Saturday News

Contents of This Week Saturday News May 30th / 2015

• Definition: Sticky Keys & Keyboard Shortcut

      Sticky Keys is an accessibility feature to help Windows users who have physical disabilities, but it is also used by others as a means to reduce repetitive strain injury (or a syndrome called the Emacs Pinky). It essentially serializes keystrokes instead of pressing multiple keys at a time: Sticky Keys allows the user to press and release a modifier key, such as Shift, Ctrl, Alt, or the Windows key, and have it remain active until any other key is pressed. In computing, a keyboard shortcut is a series of one or several keys that invoke a software or operating system operation (in other words, cause an event) when triggered by the user. The meaning of term "keyboard shortcut" can vary depending on software manufacturer.  A longer definition comes from Wikipedia.

• Video: Sticky Keys & Keyboard Shortcut

                  -- 1. Turn ON Sticky Keys
                         -- Sticky Keys
                  -- 2. Use the Keyboard Shortcut (and practice a little bit... :-)
                        -- 25 Basic Mac Keyboard Shortcuts
                        -- 15 Best Keyboard Shortcuts Ever (Mac & PC)
                        -- Top 10 Keyboard Shortcuts You Didn't Know About
                  -- 2a. Word
                        -- Word 2010: Keyboard Shortcuts
                        -- Office for Mac Keyboard Shortcuts - Word
                  -- 2b. Excel
                        -- Office for Mac Keyboard Shortcuts - Excel
                        -- Excel Basics #2: Keyboard Shortcuts
                  -- 2c. PowerPoint
                        -- Microsoft PowerPoint 2007 4 Using Keyboard Shortcuts
                        -- 60 Sec. PowerPoint ProTip » Repeat Action Keyboard Shortcut
                  -- 2d. Raw Text - Emacs or Vim or ...
                        -- RT 2011: Screencast 01 - Emacs Keyboard Introduction
                        -- The Editor of a Lifetime
                        -- Learn How to Use Vim!

• Headline Blog: Sticky Keys & Keyboard Shortcut
• ‘M’ is for Mop
• Left vs. Right
• Typing Simplified

• Eclectic Stuff: Many articles from many Guest Bloggers about Stroke
• Stroke Prevention: Not Glamorous, but More Effective Than all the High-Tech Tools We Have
• Recovery Depends on Neuroplasticity? Yeah...Not Entirely.
• Would a Jet Pack Enable You to Live Better? Our Next Tweetchat June 16th at 5pm BST!
• A Gold Medal for Speaking?
• Technology & Research are Key Helpings of Brain Food
• PoNS Inspired Therapy Update
• A Small Change is Still Change
• Whit Blog Holiday

• Weekly Columnists
• Caregiver: My Beloved has Gone Home
• The Murphey Saga: Condolences
• Musing: Does Your Doctor Know Who the Thought Leaders are in Stroke?
• Tadpole Update: June 1st to 11th - Start the RTT...
• Jester: Hairdryer
• TED Talks - Nicholas Negroponte: A 30-Year History of the Future
• Rick Mercer Report: Rick and Jann Arden on the CN Tower Edgewalk
• Laid-Back Admin: Guest Blogger & Tweets from @StrokeTattler

• Daily Comics: For Better Or For Worse, Dilbert, Mayes, Doonesbury

• Future Topics in SSTattler

Saturday News | Future Topic
--------------+----------------------------------------------
Jun/06/2015   | Bicycle Sharing System or Repair Yourself or
Jun/13/2015   | Sexuality and Disability
Jun/20/2015   | Cavernous Hemangioma(Cavernous Angioma or...)
Jun/27/2015   | Solitude

Definition: Sticky Keys & Keyboard Shortcut

Sticky Keys From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

SSTattler: I started to use “sticky keys” after my stroke - they are very, very useful and it increased my typing a lot, for example, my using EMACS (see next blog "Video: Sticky Keys & Keyboard Shortcut - 2d. Raw Text - Emacs or Vim or ... “).

The window in Windows.

Sticky Keys is an accessibility feature to help Windows users who have physical disabilities, but it is also used by others as a means to reduce repetitive strain injury (or a syndrome called the Emacs Pinky). It essentially serializes keystrokes instead of pressing multiple keys at a time: Sticky Keys allows the user to press and release a modifier key, such as Shift, Ctrl, Alt, or the Windows key, and have it remain active until any other key is pressed.

History

Microsoft first introduced Sticky Keys with Windows 95. The feature is also used in later versions of Windows.

Enabling

To enable this shortcut, the Shift key must be pressed 5 times in short succession.

This feature can also be turned on and off via the Accessibility icon in the Windows Control Panel.

To turn off once enabled, just simply press 3 or more of the Sticky Keys (Ctrl, Alt, Shift, Windows Button) at the same time.

