25 replies to this topic

[Channy]

My fiance and I currently live in a trailer. It's 900sq feet but not wheelchair accessible at ALL. The whole place would have to be renovated to make it accessible for him. I'm perfectly fine with moving to a new home, one that is already or one that would be easy to make wheelchair accessible. But it's just so difficult to even find houses that are ABLE to be made accessible. It's scary. We had a gentleman from the Canadian Paraplegic Association (in Canada) come speak to us yesterday morning & he said that the docotrs usually try to "push" (his words) paraplegics out of the rehabilitation center as early as four months after they get there. I realize they won't send us home if my fiance is not ready & capable of coming home, but he's already been in rehab for almost a month and I just know these next few will fly by. I'm so worried about him being given the "go ahead" to go home but not being able to because we don't have anywhere to live!

Our trailer is in a small town (10 000 ppl) and I hate it there. Meanwhile the rehab center is in the provinces capital and I love it here. I'm currently renting an apartment here for the time being, as long as he is in rehab here. Im just worried about how difficult it is going to be to find a home that's affordable & accessible (I found one the other day but it's a little out of our price range at $369 000) in this RIDICULOUS housing market (srsly, the crappiest homes are selling for an easy $150 000).

Did you have to move after you had your injury? How extensive were the renovations to make your home accessible?

[Ratticis]

For me the biggest renovation was the bathroom. Actually, other than adding a door and building a deck so I could get in, that was the only renovation. They can't/won't discharge someone with no place to go. BTW, if you're in Alberta and planning on getting on AISH, get the paperwork done ASAP. They just love to screw us around while meanwhile some morphine addict gets on no problem. Then they tell me I should get a job. Then won't backpay anything for the last 6 months while they've been screwing around cus 'you've managed so far'. Ya, only because of family and friends, and now all my bills are 4 months behind! Sorry, I'm a wee bit bitter

[Channy]

Ratticis, on Dec 16 2009, 02:39 AM, said:

For me the biggest renovation was the bathroom. Actually, other than adding a door and building a deck so I could get in, that was the only renovation. They can't/won't discharge someone with no place to go. BTW, if you're in Alberta and planning on getting on AISH, get the paperwork done ASAP. They just love to screw us around while meanwhile some morphine addict gets on no problem. Then they tell me I should get a job. Then won't backpay anything for the last 6 months while they've been screwing around cus 'you've managed so far'. Ya, only because of family and friends, and now all my bills are 4 months behind! Sorry, I'm a wee bit bitter

I heard, from a friend who lives in an accessible apartment building and talks frequently to a man who is paralyzed, that he spent six YEARS in the rehab center after his injury because he had no place to go. Oh lord, the thought of that scares me! I'm from Saskatchewan, actually so I'm not sure what AISH is but the SK gov't haven't been too speedy with our paperwork here either and it's getting very frustrating!

[oldwheelz]

I'm in Manitoba and I had to move. We had moved to a country home near our national park. Loved it there but the house would have been near impossible to change. And ten miles from town was too far.
I was lucky and bought a house that needed little change. Ramp, bathroom reno's and a basement lift. We changed the kitchen cupboards with my needs in mind but would have changed them anyway. We are in a town of less than 1000 which works fine for me. Any place I go people are ready to help and most know when I need it. I am a worker's comp case so I am not working so I can enjoy going out in a place where people look out for you and I don't have to worry about crime.

[hooplady]

We got lucky. Tom's prior home was not accessible and it would have been extremely difficult to make it so. Mine was no better. We live in a historic neighborhood; houses have small doorways, teensy bathrooms, are built off-grade and the lot sizes are too small to provide proper ramp length. We thought it would be impossible to find something nearby but lo and behold, a friend told us about an accessible ground-floor apartment only a few blocks from me. It had literally just become vacant so I snapped it up. We're soooo thankful, because they would not accept him into rehab unless he could prove he had a place to be released to afterwards. I would have found him something, somewhere, but it probably would have been miles away making it that much tougher on me in the early days.

