Thursday, September 15, 2011

The sound of one hand shampooing

I have a fair amount of movement in my right (affected) hand. But my sensation isn't great, and even more troubling is my lack of proprioception. If I can't see my hand, sometimes I forget where it is.

I've heard that visualization might help. For example, when I wash my hair I use both hands, but concentrate on visualizing kneading my hair with my right fingers.

But sometimes my mind wanders. Then I realize that something doesn't feel quite right on my right side of my head. When I lower my right hand and look at it, I realize that I've been washing my hair with the back of my wrist.

5 comments:

  1. I have proprioception trouble on my affected side too. Sometimes I'm convinced I've straightened my fingers, but I have to look to see if it's true. Congratulations on having movement - was it the CIT that did it, you think?

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  2. Actually, I started to get a tiny bit of movement about three weeks post-stroke (Feb 2010), and I still seeing improvement. The CIT group helped me to remember to *use* it. Even though I'm pretty motivated, the force of habit (and fatigue) is very strong.

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  3. I have to use vision to compensate for my poor balance. When I don a top that has to go over my head I can't see where vertical is. I lean my calves against my bed so I know I'm not falling. Vision was intended for more exciting things than seeing what position a body part is in.

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  4. My right hand is still in recovery as well, I love this post! I call my hand my "ghost hand" it is just "kind of there"! I am gladd you shared this, I know there is someone else out there like me!

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  5. I just love your wandering mind Grace.

    The left side of my head, hand, leg all feel off. My muscle control is pretty good when I'm not too tired, but still feel a weird - tingly, swollenish feeling (like you had an elastic way too tight around your arm for way too long) and I have a poorer sense of where it is. I drop things a lot and really come across as klutzy.

    I had a dangerous reaction during testing at the allergist's office and thought "How weird.. I only got hives on half my face.". They showed me in a mirror that I was covered in the rash, but I was only itchy on my right side. I am apparently deadly allergic to gravol, morphine, codeine and a bunch of other useful pain killers and anaesthetics.

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