[Blindtlk] Two questions about administerring medicine.

Fri May 22 01:18:13 UTC 2015

The weird thing is, I can do it to myself all day long.  I dono why she's so 
insistant.  I totally agree with you.

I didn't join that other list you mentioned, as I myself don't have kids, 
and I thought you had to be a parent to join.

Chris.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Arielle Silverman via blindtlk" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>
To: "Blind Talk Mailing List" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>
Cc: "Arielle Silverman" <arielle71 at gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, May 21, 2015 9:11 PM
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Two questions about administerring medicine.

> Hi Chris. There's another list on NFBNet called BlParent. You may want
> to post your questions there for feedback from blind parents and
> caregivers. For the oral med, if the child is cooperative, you could
> perhaps fill the spoon and hand it to her to swallow the contents,
> then have her hand the spoon back to you so you can verify she took
> the med. Or scoop into a cup as was suggested. As for injections, I
> don't know what alternative techniques blind people use to find the
> injection site. I know blind people give themselves shots so I imagine
> it is doable. However, I don't think giving a shot is part of the
> typical duties for babysitting, and if it makes you anxious, then I
> think it is perfectly reasonable to tell the mom you aren't
> comfortable. It has nothing to do with blindness but with your comfort
> around needles. I am needle phobic myself and would probably not be
> willing to give a shot to myself or someone else unless there was no
> other option. Especially not to a squirming screaming child.
> Arielle
>
> On 5/21/15, Diane Vlasoff via blindtlk <blindtlk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> I raised 3children as My vision deteriorated.  As to the first question, 
>> I
>> got a teaspoon sized eyedropper from the pharmacist.  No spills and a 
>> full
>> dose of med.  I have never given a shot but my aunts were both RNs.  I
>> remember one of them telling me they first learned by injecting water 
>> into
>> oranges.  Practice seems a good thing.  Then I am sure they used normal
>> saliene and used each other as guinea pigs.  Good luck!
>>
>> Diane Vlasoff
>>
>> On May 21, 2015, at 5:19 PM, Christopher-Mark Gilland via blindtlk
>> <blindtlk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>
>> I have two questions.  Again, now, I'm the one who probably is askking
>> admittedly a very valid question, but yet a somewhat awquard question.
>>
>> I often have to babysit a little girl.  She's the  sweetest little thing 
>> at
>> 4 years old, but blesser heart, she has two medications she has to take 
>> on a
>> regular basis.  Usually, her mom gives them to her before leaving her for
>> the evening in my care, but the mom has expressed that she really would 
>> like
>> for me to learn to do this myself for her.  It's not a matter of her 
>> being
>> lazy and not wanting to take care of her child.  Don't even go there! 
>> It's
>> just she is in her words, trying to prove to me that I can! do this, and
>> that just because I am blind, doesn't mean anything in context of the 
>> action
>> at hand.
>>
>> So, here's more specifically the deal.  She has to be given a kitchen 
>> spoon
>> sized doce of liquid medicine.  I know it's usually the same principle as
>> putting liquid on a spoon when cooking then putting it in your mixing 
>> bowl
>> or whatever, but I cannot for the life of me find an easy way to do this.
>> I'm always so frightened that I'm gonna miss and hit her eye, or bopper 
>> on
>> the nose or worse when trying to get it in her mouth.  She usually does 
>> open
>> up, which is a plus.  I don't think she really minds the taste, but it's
>> just very hard for me, as I get really nurvous, and my hands start
>> trembling.  I'm not so much scared of getting it in her mouth, as I am of
>> spilling it off the spoon.  Yeah, I could pour it in a little cup then 
>> just
>> have her drink it that way, but then it makes it really really hard to
>> measure out the correct amount, and I'd be scared I'd give her too much, 
>> or
>> too little.
>>
>> The other med she has to take is much, and I do mean much much much much!
>> more difficult.  I do want some hints on the above, but here's the one 
>> I'm
>> r'r'r'r'really! struggling with that I desperetly! could use some blind 
>> tips
>> on.  She also has to take a medication which is injected as a shot.  Poor
>> baby!  And what makes it worse is, she's not exactly a very good sport 
>> about
>> it either.  To say she's really brave is bigger than the state of Texas 
>> of a
>> lie.  LOL!  Let's just say, you'd better be wearing ear plugs or cotton
>> balls if you have sensitive ears, as it's ear screeching!  Anyway, the 
>> thing
>> is, I don't just get scared the few times I've been asked to give it to 
>> her,
>> but I just about pannick myself.  I know, one would say to me, there's my
>> first problem right there!  Don't? pannick!  The first time I start that,
>> I'll make it more scarey for her, plus, I'll start doing dumb things. 
>> The
>> mom has said for me to start by just taking a deep breath before I do it,
>> but my biggest concern is, I can't feel  the point of the needle when it
>> goes in.  Oh yeah, she screams bloody murder, which is usually an 
>> indication
>> that I'm in, at which point, I push the plunger until it clicks, but my
>> thing is, I can't see it go in, and being it's so sharp, I have naturally 
>> a
>> really really heavy hand.  I'm scared I'll jabber!  Actually, a few 
>> times, I
>> have made about a half inch cut on her arm where she wenced back 
>> flinching
>> in pain, and therefore my hand slipped.  I don't wanna grab her little 
>> arm
>> too hard, as it's gonna hurt her already escrutiatingly as is, but then, 
>> you
>> add my tight grip on top a that?  No? thank you!  We've tried having her 
>> lie
>> down on her bed on her back, so that she can only resist but so much, but 
>> it
>> still is very difficult.  Further, I'm even just as much scared that if I
>> feel where I'm about to stick her, for one, it won't be staril, and for 
>> 2,
>> I'm just as much, if not more, frightened that I'll wind up accidentally
>> sticking myself.  Granted, I've not hit the plunger, so it's not like I'd
>> get any of the medication, God forbid, but it still would hurt like a son 
>> of
>> a gun!
>>
>> So, if any of you who're blind with absolutely no vision at all like 
>> shapes,
>> colors, etc. have given an injection, especially even more so if it was 
>> to a
>> little rugrat, how do you safely do this?  The mom is really insistant 
>> on,
>> you can do this, you just need to relax, and calm down.  I just feel I'm
>> always so tense, and hurky jerky when I do it.  There's gotta be a way!
>>
>> Chris.
>>
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>
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