Issues

Over the years, this feature has posed difficulties for users who naturally use the Shift key heavily, such as gamers. When a user presses the Shift key 5 times within a certain period of time, the shortcut activation popup will be placed above all other applications. This can be fixed by going into the control panel and disabling the window.

Sounds

Sticky keys makes an alert sound on Windows computers and laptops, but on Mac or Apple computers, it makes a silent tapping sound. On Mac, sticky keys is pressed only once on the shift key.



See the full article:
      Sticky Keys From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Keyboard Shortcut From Wikipedia,
         the free encyclopedia

Video: Sticky Keys & Keyboard Shortcut

Contents:
1. Turn ON Sticky Keys, and then... 
2. Use the Keyboard Shortcut (and practice a little bit... :-) 
    2a. Word 
    2b. Excel 
    2c. PowerPoint 
    2d. Raw Text - Emacs or Vim or ... 
 and so on ....

1. Turn ON Sticky Keys

Sticky Keys

Published on Sep 24, 2012

SSTattler: First they display on Microsoft and then display on iMac... very easy!

Many individuals are unable to press more than one key at once on a standard keyboard. Sticky Keys is an accessibility option built into Mac and Windows operating systems. This short video show how to set it up.

Standard YouTube License @ 5minuteAT

2. Use the Keyboard Shortcut (and practice a little bit... :-)

Headline Blogging: Sticky Keys & Keyboard Shortcut

Definition: Blog (noun). Add new material to or regularly update to a blog. (Origin 1990s: blog shortening of weblog)

‘M’ is for Mop

Amy Shissler
My Cerebellar Stroke Recovery

August 8, 2013

I was reminded of something yesterday that I couldn’t do in the hospital. Now, I couldn’t do a whole hell of a lot of stuff when I was in the hospital but for whatever reason it REALLY pissed me off that I was unable to do this test and it has stuck with me. The test was…..pick a letter of the alphabet and say all the words that you can think of that begin with that letter. I couldn’t do it. I would come up with 1 or 2 words. I forget what the goal is, I think 11 words in a minute. I don’t know, I can’t remember. 11 words really? That doesn’t seem like a lot. You know, I bring up a good point. :) Eleven words is so very, very abnormal for me but it would’ve been considered ‘normal’ had I gotten 11. They taught us in PT school – you know what maybe they didn’t, maybe this is something I’ve learned since school – that you always need to ask the patient “is that normal FOR YOU?” No one asked me that, ever. With brain injuries it’s a little different because what’s normal for you is forever changed now but – I don’t know.

Ok I just did this with the letter ‘t.’ I got 19. It would’ve been more if I could type with 2 hands, I should’ve given myself a little more time for pecking at the keyboard with one hand.

Tab, tap, tan, talk, tip, tint, taunt, tent, temperature, tell, Teflon, the, test, taste, tack, take, tame, tackle, time

See the original article:

‘M’ is for Mop

in

My Cerebellar Stroke Recovery

Left vs. Right

Barb Polan
Barb’s Recovery

Posted 18th March 2010 

I was speaking to a sales rep on the phone today, negotiating a price for something I wanted to buy, and she must have remembered something I said yesterday about being on medical leave because she said that she had recently had a health problem and was finding it very hard to get back into the swing of things at work, but it didn't seem as though I was having that problem. I decided to lay my cards out and I told her that I'd had a stroke in November and was still recovering, but that I found work to be very helpful, so it was easy to get back into it. She seemed very surprised and told me that I sounded wonderful for having had a stroke so recently - her father had had a stroke when he was in his 50's and, she said, it took him several years to be able to speak normally again. I resisted explaining to her the difference between having a stroke on the left vs. right side of the brain - if I had been so unfortunate as to have had mine in my left brain, not only would I have lost the function of my right, dominant side, but my speech and language skills would have been disrupted. Some people with left-brain strokes need to learn to read all over again, starting with which squiggle is what letter (and what is a letter, anyway?). Instead of my right hand doing double duty on the keyboard, it would be the recalcitrant one, and I'd be brushing my teeth, typing and buttoning my clothes with my very uncoordinated left hand. There's no way I would be able to even remotely do my job without being able to read and type - so I feel very fortunate to have had a right-brain stroke, as crazy as that sounds.

See the original article:

Left vs. Right

in

Barb's Recovery

Typing Simplified

Robin
Rocky Mountain Stroke Survivor

Posted on May 27, 2013

It can be harder (or well-nigh impossible) to type after a stroke.  At the same time, the internet can be a key way to find information or stay connected.  Here’s one idea for saving money on an adaptive keyboard: use one meant for kids.  We picked up a Crayola keyboard for my son at a thrift store for $2.  The keys are HUGE.  The letters on them are HUGE.  I used to be able to touch type very quickly and I’m relearning to touch type but when I’m fatigued, I’m right back to hunt and peck.  But when I’m fatigued, I have trouble picking out the letters on the keys.  When I’m fatigued, I have trouble coordinating my affected hand enough to hit the correct key.  Adaptive keyboards are really expensive.

