FALL EDUCATION AND PREVENTION (PART 2)

FALL EDUCATION AND PREVENTION (PART 2)

One of the subjects the Invisible Illness Awareness Week page asks us to blog about is "what advice would you give someone recently diagnosed." I am very passionate about fall education and prevention for all those living with an invisible illness due to the high percentage of falls and injuries that occur! I hope you are able to stay safe!

In my previous blog post,  FALL EDUCATION AND PREVENTION (PART 1)  I discussed research findings regarding falls and many physical factors that cause us to be  high risk for falls. I strongly believe that being aware of what can potentially lead to a fall and the injuries that can be sustained is very important! It is also necessary to be aware of what we can do regarding our physical conditions, as well as changes in our environment, to keep us as safe as possible and potentially prevent a life altering tragedy.  So, in this article, I will cover some interventions that you can implement to decrease your chances of falling and keep you safe as possible. 

Remember, as a part of our new “normal” of living with chronic pain, not only do we all need to be aware of what we can do to keep us living as functional and safe as possible, but we all also need to share this information with others to help educate them to deal with similar risks of falling.  Please share this information to help keep others as safe as possible! It could save their life.

Environmental factors around our homes that can increase our risk of falls:
Be aware! We all need to take a look around our homes, as well as wherever we are, to see what potential dangers are around us and know the changes we need to make to keep ourselves safe and hopefully free of falling!

• Throw Rugs-can be dangerous, tripping on the rug or the rug slipping can lead to a fall – you should seriously consider removing throw rugs.

• Electrical cords-from lamps, extension cords, computer cords, phone charging cables, etc. going across where you walk should be removed. They can cause you to trip.

• Items lying around on the floors in your pathway-books, magazines, papers, shoes, clothes, towels and any other items lying around should be picked up off the floor to keep you safe and free of falling.

FALL EDUCATION & PREVENTION (PART 1)

FALL EDUCATION & PREVENTION (PART 1)

One of the subjects the Invisible Illness Awareness Week page asks us to blog about is "what advice would you give someone recently diagnosed." I am very passionate about fall education and prevention for all those living with an invisible illness due to the high percentage of falls and injuries that occur! I hope you are able to stay safe!

FALLS

Does just seeing that word bring about a frightening memory for you? You are not alone!  It frightens many people!  With good reason!  Falls occur frequently among those of us with chronic pain.  Injuries obtained from a fall may have even been the origin of your chronic pain, or your chronic pain may have caused a fall.  Either way, falling has negatively impacted many lives!

Working in Occupational Therapy for almost 25 years, primarily with the elderly, I have experienced treating firsthand many patients that suffered moderate to severe injuries due to falls (various head injuries, broken shoulders, broken arms, broken pelvic bones, broken hips, and legs, etc.).

Not only that, but over the past five years, being involved with several spine surgery and chronic pain support groups, I have been a part of many discussions with various ages of people that have reported falls, as well as the resulting pain and injuries. Unfortunately, statistics show many of these injuries  may have been preventable!