Pain in the Butt

| ASK THE COACH

By “Coach” Scott Chesney

Over the years, I have received many e-mails asking me why pressure sores happen, how to care for them, and the best way to prevent them. Well, considering that I am typing this flat on my stomach, arms extended like Superman, and neck muscles tight from looking up at the computer, it is safe to say that I am currently waging my own battle with a pressure sore.

I like to think of myself as a strong person, but I am really struggling with this latest setback. I can’t exercise, and that is weighing on my mind. But while it bothers me that my upper body is getting smaller, it’s watching my legs and feet atrophy that is really causing me stress. Granted, I have never had bulging quads or calf muscles, but they have been pretty toned thanks to my standing every day in my EasyStand and riding my ERGYS bicycle twice a week. Why don’t I just do either one or both of those activities if I know they will benefit my legs and feet? I know that if I put any pressure on my backside before a nice, hard scab has formed, I am certainly looking at a setback…which is exactly what happened to me.

For the past two weeks, as I write this, I have done my complete morning routine in bed—eating breakfast, toothbrushing and catheterizing—all on my stomach or sides so as not to risk another setback. Once I am done and ready to go to my office downstairs, my wife Pratiksha grabs my ankles, like a wheelbarrow race, and I walk with my hands about 30 yards from the bedroom to my elevator, then another 10 yards from the elevator to my office, and the day begins. Every other day at the end of the work day, I perform my bowel routine in a small space I’ve set up in my office for the purpose. It has been a very long time since I have had a bowel routine lying down, but I refuse to sit up, even if I don’t put any pressure in that area, because I am afraid of stretching the skin.

This is what life has come to for me, and mentally I am waging a fierce battle.

On the one hand, I am doing everything in my power to heal this sore and move on with my life. Deep down, I know I am being tested, and while I may have lost this battle for a couple of weeks, I know I will win the war. On the other hand, I just feel like giving up. I think about all I have already had to endure in the 24 years I have been paralyzed, and I ask what I have done to deserve this now.

As a professional speaker with a busy schedule, I find it nearly impossible to take a week off to heal a pressure sore properly. What do I mean by properly? Plain and simple: get off it, totally! While the numerous gels, pills, ointments, powders, diets, home remedies, etc., may help in the healing process, if you don’t get off of that area, it will not heal. Don’t try and fool yourself into thinking you can sit up even for a second. Trust me—and I speak from painful experience—you will not win this battle with this attitude.

I spent four days off my butt, totally, but I had a speaking engagement on the fifth day. The pressure sore had scabbed, but it was not ready to come off. So by sitting up, I instantly made it come off— and here we are again, back at Stage 1.

Five years ago, we lost Christopher Reeve, and it all began with a pressure sore. That should be enough of a wake-up call to anyone susceptible to them. I am not ready to leave my family, my friends, and my audiences who I do my very best to inspire and motivate. I need to—we all need to—take better care ourselves from a preventative standpoint and also when we do have an ailment or an injury. It is a long, arduous, painful, frustrating, and, many times, demoralizing journey that we are on in living our lives with paralysis. Nevertheless, we have endured so many challenges that originally put us in our wheelchairs, so I know we can handle whatever life throws our way— including a pressure sore.

It would make me feel better if I knew someone could learn from my mistake. If you have never had a pressure sore, great! Keep doing what you are doing and don’t let up! If you are like me and have a boney butt and are more prone to pressure sores, then make it one of your top priorities to shift your weight, check your skin, and make an appointment at a reputable wheelchair seating clinic.

Like most things in life, we know what we need to do, but we often fail to do so. Why is that? Because we become lazy at times and don’t think being rational applies to us. Just do me a favor: Think of Christopher Reeve, think of me, think of whatever it takes to remind you to do that weight shift and relieve some pressure. Your butt will appreciate it!

Scott Chesney is an internationally recognized motivational speaker and life coach, who was paralyzed from a rare spinal stroke at the age of 15, back in 1985. He can be reached at schesney@unitedspinal.org.

This column is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as offering medical advice. If you have a medical condition requiring attention, please seek the help of qualified medical professionals.