You say your trailer is not accessible - do you mean no room to install a ramp, or once he gets inside? We found that removing doors from the hinges gave him the extra inch he needed, and removing cabinet doors in the kitchen gave him decent access to lower shelves. Do you think you can make do in your current home to allow yourselves some time to find something better? FYI, there are portable modular meetal ramps you can purchase. They cost more than a wood ramp, but if you are forced to making the trailer work for now, at least you can take them with you and use them in the next place.

You're smart to start thinking about this now. As others have stated, it takes time. Good luck!

[Tetracyclone]

Fixing a trailer is wasted money. How are rentals? Better to look around awhile before you buy.

Six years. That was cost effective for the state... not. Gotta be a record. Your guy will be out in five, easy.

Laughter is key.

[E-DOG]

Pwuff, on Dec 16 2009, 01:32 PM, said:

Laughter is key.

The KEY? Key to WHAT?

[Tetracyclone]

E-DOG, on Dec 16 2009, 11:41 PM, said:

Pwuff, on Dec 16 2009, 01:32 PM, said:

Laughter is key.

The KEY? Key to WHAT?

To you Dog- key to my heart. To the lady- key to survival. trying to signal that I was making a joke.

[Channy]

We would have to move entrance doorways, make our hallway MUCH MUCH wider, and build little extensions here & there to the trailer to make it accessible. Im REALLY hoping we don't renovate the trailer to accommodate. I hate it there, haha. It's definitely not somewhere I see myself being for many more years to come. The purpose we bought the trailer for was to facilitate us from renting to buying and as an "in between" between renting to owning an actual "home."

I thought I was smart to start thinking about this early, too. But my fiance seems to think that something is just going to pop up and magically it's going to be accessible for him. Not going to happen!

[qbounce]

E-DOG, on Dec 16 2009, 09:41 PM, said:

Pwuff, on Dec 16 2009, 01:32 PM, said:

Laughter is key.

The KEY? Key to WHAT?

Yeah E,
I thought you had the skeleton of all keys!

I was fortunate that my house is one story, and already hard wood flooring, except 2 carpeted bedrooms. The only reno's I needed were the bathroom and the ramp to get in/out of the house. Oh, and I bought these swing back door hinges that allow a bedroom door to open flush against the frame, giving me an axtra 2 inches of room through each interior doorway.

[hooplady]

qbounce, on Dec 17 2009, 12:18 PM, said:

Oh, and I bought these swing back door hinges that allow a bedroom door to open flush against the frame, giving me an axtra 2 inches of room through each interior doorway.

Hey qbounce, where did you find the swing-away hinges? Neither Lowe's nor Home Depot seem to carry them, even though they are mentioned on Home Depot's website. I've found them online but they're kinda expensive.

Oh dear Channy. Your fiance sounds like my b/f...somehow it will all just magically "work out" huh?

[Tetracyclone]

DO

NOT

DISCOUNT

MAGIC.

b/F may have a direct line.

[hooplady]

Pwuff, on Dec 17 2009, 02:47 PM, said:

DO

NOT

DISCOUNT

MAGIC.

b/F may have a direct line.

True...he managed not to die in the first place!

[Channy]

Okay, another couple home related questions..

Do you all have "barrier free" showers? Or, how do you bathe?

Do you need assistance bars on the sides of the toilet? I was under the impression my fiancee would be able to transfer himself from chair to toilet using the handle on his chair & the back of the toilet but he disagrees. I'm only wondering b/c if we'll need to install bars next to the toilet, we need to look for a house that'll leave us enough room on either side of the toilet to install the transfer bars.

[blckchns]

Channy, on Dec 30 2009, 01:13 PM, said:

Okay, another couple home related questions..

Do you all have "barrier free" showers? Or, how do you bathe?

Do you need assistance bars on the sides of the toilet? I was under the impression my fiancee would be able to transfer himself from chair to toilet using the handle on his chair & the back of the toilet but he disagrees. I'm only wondering b/c if we'll need to install bars next to the toilet, we need to look for a house that'll leave us enough room on either side of the toilet to install the transfer bars.

