Hi Sheena, I too am sorry to hear about your falls.


What RW mentioned here is really worthwhile if you can get a PT to show you. They also teach you how to get up from the floor if you have to.

I too have had more than my fair share of falls, but after 6 broken bones in 5 years I finally gave in and bought a cane....two actuually, and a walker for those days when a cane simply is not enough.

My DH and I live in rented accomodation and for some scary reason they always seem to have stairs, and there's not a thing we can do about them. We can't go adding a second railing to the stairs, nor can we add grab rails in the shower or beside the toilet. I have to just mange as best I can.

The first thing I had to do was throw out every pair of shoes I had that were non-supporting. No sling backs, slip-ons and the like for me anymore. No high heels either. I now wear those very sexy flat heeled "sensible" shoes that granny used to wear, but I feel safer.

I also had to slow down. Once I only had 2 speeds....flat out and stop. In the days of the white uniformed registered nurse, they used to call me "The White Flash", or just "Flash" for short, because I got about and did things so fast. I'd have half the morning's work done while the others were still arguing over who was going to do what.

Stairs I take one at a time. I'm very slow that way, but at least I haven't fallen down or up the stairs, yet. I've fallen just about everywhere else, but not on the stairs.

Is there any way you can limit your use of the staircase? Can you do everything you need to one one level before proceeding to the other? Is there one level you can stay on for most of the day? Just wondering.

I think a lot of my falls have been because of my inability to judge distance. My vision is acceptable, but I still run into doorways. There are days when I look a lot like a battered baby, and every bruise is one I've done by running into things that I thought were slightly further away, or a gap that I judged to be wider than it was. I'm not sure what I can do about that one.

I do hope things improve for you.