Life Alert
 

We're having a discussion over on the SSDI board about living independently.

This is part of another member's reply to me:

Oh yeah, there is something called "life alert", but there is one thing that coud be an issue? When your shunt goes down, does it go down without warning or do you normally get gradual signs? This may or may not make a difference as long as you get into surgery ASAP
************************************************** *******
I wasn't sure how much help Life Alert could be, since we could have
gradual signs of shunt failure which may go undetected for a while, or
the shunt could fail so quickly, that we may not have time to react.

What do you all think about this? Would Life Alert necklaces be an
option for us?

Shunt malfunction or failure will be different for all of us, depending on what causes it. Last time, as brutal as my symptoms were, I had about 6-8 hours before I lost complete alertness. LifeAlert is a good thing to have for anyone with hydro who lives alone, particularly in the case of falls, seizures, etc.



LIZARD :)

I'm confused
 

I checked out the site for LifeAlert and found this:

Home Emergencies

Help, I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up®

In a home fall emergency, or in case of a seizure, heart attack, stroke or other serious illness, a senior usually cannot reach the telephone. She or he may lie on the floor for hours or days, disconnected from any help. This injury can become life threatening.

How can Life Alert® help?

A simple press of a button will instantly activate Life Alert's small base unit located in the house. This unit will immediately communicate with our Monitoring Center, initiating amplified two-way voice communication between the senior and our emergency operators, who will contact neighbors, Paramedics, the Fire Department, Police and/or relatives as needed.
************************************************** *******
It mentions being helpful for people with epilepsy, but it only mentions
"seniors". There's no mention about people under the age of 65 with
disabilities or other medical conditions. So, this product is only being
recommended for senior citizens?:confused: :(

If you're really interested, I'd contact them. Seniors, of course, have the greatest risk, due to age and the fact that many of them live alone. It doesn't mean that only seniors can get them.


Good luck...

LIZARD :)

Hey

I think the necklaces would be good for us, I still live at home with my parents, but yes I think they would be a good idea

LifeAlert homepage
 

Here's the Web address for LifeAlert:

www.lifealert.com

What about bracelets??Do they make those too?

According to this page:

http://www.lifealert.net/services/equipment.html

it can be worn around your neck or wrist. But, it doesn't say that it
comes in a necklace (or a bracelet). It just mentions the necklace.
I'm thinking that the strap is adjustable. But, it would have to be
adjusted pretty small and tight to go from a necklace to a bracelet.

Yes, in this country ANYONE can get a personal alarm..
 

Here, anyone who has a health condition or a disability, or is elderly is able to get a "button" which can be worn around the neck, and pushed in case of emergency. When the button is pushed, a signal is sent to a monitoring centre, which then phones the person. Their voice is able to be heard through a special device, so that the person (if they are able) can still speak and be heard by the person at the monitoring centre. If the client does not answer the phone when the centre calls, they assume that the person needs help, and immediately goes to the person's house. Of course, this system depends on the fact that the person is competent enough to push the button. The call centre also calls the person every morning to see if they are up for the day, and if they don't answer the call, the centre assumes they need help. This system works fairly well for people who are still fairly mentally alert (ie, not in the more advanced stages of dementia).

Although my shunt failure symptoms come on fairly quickly, I am still aware of what they are, and therefore call the ambulance immediately, before I become unconscious. So I don't know how useful one of these call buttons would be for me.


Nat.

Life Alert- How much
 

Well, what do you know?
 

I checked the site again and found this:

Life Alert Emergency Response, Inc.
Life Alert provides medical emergency response when seniors experience life threatening events. Life Alert is the only company endorsed by C. Everett Koop, MD, former US Surgeon General. Life Alert appears on TV and in AARP magazine.

Since 1987, Life Alert ® has been in the business of providing emergency response services to the elderly and handicapped on a 24-hour, 7 day a week basis. Life Alert strives to provide the highest quality of services to its consumers.
************************************************** ******
Interesting how seniors are mentioned first and handicapped people are
sort of added as an afterthought.:rolleyes: :mad:

As for how much the service costs, I don't know because the links don't
work. Maybe someone who uses the service in those states will see this
and post some information.

[QUOTE=Braindrain;4822]We're having a discussion over on the SSDI board about living independently.

This is part of another member's reply to me:

Oh yeah, there is something called "life alert", but there is one thing that coud be an issue? When your shunt goes down, does it go down without warning or do you normally get gradual signs? This may or may not make a difference as long as you get into surgery ASAP
************************************************** *******
I wasn't sure how much help Life Alert could be, since we could have
gradual signs of shunt failure which may go undetected for a while, or
the shunt could fail so quickly, that we may not have time to react.

What do you all think about this? Would Life Alert necklaces be an
option for us?[I had a life alert for almost a year, but it was of little use to me. The darn thing would sometimes go off without me in the room. And when I did use it, only a couple of times, all they could do was send ambulances. And the price of the darn thing was never the same from month to month. I got rid of it]

[QUOTE=jeff179120;453409]Jeff, Gina can't answer your question, she passed away a few years ago...

Medical ID
 

I have two forms of medical ID.

One is a bracelet and the other is on my car keys it is a dog tag with the medical alert symbol. I also have several business cards of my neurosurgeon and several blue medical alert identification cards for the Endoscopic Third Ventriculostomy procedure.

Hblank89

Always be prepared. You never know when it might save your life.

Hydrocephalus (Shunt 2+ yrs)
 

I,m new to the sight. Still trying to learn my way around.* I've had 4 surgeries 2 within hours of each other 7+ hours.* Subdural hemotomo 1 and a half later.* My head has never stopped hurting and my short term memory makes it impossible for me to work.* No one understands what I am going through. It scares me just thinking about a shunt malfunction.* What can I expect? I will mtry and* post my story soon.* thanks for the feed back.:confused:TEC49

TEC, I am sorry to inform you but the person who had started this thread has passed away sometime ago. However, I am the person who she is reffering to in the discussion about lifealert. I can't personally help you with much about this topic, but, IMHO, if you are living alone and you have a serious medical condtion such as hydro, by all means go and get one. :):hug:

My grandma is very sick and my parents are unable to watch her anymore because they are moving to Montana for my Dad's job. I can't be at her house all the time watching her because I am in school for my masters. For some peace of mind, I'm considering getting a Medical Alert system for her house. I need a review of a good one before I check into it further. Has anyone bought from that alert 1 website? Thanks for the help.

Hey Liz... Bet you don't know who this is...haha. (that was a hint).

I have a Lifeline from Phillips, but I live in Canada. My button is similar to a wristwatch and the last time I had a seizure, I fell and couldn't get up. I pushed the button, the response centre answered right away and the ambulance was here in less than five minutes. The ER doctor ordered a CT scan (which I'm still waiting on) and changed meds a bit. But if it hadn't have been for the ambulance guys I could still be on the floor. It's worth it to me. I paid $50 for the installation and I pay $25 a month. The only downfall is my button only works in my apartment. It doesn't have a GPS.