But this sort of keyboard is only $20 and does the job unless you need truly huge keys.  I actually find the bright colors help too because it’s easier to locate where on the keyboard I need to aim and it can be hard to see the letters on the black background of normal keys.  Make sure when you are shopping to find a keyboard with large keys, not just large print (unless all you want is the large print).  Most computers can cope with multiple keyboards so if you usually prefer the normal one and only need the large keys when you’re feeling crappy, you should be able to have both available.

See the original article:

Typing Simplified

in

Rocky Mountain Stroke Survivor

Eclectic Stuff

Definition: Eclectic(noun) a person who derives ideas, style, or taste from a broad and diverse range of sources

Stroke Prevention: Not Glamorous, but More Effective Than all the High-Tech Tools We Have

Jeff Porter
Stroke of Faith

Thursday, May 21, 2015

This week's postings are devoted to stroke prevention. It's not glamorous or exciting. Very little cutting-edge research using whiz-bang technology.

Instead, it's about high blood pressure, diet, smoking, diabetes and the like.

But controlling those factors could prevent more strokes, keep fewer people disabled and prevent more strokes than any high-tech solution - at least during my lifetime.

So, pass along a recent CDC write-up about American Stroke Month and National High Blood Pressure Education Month:

Stroke is largely preventable. You may be able to prevent stroke or reduce your risk through healthy lifestyle changes. High blood pressure is one of the major risk factors for stroke. Others include high cholesterol, smoking, diabetes, heart disease, obesity, physical inactivity, and unhealthy diet. 

National High Blood Pressure Education Month focuses on saving lives by increasing awareness and educating the public about cardiovascular disease risks and how to prevent them. High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is considered the "silent killer" because it can damage the heart, brain, and kidneys without any symptoms. In the United States, nearly one in three adults has hypertension, and only about half have their condition under control. Hypertension is the leading risk factor for stroke and heart attacks. Each day in the United States, more than 1,000 deaths are associated with hypertension. 

Recovery Depends on Neuroplasticity? Yeah...Not Entirely.

Peter G. Levine
Stronger After Stroke

Thursday, May 14, 2015

There's this idea among many clinicians and survivors that when it comes to recovery it's all about neuroplasticity. Certainly, my book as well as many of my articles support this concept. But it's not 100% true. Some of recovery comes from stuff other than neuroplasticity.



To explain this, let's nail down two things:

1. What neuroplasticity is
2. When neural plasticity is important

What is Neuroplasticity?

Neuroplasticity – the simplest definition: Changing the structure and/or function of neurons in the brain. Actually, this is not entirely true. Neuroplasticity can happen anywhere in the nervous system. Even peripheral nerves can change in terms of structure and function. This is why, when it comes to stroke, researchers often talk about "cortical plasticity." They are being very specific about where the plasticity is happening: in the cortex of the brain.

Would a Jet Pack Enable You to Live Better? Our Next Tweetchat June 16th at 5pm BST!

Kate Allatt
Stroke Recovery Tips

May 20, 2015

Since November last year, I’ve been working closely  with the charity Devices 4 Dignity to conceptualise, plan and deliver a unique patient-led event to better understand patients unmet needs, who are living with long term conditions and it got me thinking. Why don’t we have a #strokerecovery  tweetchat on how we can better help recovering stroke survivors, live more independently, in their day-to-day lives?  Let’s remove ‘dis’ in disability and see if we can help stroke survivors, their families, therapists, researchers or companies come up with ideas to enable people more.

When I think of basic living activities that we do everyday like bathing, washing, dressing and going to the toilet.  There are also instrumental activities such as preparing meals, housecleaning and managing finances. Finally, there are meaningful personal and leisure activities like mindfulness, socialisation, or walking the dog either on foot of with an affordable, suitable mobility scooter!

Over the years, I have delivered a few speeches on assistive technology  I think of some of the things we have been told over the years, which you too may have come across.

A Gold Medal for Speaking?

May 28th 2015

There Ain’t No Shortcuts to Greatness

Aphasia Speech Therapy

The Olympic athlete trains for years to become a champion. It takes days, months and years to do so. It does not happen immediately. It is a slow, arduous challenge that takes desire, persistence and fortitude.

Why do many think they can become an winner without putting in the work? Many soon find out there are others who also wish to be champions, who are better and more skilled. Skill occurs when there is practice. The more one practices, the better one becomes in a given discipline.

Take speech therapy for example, especially for a severe to profound speaking difficulty. For some reason many believe they can go to therapy a few times a week for 30-50 minutes and become a medal winner.

Many believe they don’t have to practice or spend numerous hours dedicated to the process of speaking. They think sitting down with comprehension exercises, tablet, apps, or fill in the blank work sheets will help return them to speaking. Others believe singing happy birthday, or reciting Mary Had A Little Lamb, will actually improve the ability to speak and converse.

