. One long hot soak later arms on bath side and lift myself up onto triangular bit at back of bath, then lift bum over onto cushion. That's the difficult bit as can't get all way onto chair with legs still in bath so move legs over before moving onto chair fully. It's more confidence and balance than strength. I'm 45, in good health (other than being T2 complete) stay fairly active and have decent balance but I'm a long long way from being a paralympic athlete and could certainly do with spending more (actually any at all would be an improvement) time in the gym.

If I was to do another bathroom I'd make a wider edge at one end to make the transfer easier and allow me to get legs out of bath before moving onto chair but it's not too bad as it is. The lift from in the bath to the edge is actually very easy as the shape of the bath and the wet slidy surface help While the (corner) shape of my bath and the tiled edge make things easier I can get in and out of a standard tub with relatively little difficulty.

I can use pretty much any bath now, getting the chair to the side of the bath at one end makes things easier but a 90deg transfer is doable and the odd grab rail makes things much easier. The best arrangement is a flat seat sized area at the end of a long bath - transfer onto that just like a normal transfer, lift legs in then just edge forward with hands on side of bath and lower yourself in, getting back out is remarkably easy using reverse process.

It doesn't really matter how your bath is arranged just so long as there's an area big enough to park your bum at the side, back (or corner) of the bath between the lift from in the water and the lift onto your chair. Without that things can get interesting and balancing on a 2" bath edge can be 'fun' You want the bath edge as close as possible to the height of your chair for the easiest transfer.

Very definitely worth the trouble for a long hot soak and once you've done one or two you'll wonder why you ever worried about it. Shower still easier for a quick wash though.

Good Luck

Edited by russ1, 07 March 2009 - 05:39 PM.

[Ches]

Yeah I do remember that lovely bath pic Russ1. Thanks for getting into some more detail though, Im really loving that idea now that I can picture the process. Your plan is pretty much ideal.. very easy. I think with a wider ledge on at least 2 sides, and a bathtub that aligns perfectly (into one flat surface with ledge) that is just about as ideal as its going to get..

Getting out on a wet surface was my main concern, as far as safety goes, and your 'slide' seems to solve that problem.

Smart man.. Thanks so much..

[wheelywendy]

russ1, on Mar 7 2009, 05:37 PM, said:

I'm guessing you've already seen my posts, but I'll repeat them below for completeness;

Here's my bath


I have the hydro therapy jets in it (air coming up) but not the jacuzzi type water jets as these can lead to pressure problems if you sit close to them for any length of time with no feeling.

Getting in - park up next to bath, put one leg in tub (sometimes I do both depends on how I feel), transfer across onto bath side, put other leg in and then lower myself in. One long hot soak later arms on bath side and lift myself up onto triangular bit at back of bath, then lift bum over onto cushion. That's the difficult bit as can't get all way onto chair with legs still in bath so move legs over before moving onto chair fully. It's more confidence and balance than strength. I'm 45, in good health (other than being T2 complete) stay fairly active and have decent balance but I'm a long long way from being a paralympic athlete and could certainly do with spending more (actually any at all would be an improvement) time in the gym.

If I was to do another bathroom I'd make a wider edge at one end to make the transfer easier and allow me to get legs out of bath before moving onto chair but it's not too bad as it is. The lift from in the bath to the edge is actually very easy as the shape of the bath and the wet slidy surface help While the (corner) shape of my bath and the tiled edge make things easier I can get in and out of a standard tub with relatively little difficulty.

I can use pretty much any bath now, getting the chair to the side of the bath at one end makes things easier but a 90deg transfer is doable and the odd grab rail makes things much easier. The best arrangement is a flat seat sized area at the end of a long bath - transfer onto that just like a normal transfer, lift legs in then just edge forward with hands on side of bath and lower yourself in, getting back out is remarkably easy using reverse process.

It doesn't really matter how your bath is arranged just so long as there's an area big enough to park your bum at the side, back (or corner) of the bath between the lift from in the water and the lift onto your chair. Without that things can get interesting and balancing on a 2" bath edge can be 'fun' You want the bath edge as close as possible to the height of your chair for the easiest transfer.

Very definitely worth the trouble for a long hot soak and once you've done one or two you'll wonder why you ever worried about it. Shower still easier for a quick wash though.

Good Luck

cor russ1 thats a fantastic looking bath, now i'm dead jelous, i loved baths but very stupidly let my ot talk me into having it taken out and a wet room put in, now i can no longer soak away the aches and pains and have regretted it ever since they took my bath out, now if i'm going away i try to find a hotel with a bath in the disabled rooms,

[twisted_ophelia]

Russ1, that bath looks amazing! Now I'm jealous of anyone who has jets in their bathtub!

Ches, yeah, the wider ledge on both sides is essential, especially to get out--for me anyway.

[the_walrus]

I've seen these bathtubs on tv where they have like a small door on the side and also have a thingy to sit on, so maybe that would make it easier, you could transfer on the thing and then lower yourself in the thub.

Sorry I can't remember the name thought.

Peace
P

[jaquie_farmer]

the_walrus, on Mar 11 2009, 08:06 PM, said:

I've seen these bathtubs on tv where they have like a small door on the side and also have a thingy to sit on, so maybe that would make it easier, you could transfer on the thing and then lower yourself in the thub.

Sorry I can't remember the name thought.

Peace
P

ive seen those too although i think they're mainly for the elderly and im not so sure how you would transfer if you cant stand.

heres a link to what i think walrus is talking about. http://www.seniorbat...esfeatures.html

[the_walrus]

jaquie_farmer, on Mar 11 2009, 05:16 PM, said:

the_walrus, on Mar 11 2009, 08:06 PM, said:

I've seen these bathtubs on tv where they have like a small door on the side and also have a thingy to sit on, so maybe that would make it easier, you could transfer on the thing and then lower yourself in the thub.