I have one handle bar on the wall on one side of the toilet and I park my chair on the other side. From there I just transfer over to use the bathroom. It's a lot easier then using a commode chair and nobody has to empty the bucket when I'm done. It's just one less thing to worry about. At first I didn't think it was possible and didn't even want to try until I was forced to.

I also have a roll in shower with a shower chair I transfer onto. I hope that helps!

[qbounce]

hooplady, on Dec 17 2009, 11:47 AM, said:

Hey qbounce, where did you find the swing-away hinges? Neither Lowe's nor Home Depot seem to carry them, even though they are mentioned on Home Depot's website. I've found them online but they're kinda expensive.

Sorry Hooplady,
For not responding to you sooner. . . . . I just noticed your question.
Well, I got mine online. And yeah, they aren't cheap. But, I recall the best price may have been by Sammons Preston . . . . but I'm not possitive about that. It's been awhile since I bought them.

[hooplady]

qbounce, on Dec 30 2009, 02:38 PM, said:

Sorry Hooplady,
For not responding to you sooner. . . . . I just noticed your question.
Well, I got mine online. And yeah, they aren't cheap. But, I recall the best price may have been by Sammons Preston . . . . but I'm not possitive about that. It's been awhile since I bought them.

Hee-hee, no problem. Actually another post sent me wandering over to Sammons-Preston looking for something else and I stumbled on them anyway. Thanks!

[MDK]

My husband is an incomplete quad & it was cheaper and simpler to sell our abode and build one that met his requirements but then it was before the houses got to the crazy prices of nowadays.
Mioara

[mcferguson]

Channy, on Dec 30 2009, 12:13 PM, said:

Do you all have "barrier free" showers? Or, how do you bathe?

Do you need assistance bars on the sides of the toilet? I was under the impression my fiancee would be able to transfer himself from chair to toilet using the handle on his chair & the back of the toilet but he disagrees. I'm only wondering b/c if we'll need to install bars next to the toilet, we need to look for a house that'll leave us enough room on either side of the toilet to install the transfer bars.

I have a shower stall and I transfer onto a shower bench.

As for the toilet, I use a commode chair and do not have any bars on the walls. My toilet is in a small room by itself, so I have to approach it from a 90 degree angle and use a small transfer board.

blckchns, on Dec 30 2009, 01:34 PM, said:

Channy, on Dec 30 2009, 01:13 PM, said:

Okay, another couple home related questions..

Do you all have "barrier free" showers? Or, how do you bathe?

Do you need assistance bars on the sides of the toilet? I was under the impression my fiancee would be able to transfer himself from chair to toilet using the handle on his chair & the back of the toilet but he disagrees. I'm only wondering b/c if we'll need to install bars next to the toilet, we need to look for a house that'll leave us enough room on either side of the toilet to install the transfer bars.

I have one handle bar on the wall on one side of the toilet and I park my chair on the other side. From there I just transfer over to use the bathroom. It's a lot easier then using a commode chair and nobody has to empty the bucket when I'm done. It's just one less thing to worry about. At first I didn't think it was possible and didn't even want to try until I was forced to.

How do you do this? Do you have any bowel control?

[KeepTheFaith]

Somehow you make things work. I have seen people do what they have to do - sleep in living rooms, set-up portable showers in garages, or stay in hotel rooms until housing can be found. You do what you have to do and slowly figure things out. I think it is great that you are looking at things early on. Can anyone from the rehab facility come out to your trailer and give you some ideas?

[Channy]

KeepTheFaith, on Dec 31 2009, 07:23 PM, said:

Somehow you make things work. I have seen people do what they have to do - sleep in living rooms, set-up portable showers in garages, or stay in hotel rooms until housing can be found. You do what you have to do and slowly figure things out. I think it is great that you are looking at things early on. Can anyone from the rehab facility come out to your trailer and give you some ideas?