Others believe they should sit down and memorize vocabulary until it is learned and place great emphasis on recall of a set list of vocabulary items. Some care-givers think the cure is occurring behind the therapy doors when they are not invited in by the therapist to participate in the therapy process.

Technology & Research are Key Helpings of Brain Food

Tim Seefeldt
Brain Food Cafe for the Mind

Posted May 21, 2015

I always talk, think and write about being back to normal. After a stroke, that’s what a fella wants. Normal = good. You want to blend in. At least for me, there’s still a fear that somebody will notice a slight hesitation in my speech or catch me struggling to retrieve a memory. If a regular Joe or Jane forgets a name it’s just a sign of a busy life. If someone whose brain has been sizzled does the same, could it be a sign that they aren’t firing on all cylinders? Are they damaged goods? Are they capable? Do they require pity? Arggg! I imagine it’s much the same for folks who’ve suffered other assaults on their minds. The fact is though, that you’re never the same after your brain has been blitzkrieged. The difference can be in how you feel, how you function or both. It doesn’t mean that you’re not capable. But it might mean that you need some help or tools to do what you used to do. Imagine if a mind like Stephen Hawking’s was trapped inside his disability? What if he was born in a time and place where sharing his mind with the world wasn’t possible? Or if his part of the world had been cut off from the possibilities that helped set his brain free? I fear that that could be happening today. I’m actually pretty sure that it is. I’m certainly not in Hawking’s league. But whatever I have to offer would be largely muted without the help of technology. As I’ve written before, even the healed Tim Seefeldt’s reading speed is just over 50 words per minute. An average person reads at between 150 and 190 words per minute. You can’t do the work I’ve done through my career without being able to read and write. And, you sure can’t write without being able to read. Or to find a cheat. It doesn’t take a mind like Hawking’s to figure out that I’d be up the creek without a little help. More than a little. My equalizer is software originally designed for kids with learning disabilities called WordQ. WordQ literally allows me to keep up to the rest of you in reading the reams of material that comes across my computer each day. It allows me to edit my own writing to make sure that it’s up to snuff. I use it to edit and review everything I spit out, with the exception of very short emails. Bottom line is, without it, I don’t make a living the way I’ve been trained to make a living and I’m in a spot of bother when it comes to paying the bills.

PoNS Inspired Therapy Update

Rebecca Dutton
Home After a Stroke

May 17, 2015

This is an update to my post PoNS Inspired Therapy. I am thrilled to feel changes since I started in March to gently brush my tongue with a soft toothbrush. Instead of feeling numb, the hemiplegic (paralyzed) side of my tongue feels slightly irritable and brushing now produces a small amount of saliva. The sound side of my tongue feels less hypersensitive. I am blown away by the fact that neuroplasticity is still present eleven years after my stroke.

Brief tongue brushing does not replicate the several minutes of electrical tongue stimulation the PoNS device provides so I started singing before I take my pills to wake up my tongue even more. I enjoy accompanying myself on an electric piano. I use my sound hand to play the high notes in the treble clef. My voice sounds terrible, but I enjoy using the musical phrasing I learned as a child - singing softer or louder, slower or faster - to convey the emotional message of a song. My beloved Actto bookrest holds my music.

Last week I spontaneously started putting food on the sound side of my mouth, biting off a tiny fragment, and using my tongue to push the food to the hemiplegic side to chew. This exquisitely delicate tongue control reminded me of the early days after my stroke when food got caught on the hemiplegic side of my mouth. To know if a lump of food was stuck between my teeth and cheek, my sound hand had to touch my cheek. I had no control over the right side of my tongue so I had to use my finger to pull the food back to my sound side. Yuk!

Chewing on my hemiplegic side addresses a long-term hope. After chewing, the hemiplegic side of my tongue gets lots of practice pushing food to the back of my throat which initiates the swallowing reflex. I hope this will improve my ability to swallow pills.

See the original article:

PoNS Inspired Therapy Update

in

Home After a Stroke

A Small Change is Still Change

Alex Dixon
A Stroke of Luck

May 24, 2015

I want to make a difference in someone’s life. I did a motivational talk in Boston, Massachusetts. Before the talk a participant came up and said that his son was similar to me because he had a stroke after a spinal surgery. The son had the stroke two months ago; he is twelve years old. So after the talk my mom and I traveled to the rehab hospital to visit the man’s son. It was so nice. I think I made a difference in their lives. I gave them hope to keep moving forward.

A few months later I went to get my hair cut at a salon. I decided to give my long curly hair to Locks of Love so another child can have my hair as their own. I did it for my cousin who had Aplastic Anemia, she was only 8 years old when she was diagnosed. She went to New York City to get a bone morrow transplant and chemotherapy for one year. She is back home now and in remission. I did it for her. Donating my hair won’t change her life but it is in honor of her and it might just help someone else.

