About a month ago, I mentioned Kate’s increasing difficulty getting up from a seated position. I don’t have any control over the seating when we go out, but I did think about what I could do at home. She spends far more time in our family room than any other room in the house except for the bedroom. That led me to think about getting a lift chair.
We went to the La-Z-Boy show room four weeks ago and ordered one. It arrived Saturday afternoon. She tried it out while the delivery men were still here and didn’t get out until time for dinner. That was almost three hours. I demonstrated how it would recline if she wanted to rest, but she preferred to work on her iPad in a seated position. When it came time to leave, I showed her how to raise herself up to a standing position. She was surprised but not overwhelmed by the way it worked. I was the one who was impressed. Much easier than my lifting her.
Yesterday we got a chance to see how it works in the reclined position. She was ready to rest as soon as we returned from lunch. Ordinarily, she would use the sofa. This time I suggested she try the recliner. I adjusted it so that she was practically lying flat. She was comfortable and remained there for three hours. I don’t know that she likes it any more than the sofa, but I believe she is going to enjoy being able to get out of it more easily. Of course, she probably won’t learn how to work the control that has only two buttons – up and down. That shouldn’t be a problem since either the sitter or I will be there to do the job. I know it will become more useful as her ability to get up becomes more difficult.
It’s easy to look at this as a minor thing, but it represents our moving to a stage when her mobility restricts her more than it does today. I see it as another marker on our journey. In that respect, it is like my discontinuing my morning walk in the neighborhood for one inside the house, bringing in a sitter because I didn’t believe she should be left alone, or getting a handicap placard for the car. It’s another example of the changes we experience. Thankfully, we have adapted to changes in the past. I hope we will do the same as we approach the more challenging ones that lie ahead.