Sorry I can't remember the name thought.

Peace
P

ive seen those too although i think they're mainly for the elderly and im not so sure how you would transfer if you cant stand.

heres a link to what i think walrus is talking about. http://www.seniorbat...esfeatures.html

Yeah, well I don't know, maybe it would depend on the size of the door, but then when I think about it, that's pretty dumb (if you cant stand anyway) also I didn't see the pictures,, a bath like Russ1 has would probably be best
Sorry for the dumb suggestion, I haven't took a bath in a looooong time, maybe it's time I look into it too,

Edited by the_walrus, 12 March 2009 - 01:29 AM.

[Ches]

Walrus.. everyone has recommended that tub.. Not necessarily here, but in reality.. and yeah they look to tricky plus in the event something happens(you know an emergrncy), AB or not, Id rather not have to wait for the water to completely drain before the door will open. Plus imagine if you dropped something.. like a razor.. it would be a bitch to pick up!

[the_walrus]

Ches, on Mar 11 2009, 10:00 PM, said:

Walrus.. everyone has recommended that tub.. Not necessarily here, but in reality.. and yeah they look to tricky plus in the event something happens(you know an emergrncy), AB or not, Id rather not have to wait for the water to completely drain before the door will open. Plus imagine if you dropped something.. like a razor.. it would be a bitch to pick up!

Yeah, I guess you're right, someone talked to me about it too, never really thought about it much. I just don't get what's soooo awesome with having a bath, A hot shower is good enough for me.

[Trinity]

the_walrus, on Mar 12 2009, 07:42 PM, said:

I just don't get what's soooo awesome with having a bath, A hot shower is good enough for me.

I am new to the bath thing but they are awesome! Getting to my bath is a pain (it involves dragging myself upstairs and across the hallway) as is getting in and out but I find my body is soooo relaxed after, the warm water seems to confuse and dampen my nerves which dramatically reduces my pain to almost nothing for a few hours and my body goes all floppy like a rag doll. It's bliss! It doesn't last but those few hours of total comfort make all the hassle.

[the_walrus]

trinity, on Mar 12 2009, 11:55 AM, said:

the_walrus, on Mar 12 2009, 07:42 PM, said:

I just don't get what's soooo awesome with having a bath, A hot shower is good enough for me.

I am new to the bath thing but they are awesome! Getting to my bath is a pain (it involves dragging myself upstairs and across the hallway) as is getting in and out but I find my body is soooo relaxed after, the warm water seems to confuse and dampen my nerves which dramatically reduces my pain to almost nothing for a few hours and my body goes all floppy like a rag doll. It's bliss! It doesn't last but those few hours of total comfort make all the hassle.

Maybe I will try a bath tonight, if all you people find it so great maybe it is worth all the getting in/out cleaning the wet floor, drying my chair cushion and all.

[Ches]

Dont over do yourself Walrus you'll take all the fun out of it. Just grabs lots of towels before indulging.

I dont personally have issues with spasm - other than the occasional tightness- I just enjoy the bath for the warmth and relaxation. I would hate to live the rest of my life without another.

[greybeard]

Is it a "girl" thing to soak in the bath in preference to a shower?

[jaquie_farmer]

greybeard, on Mar 12 2009, 04:29 PM, said:

Is it a "girl" thing to soak in the bath in preference to a shower?

i dont think so. i hate baths. unfortunately cuz of my bp it's all i can do right now. =[[

[the_walrus]

Ches, on Mar 12 2009, 01:26 PM, said:

Dont over do yourself Walrus you'll take all the fun out of it. Just grabs lots of towels before indulging.

I dont personally have issues with spasm - other than the occasional tightness- I just enjoy the bath for the warmth and relaxation. I would hate to live the rest of my life without another.

Well I wasn't thinking taking a bath for spasms, I like weed way more when it comes to those (BTW I don't have any serious issues with spasms either, but it's a great excuse for some occasional pot smoking)
But it's awfully cold in Montreal, or it was, thank god winter is almost over, and all this recent cold, snow storms and school made me pretty stressed out, I need some relaxation, so I might follow your advice Ches.

[Ches]

Oh how I miss the days of a long hot bath, tunes, n some pot. Its a great way to pass a lonely evening.

[the_walrus]

Ches, on Mar 12 2009, 02:22 PM, said:

Oh how I miss the days of a long hot bath, tunes, n some pot. Its a great way to pass a lonely evening.

Well, you can still have those, the setup is more a little more complicated . . .

[Ches]

Hmm.. Im sure I could figure a way out, but with my current set up it wouldnt be worth the risk... but maybe, if Im feeling froggy.

[russ1]

greybeard, on Mar 12 2009, 09:29 PM, said:

Is it a "girl" thing to soak in the bath in preference to a shower?

If it is then I must be in touch with my female side

[greybeard]

russ1, on Mar 13 2009, 10:18 AM, said:

greybeard, on Mar 12 2009, 09:29 PM, said:

Is it a "girl" thing to soak in the bath in preference to a shower?

If it is then I must be in touch with my female side

Hehe! That's what I was worried about. I love a good soak.

[twisted_ophelia]

I love baths. Couldn't live without them. Like Trin said, I (sometimes) find them really helpful for pain issues and you just feel so relaxed when you get out.... I know some girls who hate baths so I definitely don't think it's just a girl thing

Put a towel over your chair, Walrus. It will save you from having to deal with drying off your cushion.