If you can change one person, it makes a difference. My mom and I went to the hospital to see the boy because we knew it would help. We had planned to go sight seeing but once we learned about Emmett, there was only one place we wanted to visit. I gave away my long curly hair because I wanted to make a difference in a sick child’s life. To make a small change for someone I will never meet. It is an amazing feeling.

See the original article:

A Small Change is Still Change

in

A Stroke of Luck

Whit Blog Holiday

Sas Freeman

May 26, 2015

I hope you have all had a good Bank holiday. Bank holiday is a funny one it’s either off enjoying yourself or busy DIY than returning to work on the Tuesday for a rest!!

Returning to the subject of stroke for a moment, it’s the absolute feared time for any such thing to happen as very little is done in hospitals over the weekend normally, let alone a Bank holiday. Someone I’ve recently got to know had her stroke over a Bank holiday and didn’t have a scan until three days later, this I’m told isn’t unusual. So when I heard that Jac, a seventeen year old who had previously had a stroke last year, was rushed back into hospital on Saturday evening, naturally I was hugely concerned. Concerned for all the usual reasons obviously, but additionally so as it is Bank Holiday, this concern I’m pleased to say has been dispelled, as Jac has been cared for throughout the weekend and I’m pleased to say is improving, although my thoughts are still very much with him and his family. It is an immense relief to hear this. I would like to think that some of this splendid care over a Bank holiday period is down to Stroke Month, raising awareness that little bit more?

May Purple

It has touched me deeply, how amazing people have been throughout May, turning purple, planting ‘purple’, eating ‘purple’, dancing, baking & running for Stroke. It shows that people truly can pull together and move mountains.

You don’t have to be touched by stroke to join in, as many have demonstrated, so please let’s keep this purple flowing not only until the end of May but beyond too. Remember stroke can strike anyone, any age at any time, sadly. So let’s keep this up and help prevent as many strokes as possible. And once again a huge purple thank you, to you all, you are amazing.

See the original article:

Whit Blog Holiday

in

Sas Freeman

Weekly Columnists

Definition: Columnist |ˈkäləmnist| (noun). A blogger or a journalist contributing regularly to a blog or newspaper

Caregiver: My Beloved has Gone Home

Diane
The Pink House On The Corner

Thursday, May 28, 2015

This morning when I awoke, the sun was already up and this is unusual, because usually Bob wakes me at the crack of dawn with his "The sun is shining" and "Good morning!!" so I called "Good morning!" and got no reply.

I went to his bed to find him gone.

My beautiful, wonderful Bob passed away quietly in his sleep sometime last night or early this morning.

I am still in shock.

See the original article:

My Beloved has Gone Home

in

The Pink House On The Corner

The Murphey Saga: Condolences

Jo Murphey
The Murphey Saga

Thursday, May 28, 2015

In happier times

Condolences to Diane of The Pink House on the Corner blog. Over the past three years I've blogged about her and her husband, Bob. She was his caregiver after his massive stroke. He passed into his next stage of life this morning.

Today has been a slew of emails sent back and forth between the rest of the stroke tribe. What can we do for her? Does anyone know her real last name? What is her mailing address? She just moved into a handicap remodeled house for Bob not four months ago. Anybody have her phone number? It's been over an eleven-hour conversation and will continue because we care.

The internet is great. We live our lives here (most of us). We develop friendships and some long lasting ones. That's the way it has been for me for almost thirty years. This is the main problem with virtual friends when we actually want to be there.

Through her blog, we've traveled many a hilly road together. The ups and downs, we've offered her the support of listening ears and sometimes financial help by donating on her site. We were invested in her and Bob. Isn't that what following a blog does?

Same as this blog, readers watch for updates and news. Now I realize some readers are just passers-by, but I also have readers  who truly care what is happening at the Murphey Saga household. I know I can count on them for virtual hugs and prayers. Diane was one of these. So my heart aches for her at losing her beloved. I don't truly know her pain yet, but it's coming. I've shed tears of grief and joy for the both of them today. For Bob, his pain and suffering is over. He can again laugh, speak, move, and be the Bob that was always inside of him after his stroke. For Diane, there is an out pouring sense of loss that I know she's feeling.

When I think of the two of them, in my mind plays the song by John Mellencamp, Jack and Diane, but for some reason I always substitute Jack for Bob. They were such free loving people before the stroke devastated their family. That's the way I see them.


Standard YouTube License @ MELLENCAMP09

Diane, Huggggs! I'll be there if you need to talk.

See the original article:

Condolences

in

The Murphey Saga

Musing: Does Your Doctor Know who the Thought Leaders are in Stroke?

Dean Reinke
Deans’ Stroke Musing

Thursday, May 21, 2015

I have no clue who they might be. When your neurologist has a stroke whom will they be going to to get 100% recovered? It's a simple question, demand an answer. But I would suggest some:

• Dr. Michael Tymianski, of the Toronto Western Hospital Research Institute in Canada.
• Dr. Michael A. Moskowitz in 2010 had some great ideas needing followup.