A lady from our insurance company & an occupational therapist are both planning on going out to our trailer in Jan to assess the situation. It would involve a LOT of renos to make the trailer accessible and I really would rather just move into a home instead of spending all that $$ on making the trailer accessible and then, in a few years, trying to sell a wheelchair accessible trailer in a small town of like 9000 people. There just aren't many ppl in wheelchairs in our town and the ones that are are much older people whose homes are in care homes or some place similar to that. But, yeah, I'm glad I'm starting to look at houses early. Although, once January rolls around (AKA tomorrow haha), we will know more about whether or not we need a new home and then can just go from there, I guess. Thanks for all the awesome responses.

I've learned that it's hard to find homes with bathrooms that are big enough for my fiancee to get in & wheel around, not to mention bathrooms in which the shower/tub area is big enough for it to be converted to a barrier free shower.

[Irenec]

The House we were living in at the time of my husbands car accident had a ground floor bedroom.The people who lived there before us moved out as there son had a car accident and was a paraplegic.They moved to a bungalow.
We bought the house, and soon after my husband broke his neck.They were both taken to Stoke Mandaville Hospital.
Both in ward 1X.
We sold the house and moved to a bungalow also.

The next person to buy that house was a Tax Inspector.Something also happened to him. I cant remember what.I know it wasnt spinal

[dangerousdave]

Here in the UK we are protected by our social housing policies
Which in my case I had to intentualy break to get the housing I needed - but thats another story

You guys living in the americas have your own govermental policies that I know nothing about
What I can say is that when as a bi-ped working on 2 occasions in Belle River Ontario and Detroit- Troy Michigan. The great lakes area
The family homes (bungalows) I rented would have both accepted my now wheelie form with very little work needed. Admittedly the basement would now be out of bounds as would be non lift blocks of flats
If I was there today, my trouble would be the snow. The 2 young kids that I had in tow those days are now adults with their own families...I'd have to find new shovelers
Times change I know
Accomidation issues though.....don't

[norma]

A few months have passed since your post and hopefully you have settled somewhere.
We stayed in our home after my surgery. The OT came and told us what needed to be done and also gave suggestions.
First off we widened a door way and removed all carpets, and installed hardwood. I lived with a very tiny bathroom and bedroom
for a year. I wanted to wait and really know what my needs were going to be. Everything can be so over whelming at first
and I didn't want to do anything that I'd regret later. We built an addition onto the back of our home. A 20x26ft addition. this
is now an entrance way/hallway and a new bedroom and a bathroom/laundry room. As well as a basement addition.
i am now able to wheel around my whole bed and do all the families laundry and toilet/shower on my own.
I have a commode/shower chair. Get into chair with some help from hubby and toilet then right into shower. Self propell wheels.
The shower is 5x4ft and I can wheel right in, it has a slight decline. No bumps to get over. Bathroom/laundry room is 6x20ft.
Main floor laundry with front load machines. Installed pocket doors and long skinny windows to be able to see out to backyard and able to open and close with ease. There are alot of questions at the beginning, patience!!! Hope this helps you a bit.

[chris135]

Hey Channy,
Have you considered moving to a city. Not sure what town you're from but we're from Regina. After my accident we only had to move a few blocks to another apartment. This one is ran by the regina housing authority and is completely accessible. They have 2 buildings in Regina specifically for people with disabilitys and their partners. I'm sure theres something in Saskatoon or PA, maybe even Weyburn or Yorkton if you're closer to one of those places.

What level is your fiance? I'm a T7-8 and I use a bath bench in the shower and transfer over. As for the toiled the apartment as i mention is fully equiped and had the bars on the side for transfers.

We're fine with renting right now for a while cause as you said the housing market is ridiculous. Is your fiance still in rehab since your trailer isn't accessible? If so i hope you find a solution asap as i know what hell it can be in SK.

[airart1]

good time to buy, building, i dont know, cost is thru the roof, but existing homes are way cheaper, mine lost 40 grand in value last 2 years......but i built mine so, everythings accessible.........1 more year and i can burn the mortgage.....but it sure is a crappy situation to have a place and not be able to use it......