Sitting with a pillow at my computer

[Michelle_16]

Hi. I posted a message about gettin a good comfy position to sleep in about a week ago and one of the replies was from Kathleen who also suggested to sit with a pillow under my elbow at the computer to support it. I now do this at home but soon i will be goin back to school and i have chosen to computer classes (Information Systems and Administration) so alot of my school time will b spent at computers but i find that if i do not have support i get sore shoulders and neck(this is not a problem at home anymore because i use a pillow). I am worried my neck and shoulders are goin to get very painful durin classes at school. Do you think it would be silly to take a small cushion for under my elbow and explain to my teacher or should i just suffer the pain for an hour? the thing is i have to lie down and relax after my shoulders get tense and sore and i cant lie down durin school. lol. Any suggestions?!?
Thank you

Michelle -x-

[francine]

michelle - I think you should take a small cushion with you. I'm not sure exactly what the size is that you need but you can something like this pretty easily if you don't find a small enough pillow. I have a lot of leftover scraps of material from making the fanny packs for the nightime estim units that the kids use. The scraps that I have are about 8X8 or something like that. If you can use a pillow the is small, just let me know and I will sew on up for you and put velcro on one side so that all you have to do is fill it up with fluff or with something like rice or barley. Let me know ok?

francine@injurednewborn.com

[Michelle_16]

Hey I have a small round cushion that sits on my bed that is ideal because it is small and wouldnt make people look(apart from the fact that it is pink and has little sequence on it) lol.

Thanx for the offer! I have the feeling im gonna feel really stupid in class for a little while to i get used to it!

Anyway i gotta go just now so ill talk to you again soon

Thanx again

Michelle -x-

[Kathleen]

Michelle

Take the pillow to school - If you start young and protect your arm neck and shoulder you will prevent future injury...

Your friends will understand and those who don't ... are really not that important in the grand scheme of things... Get into the practice of supporting your arm when necessary and you will have less shoulder problems...

Also if I were you I would begin to do some sort of range of motion exercises to keep the muscles strong... do both active and passive... make it part of your day ... to take care of it...

Then you will begin to forget about your arm again because it will not be painful and front brain...LOL..
Sorry I have been off line for a few days and did not answer you post about feelings...

What you are feeling about your arm is VERY normal.I felt the exact same way when I found the boards. I was excited first then sad then tired of thinking about my arm - I wanted to forget it again... and I do for the most part... it is part of a grieving process and it will pass very quickly... Not that you don't feel frustrated but you won't feel sad ... because you have lots of people here just like you who understand your feelings and share them...
Have a great day
Kath

[admin]

Michelle,
I've just read your post about the problems you are having with your computer. There is an excellent Charity In the UK who can advise on a range of products to suit your personal needs. A product called an ergo-rest may be useful for you for prolonged periods of computing.
You can contact the Scottish office of AbilityNet on 0131 331 6381 or check out the web site at www.abilitynet.co.uk
I believe the contacts in the Scottish office are Andy and Sue Clark.
The charity does not supply products so they are a completely independent company who are only concerned with what suits your needs and not selling products.
If you have an occupational therapist locally, you may be able to get her to organise some products for you free of charge. If you E mail me on erbspalsygroup@supanet.com I can go into more depth with you about accessing local providers.

[phaliscak]

Hi Mihelle,

You have a medical reason...take the pillow and don't worry about it...if you don't look for people looking at you, you will not care and by the end of the day you won't feel so sore...thats whats important here isn't it?

Good luck with your classes!

Patty

[Cara]

Hi
I'm not on this part of the board much, but I am working on homework and getting fuzz brained
I teach high school. When I had to teach typing for a semester we would take a break half way through (our classes were 90 min) I'd let the kids walk around the room, strech, and even lay down! It gets old for everyone sitting at the 'puter. Talk to your teacher. Don't feel funny about taking the pillow, who knows maybe you will start some kind of trend and develop a multimillion dollar business for people making ergonomically correct products