I'm sure our stroke associations have not called these people together to establish a strategy to solve all the f*cking problems in stroke. Because everyone in the world is waiting for SOMEONE ELSE TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM.

Seth Godin has a good discussion on this;

You don't know Lefsetz?

I was talking to someone dedicating his career to working in newspapers. I asked him what he thought of the work of Jeff Jarvis. He had no idea what I was talking about.

Tadpole Update: Jun 1st to 11th - Start the RTT...

John C. Anderson
Stroke Survivors Tattler

Rails to Trails Tour (aka RTT)

Albuquerque, New Mexico

to

Decpina, North Carolina

and back
(June 1st to September 29th)

Starting this June 1st & 2nd:


Calling: All Trike & Bike Riding - Ride with Dan, Cat & Zach
(Dan's son Zach also HHT!)
Spokes Fighting Strokes

Date        | Start           ✔︎ = DONE
------------+------------------------------------------------------

June 1      | Albuquerque NM

Date        | Start           ✔︎ = DONE

------------+------------------------------------------------------

June 2-11   | Cheyenne Mountain State Park,

            | Colorado Springs

            | The Cottonwood Creek 4.7 miles

            | The Foothills Trail 6.6 miles

            | The New Santa Fe Regional Trail 20 miles

            | The Pikes Peak Greenway Trail 16 miles

            | The paved Shooks Run Trail  3.9 miles

            | The Sinton Trail 2.9 miles

            | The Templeton Gap Trail 4.4 miles

Map of USA - Rails to Trails Tour (aka RTT):

Jester: Hairdryer

Jackie Poff
Stroke Survivors Tattler

In parochial school students are taught that lying is a sin. However, instructors also advised that using a bit of imagination was OK to express the truth differently without lying. Below is a perfect example of those teachings:

Getting a Hairdryer Through Customs.

An attractive young woman on a flight from Ireland asked the Priest beside her, ‘Father, may I ask a favor?'

'Of course child. What may I do for you?’

'Well, I bought my mother an expensive hair dryer for her birthday. It is unopened but well over the Customs limits and I'm afraid they'll confiscate it. Is there any way you could carry it through customs for me? Hide it under your robes perhaps?’

‘I would love to help you, dear, but I must warn you, I will not lie.'

‘With your honest face, Father, no one will question you.’ When they got to Customs, she let the priest go first.

The official asked, ‘Father, do you have anything to declare?’

'From the top of my head down to my waist I have nothing to declare'.

The official thought this answer strange, so asked, ‘And what do you have to declare from your waist to the floor?'

‘I have a marvelous instrument designed to be used on a woman, but which is, to date, unused.'

Roaring with laughter, the official said, 'Go ahead, Father. Next please!'

TED Talks - Nicholas Negroponte: A 30-Year History of the Future

Published on Jul 8, 2014

MIT Media Lab founder Nicholas Negroponte takes you on a journey through the last 30 years of tech. The consummate predictor highlights interfaces and innovations he foresaw in the 1970s and 1980s that were scoffed at then but are ubiquitous today. And he leaves you with one last (absurd? brilliant?) prediction for the coming 30 years.



Standard YouTube License @ TED

Rick Mercer Report: Rick and Jann Arden on the CN Tower Edgewalk

Uploaded on Sep 14, 2011

Rick and Jann head to the top of the CN Tower in Toronto to take a walk outside.



Standard YouTube License @ Rick Mercer Report

Laid-Back Admin: Guest Blogger & Tweets from @StrokeTattler

Dr. Beagle C. Cranium
Stroke Survivors Tattler

We made #1, #2, #3 and #4 with no or a few minor changes and #5 is an important new change to the format of SSTattler and link to twitter @StrokeTattler:

1. The Guest Blogger: is now on the left-column just below  All Content By: - it should have been done much earlier.
2. SSTattler Extra ...
1. ▶ Preview Next Saturday News and ▶ Chief Editor Business Cards are the same.
2. Deleted @stroketattler button but see #5 below.
3. ▶ Facebook SSTattler and ▶ E-mail SSTattler Admin are the same.
3. This Month ⎮ Sep/2011 ⇒ Now at the top right-column - right now we have, approximate, from 400 to 800 hits per day. Please take a look.
4. Translate From English To: next top right-column is a translate widget app (by Google). They have a subset of SSTattler clients that use translate widget app everyday.
5. NEW - We installed the dynamic @StrokeTattler twitter in the next right-column after Translate From... It is done “dynamic” i.e. it will updated every event happens between Stroke Survivors Tattler <---> @StrokeTattler. You can do:
1. Read about 20+/- tweets (and you can ask more if you want to read more).
2. Click on @StrokeTattler (or the Tweets) -- you will have a new page in https://twitter.com/StrokeTattler.
3. If you have a twitter account you can a) near the top click on Follow the twitter, or b) near the bottom Tweet to @StrokeTattler and you can type any message(s) away.

