Accessing your Home through Modification

Sometimes, after a spinal cord injury, your home is no longer accessible and you are told that "your home will require modification". But what are the actual modifications that your home might need? 

 

One common modification, unless your home is level with the ground, is ramp installation

 

Quick Ramp 101 - Ramps must be constructed so that for every 1" of rise there are 12"of run, meaning If your door is 6 inches up, you'll need a 6 foot ramp. 

from THAGroup.org Home health tip: How to build a wheelchair ramp

Any ramp installation must be completed according to the specified code requirements as per the Nova Scotia Building Code Regulations - but the read is a bit dry. I find the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) actually explains it a bit better. 

The CMHC also have an entire section called Accessible Housing by Design, going further in depth about renovations/modifications according to different areas of your home (kitchen, bathroom, etc.), home automation, and appropriate appliance selection.

 

For even more information and ideas, linking from the CMHC, you can also visit the center for Universal Design and their online publications section. For example, from the Design Research and Methods Journal there is one article that goes over SIX different accessible stock house plans. OR you could look over a curbless shower installation guide.

While its hard to be told that your home no longer suits your needs, these sites are here to help you understand why and what your options are. The online publications have lots of articles, each filled with ideas that go beyond the basic modifications too, and that can help you narrow down what you want as well as what you need. 

Also, visit our SCIRehab YouTube channel to see how others have modified their homes, like in the example below. I like this video I have included because it goes over good items but also points out other areas that might need modification.  

An online Agenda - Sometimes Typing is Easier

 

Do you rather type than write? Lots of people do! So here is a helpful tip for replacing your old written agenda and notes for free! 

 

First let's talk about Typing - do you find you are having trouble with keys repeating from pressing down on a key too long? for examppppllleeee. Well there are built in options in your computer to adjust that and the rate that letters repeat.

 

Go into your control panel and select Keyboard (it could be listed under hardware, or Ease of Access, search for keyboard if required). Once in your control panel (and they are all different) you are looking for options such as repeat rate, repeat delay, bounce keys, slow keys - all these can help you avoid accidental key strokes and even ignore repeated key strokes, or it can just slow the rate of repeating key strokes. Many computer come with these options and it just takes a little exploring on your part. You can even select an option that -beeps- when you use caps or num lock - SO helpful for those of us who tend to hit the caps key accidentally and typically don't notice till much later!

 

Now that typing is down - what's this about a free agenda online?! well read on!

 

Remember a few posts back about the video YouTube account? (if not, you should check it out!) Well, you have an option to create a google email or gmail account. Once created you have opened up the doors to a whole range of accessible options.

 

With gmail accounts you can create your own calendar/agenda, and it has many options to personalize it to function according to your preference. For example - you go into your calendar, select view by day, then double click at a certain time to create an appointment. While creating your appointment, you can even select to have several email reminders sent to you over the course of the day, pops ups on your screen (if you leave the computer open) or each day your calendar will email you your daily agenda at a specified time (mine is 5am) and you can print it to have with you. Even better, you can link your calendar up to others and share content you specify - maybe you have a loved one who would like to add to your schedule.

 

 

And again - this is all free! Easy to use. And super helpful for someone who may not be keen on writing.