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Injuries due to lack of coordination

Diwi9

Administrator
Messages
1,780
Location
USA
I'm curious if anyone else has reduced coordination that has led to injuries.

In the past few weeks, I have injured myself twice with a knife during meal prep, once with scissors while trimming my hair, and once with pruning shears (this one was the worst).

All of these injuries took me by surprise and the frequency of injury is concerning. I seem to have developed proprioception problems, especially with my hands. Do others experience this?
 

alkt

Senior Member
Messages
339
Location
uk
sorry to hear that hope you still have all your fingers ;) their is a thread which mentions the many accidents we have . unfortunately cannot recall the exact title. I tend to burn my fingers trying to remove toast from a grill and catch one side of my body on doorframes when I am to exhausted to take care/or think about such little things at its worse I catch my glasses on door frames to it still surprise me when it happens not fun at all .
 

Diwi9

Administrator
Messages
1,780
Location
USA
It's really scary to repeatedly hurt yourself on accident. I've never been injury-prone in the past and tend to walk into things too nowadays. Ugh! Yes, fingers are still intact :thumbsup:
 

CreativeB

Senior Member
Messages
482
Location
Scotland
Glad you still have all your fingers :D

I have always been clumsy, but am worse now. Walking into doors, tables, anything. I've also cut and burned myself. Once I put my fingers into the hot oil of the frying pan .. not even sure why but I was cooking at the time
 

Diwi9

Administrator
Messages
1,780
Location
USA
Glad you still have all your fingers :D

I have always been clumsy, but am worse now. Walking into doors, tables, anything. I've also cut and burned myself. Once I put my fingers into the hot oil of the frying pan .. not even sure why but I was cooking at the time
Ouch! That is exactly what I'm talking about, you get injured by doing movements that don't even make sense. One time I was in the grocery store and I couldn't stop walking into crap they had sticking out in the aisles. Wow, we are a hot mess.
 

Shoshana

Northern USA
Messages
6,035
Location
Northern USA
So sorry, that you hurt yourself like that, @Diwi9 ! :cry:

Oh yes, though, I do it also. The movements that I do not even know why/how I made them, that do not work out well.
Spilling more stuff, and not knowing how to not spill them. :confused:o_O
Bumping into things, clumsily. :(

I find tht I must now, consciously focus mentally, without distraction or interruption, on small and simple parts of tasks, that normally would not need to be done consciously at all. :woot:

I do not enjoy it, and yes, I do think/I do know, that it IS part of my illness. Though others might dismiss that, and not address it, as such. Which does not feel good either.
One more thing that others misunderstand. :(
 

Diwi9

Administrator
Messages
1,780
Location
USA
@Shoshana - It's such a frustration and dangerous. I think it comes down to slowed processing speed...sensory input and motor output are not always on the same schedule. Your approach of purposeful focus is the right way to deal with it and can be nobly passed off as part of a "Zen practice" :p
 

Sushi

Moderation Resource Albuquerque
Messages
19,935
Location
Albuquerque
I'm curious if anyone else has reduced coordination that has led to injuries.
Reduced coordination and balance--yes--though so far it hasn't resulted in injuries.
Spilling more stuff, and not knowing how to not spill them. :confused:o_O
Bumping into things, clumsily. :(
Yep, I bump into things and spill them more.
I think it comes down to slowed processing speed...sensory input and motor output are not always on the same schedule. Your approach of purposeful focus is the right way to deal with it and can be nobly passed off as part of a "Zen practice" :p
That makes sense and I certainly use "purposeful focus" on the days I drive. I don't feel that I have enough focus and spacial sense to drive every day, but when I do, I am very conscious of the need for total focus and no distractions.
 

lafarfelue

Senior Member
Messages
433
Location
Australia
Before I was diagnosed (or got really bad) my failing motor skills and proprioception were partly why I quit cycling (I was an avid 'everyday' and mountain trail/MTB cyclist).

I just couldn't trust my own judgement of space or ability to multitask and focus enough. i fell a couple of times for no super clear reason, and looking back, I'm glad I listened to my body and didn't try to push through that and the increasing fatigue and malaise.

I also cut a sliver of one of my fingers off while at a garden party... chopping and talking (in the hot sun, no less!), and now I have a little oval on a pointer finger where the fingerprint goes in a different direction. My friends and I managed to slap it back on and bandage it up tight enough that it didn't all die.

Kinda glad that nothing worse happened in that liminal stage where my body was clearly not working quite right but I'd yet to be house/bedbound or diagnosed.

*Edit* now I'm just used to seeing random bruises on my legs and at least know why I walk into things so much...
 

Seven7

Seven
Messages
3,444
Location
USA
Yeap I have depth perception issues. You get better with time to overshoot for.
Task that requieres a lot of precion I am not good at.
I drop everything is my hardest one. Specially left hand. And I have to bend over then pass out. Over and over... so that is the worst for me.
 

taniaaust1

Senior Member
Messages
13,054
Location
Sth Australia
Yes, the ones i do the most is burn myself on things and bump into things. I have to actually really focus when Im doing things or I often injure myself or break things eg placing down a cup if Im not focused on what Im doing I will end up placing it to close to edge of cupboard or over the edge of it and it will smash onto the floor.

The worst thing I did was I was cutting my elderly friends nails, lost focus and cut the top of his actual finger off to both of our horror.
 

Sing

Senior Member
Messages
1,782
Location
New England
I have done almost everything mentioned here a number of times—except for cut off a part of a finger. My arm/hand also swings out involuntarily sometimes. This can cause things to be knocked over.

It is scary and discouraging to have a body which not only is hypo and low functioning in so many ways, but also one that is an unpredictable threat to oneself and others. After each incident, small or large, I have the challenge of forgiving myself and rebalancing quickly because without this, I won’t have the poise to do the next thing adequately either and I am piling on more stress and fatigue. Having to be “cool” about all these incidences seems as thoroughly irrational as it is necessary. But I certainly do recognize the gravity of what I have done.

Is my life finally going to end or be even more impaired by one of these accidents? I feel that my luck may run out at any moment. Of course I try to compensate and be extra careful, but this can never cover all the challenges of uncoordinated perception, movement and thought.
 
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alex3619

Senior Member
Messages
13,810
Location
Logan, Queensland, Australia
The worst thing I did was I was cutting my elderly friends nails, lost focus and cut the top of his actual finger off to both of our horror.
I did this to myself back in the 80s, but stuck the tip of my finger back on with bandaids. Probably should have had stitches, but it worked out. I was sharpening a knife at the time, but not using a very safe method, and lost concentration momentarily. This was right when my first major symptoms of ME were starting.