Dr. Beagle C. Cranium
Stroke Survivors Tattler

Daily Comics

For Better and For Worse
Lynn Johnston

Canada Family Events

Dilbert
Scott Adams

Dilbert Office Events

Edmonton Journal
Malcolm Mayes

Politics Views from Canada

Doonesbury
Garry Trudeau

Politics Views from USA

  

** I tried to get low or free price at the people http://www.UniversalUclick.com/ for the images for the cartoons. It was too high for Stroke Survivors Tattler i.e. we are not a regular newspaper and our budget is very, very low. Fortunately, you will have to do only 1-click more to see the cartoon image, it is legit and it is free using GoComics.com, Dilbert.com and EdmontonJournal.com.

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Saturday News

Contents of This Week Saturday News May 23rd / 2015

• Definition: Falls in Older Adults in Stroke!

      Falls in older adults in stroke are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. The cause is often multi-factorial, and may require a multi-disciplinary approach both to treat any injuries sustained and to prevent future falls. Falls include dropping from a standing position, or from exposed positions such as those on ladders or stepladders. The severity of injury is generally related to the height of the fall. The state of the ground surface onto which the victim falls is also important, harder surfaces causing more severe injury. A longer definition comes from Wikipedia.

• Video: Falls in Older Adults in Stroke!

                  -- Falls in Elderly (and Stroke!): Regaining Your Balance
                  -- Timed Sit to Stand Test
                  -- Curb Step Test
                  -- Single Leg Stance
                  -- Breaking the Fall: Strategies for Older Adults
                  -- Preventing Falls - New York State of Health
                  -- Falls in Elderly: The Side Effects of Falls
                  -- Old People Falling Over!

• Headline Blog: Falls in Older Adults in Stroke! 
• Fall Hazards Are Subtle
• Falls
• Falls and Stroke Survivors: 5 Recent Studies in 5 Continents, and 5 of My Tips for Preventing Falls
• New AFO
• Out of the Comfort Zone
• Falls. Only Funny in the Movies.
• New Exercise Guidelines Add Neuromotor Domain
• Life as Rehab
• Tai Chi Might Help Prevent Falls

• Eclectic Stuff: Many articles from many Guest Bloggers about Stroke
• The Problem With a Rare Disease Diagnosis
• Brain Health Clearing House
• What an Amazing Week
• Take Care
• #Aphasia Tweetchat – What You Said! #strokerecovery

• Weekly Columnists
• Musing: Clinic Helps Stroke Patients Recover Balance, Avoid Future Falls
• Caregiver: Frustration, Anger & Guilt
• Tadpole Update: Spokes Fighting Strokes - Preview
• Jester: Guess What This Is!
• TED Talks - Matthew Childs: 9 Life Lessons from Rock Climbing
• Rick Mercer Report: Rick and Neil Peart & Train of Death
• Laid-Back Admin: Please say “Welcome" to Elizabeth

• Daily Comics: For Better Or For Worse, Dilbert, Mayes, Doonesbury

• Future Topics in SSTattler

Saturday News | Future Topic
--------------+----------------------------------------------
May/30/2015   | Sticky Keys & Keyboard Shortcut
Jun/06/2015   | Bicycle Sharing System or Repair Yourself or…
Jun/13/2015   | Sexuality and Disability
Jun/20/2015   | Cavernous Hemangioma (aka Cavernoma or...)

Definition: Falls in Older Adults in Stroke!

Falls in Older Adults From Wikipedia,
         the free encyclopedia

Falling!

SSTattler: In the early years you have had a stroke and you have many accidents like older adults, even you are relatively young. Your perceptive is your are healthy but the true cause in your body has a permanent injury from a stroke. You have to figure out how to fix your permanent injury with various different & positive techniques to not fall or, at least, minimize it especially using balance and gait correctly...

Falls in older adults are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. The cause is often multi-factorial, and may require a multi-disciplinary approach both to treat any injuries sustained and to prevent future falls. Falls include dropping from a standing position, or from exposed positions such as those on ladders or stepladders. The severity of injury is generally related to the height of the fall. The state of the ground surface onto which the victim falls is also important, harder surfaces causing more severe injury.

Definition

The unintentionally dropping onto the ground or lower level, not as a result of a major intrinsic event (such as a stroke) or overwhelming hazard. Other definitions are more inclusive and do not exclude "major intrinsic events" as a fall. Such falls are clearly of accidental origin, which might include a large number of causes, such as slips, trips and over-balancing.

Video: Falls in Older Adults in Stroke!

SSTattler: Mostly are "older adults" but in the few years after a stroke you have an exactly the same problem i.e. especially falling for any age!

Falls in Elderly (and Stroke!): Regaining Your Balance

Published on Jun 12, 2014

http://www.bakerrehabgroup.com/ 1.866.727.3422

Baker Rehab Group believes in excellence, period. Every one of our physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech therapists share that commitment to excellence. That means they are dedicated to working with you toward one goal: improved health and well being, for life.

Baker Rehab Group offers senior care at home, adult occupational therapy, home physical therapy, home speech therapy, dementia care, stroke rehabilitation, joint replacement rehabilitation, fall prevention and a variety of other home health therapy services in the home. We serve clients in Maryland, Southern Pennsylvania, Northern West Virginia & the Washington DC Metro area.

Standard YouTube License @ Baker Rehab Group

Headline Blog: Falls in Older Adults in a Stroke!

Definition: Blog (noun). Add new material to or regularly update to a blog. (Origin 1990s: blog shortening of weblog)

Fall Hazards Are Subtle

Rebecca Dutton
Home After a Stroke

February 25, 2014

Babies learning to walk do not get hurt when they fall because they are 18 inches (45 cm) tall.  When I fall I go crashing to the ground like a tree that has just been cut down.  Stroke survivors with impaired balance need procedures and equipment that prevent falls.  It's the small things we do not pay attention to that trip us up.  I do not fall because I crash into my sofa.  I fall when I do not lift my hemiplegic (paralyzed) leg high enough to stop my toe from catching the edge of a rug which lifts the rug up. The rugs in the photo keep the floor dry when people at church track in rain and snow.  I have fallen when my toes caught the edge of this type of rug.  I learned the hard way to look down to see where the edge of the rug is before I step onto it.

Another procedure keeps me safe at bedtime.  I rely on my vision to tell me if I am vertical.  If I turn around after I darken a room by turning the lamp off I stumble badly.  I quickly learned to make sure I am turned to face the lighted room I am heading towards before I look down to find the light switch.  It's a relief to find the lit room as soon as I look up.

If these procedures sound trivial, let me tell you about a stroke survivor who could have ended up in a long-term care facility because of a bad fall.  He has impaired balance so the hospital staff gave him a long-handled reacher so he would not lean over to pick up objects on the floor.  But using a reacher at home was frustrating.  If he was downstairs the reacher was upstairs.  If he was at one end of the house the reacher was at the other end of the house.  This repeated aggravation tempted him to reach down to pick up something even though he knew it was not safe.  He fell and broke his sound wrist.  When he finally got back home he bought three more reachers.  A reacher is always close because he has two reachers per floor with one at each end of the house.

I learned not to let subtle fall hazards lull me into a false sense of security because they do not make me fall every time I encounter them.  Are there hazards in your home you are not paying attention to, like a poorly lit front porch or extension cords snaking across a room?

See the original article:

Fall Hazards Are Subtle

in

Home After a Stroke

Falls

Amy Shissler
My Cerebellar Stroke Recovery

February 22, 2014

I said something in a comment once about falls and our friend Dean replied that I would make an excellent neuro PT and that I might actually know what I’m talking about.  Now, I had to do a post about this because Dean has a strong, strong dislike of physical therapists, understandably so.  So him saying that is a HUGE HUGE compliment!  What I said that made him say that was this…..All neuro PTs listen up!  Falls are a necessary evil for stroke survivors.  It’s gonna happen.  It just is going to happen.  So instead of therapy focusing so much on preventing a fall, therapy should focus on what to do in certain scenarios.  If someone is falling, teach them to throw out a protective extension, if possible.  Teach them and practice ways to control the fall as best as possible.  Dean said, and I LOVE this, that learning to walk again after a stroke is just a series of controlled falls.  Good God that’s beautiful.  Therapy needs to teach people how to get up after a fall.  I know for a fact this skill is not taught.  Maybe it’s taught to some people, but it’s sure as hell not taught to the majority of patients.  A series of controlled falls, therapy needs to focus on controlling those falls, not preventing them.

See the original article:

Falls

in

My Cerebellar Stroke Recovery

Falls and Stroke Survivors: 5 Recent Studies in 5 Continents, and 5 of My Tips for Preventing Falls

Joyce Hoffman
The Tales of a Stroke Patient

May 17, 2015

I'm out of the hospital. The reason I was in there at all for two weeks is because of blood clots--in my leg (DVT) and lung (pulmonary embolism, PE as an acronym).

No matter what you call it, I feel like a ticking time bomb, never knowing if the time will come where another clot ultimately goes to my brain, and it's lights out--permanently. The docs assured me that wouldn't happen, but who knows? It's just the docs' educated guesses, one after another. I have an educated guess, too. I may be fucked.

A stroke survivor

So to take my mind off death, for the moment, I started to research falls as related to stroke survivors. Between 40 to 70% of stroke survivors worldwide have serious falls within a year of their stroke. I had many falls, most my own fault out of chancy stupidity and a few  not. Here's some of my favourite findings, from 5 of the 7 continents. South America has an excuse. (And is anybody even living in Antarctica?) All continents used international and certifiable scales as related to stroke survivors and the falls they encountered.

NORTH AMERICA