How do you cope with sitting still in a chair for dialysis...

[Sugarlump]

I have a very basic question.
How do you cope with sitting still in a chair for 4 plus hours?
I find I get a very numb bottom and stiff joints after about 3 hours and become very uncomfortable.
With a fistula your movement to adjust position is severely limited, last session I tried to shify my weight from one buttock to the other and
the needle started to come out.
How do you cope or is it the quality of the chairs?

[obsidianom]

If the needle is coming out with motion of the arm, then I suggest better taping. I tape securly enough for my wife that she can get up out of the chair and stretch or use a commode if neccessary. The point is , with a fistula you should be able to move around some to ease the stress on your body. I use a butterfly over the wings then tape over it again circumfrantly (around like half circle) then secure further back with 2 more pieces of tape . Each line is anchored very securly and cant move at all. We even use short 5/8 needles and they dont ever move or come out. She wiggles all during dialysis so it works well. 

[Rerun]

I went to JoAnn's and bought a 2" foam pad the length of the chair.  I put fleece around it.  I've seen some bring in the egg carton foam pads too.

[Simon Dog]

I got a DRIVE brand wheelchair cushion from wallmart.com - really helped.    Moving to home hemo and doing it in bed helped even more.

[kporter85db]

Ok, don't laugh at me, but I found an orthopedic dog cushion sized just right to fit on my chair seat. It is 2 inches high density foam and 2 inches memory foam and has a washable fleece cover. My chair is a dream to sit in now.

[Sugarlump]

I did wonder about a sheepskin, even a fake one to sit on.
Not to sure about telling the dialysis nurses to tape it a bit more securely (Can just imagine their expression) but I'll try.
I have a tendency to slide down the chair during the 3 hours and it's very difficult to wriggle back up to be more comfortable
without upsetting the needles... 

[obsidianom]

I did wonder about a sheepskin, even a fake one to sit on.
Not to sure about telling the dialysis nurses to tape it a bit more securely (Can just imagine their expression) but I'll try.
I have a tendency to slide down the chair during the 3 hours and it's very difficult to wriggle back up to be more comfortable
without upsetting the needles... 

My wife does the same thing. She slides down the chair and we havew to reposition her a lot. However with secure taping it doesnt matter. I suggest you learn how to tape yourself and do it yourself. You can do a better job that way.

[nursey66]

My hubby got a cushion from a Medical supply place on the internet. It has memory foam on one side, is covered with easy to clean material, and has a carry handle. It was about $
40.00 , but the site did say if there was a need, with a DR's order, they could bill Medicare. We didn't try that, but the nurses at the center took the info for others who are having difficulties sitting. Hubby says it made the world of difference for him !!!

[CalamityEC]

I adjust my leg position quite a bit.  Also, I adjust the pillows behind me.  I do have a wedge cushion from hip surgeries that I could bring in, but really I find that what I do works well enough. 

[Sugarlump]

I did wonder about a sheepskin, even a fake one to sit on.
Not to sure about telling the dialysis nurses to tape it a bit more securely (Can just imagine their expression) but I'll try.
I have a tendency to slide down the chair during the 3 hours and it's very difficult to wriggle back up to be more comfortable
without upsetting the needles... 

My wife does the same thing. She slides down the chair and we havew to reposition her a lot. However with secure taping it doesnt matter. I suggest you learn how to tape yourself and do it yourself. You can do a better job that way.

My problem with either self needling or self taping is my fistula is above elbow and on the inside of my left arm which means it's difficult for me to reach around.
Really not sure I could ever get angle right for needling and sticking down tape would probably take two hands!!!!

[Bungarian]

I am good most of the time but the last 30 minutes kill me

[Sugarlump]

Having been watching my grandson (aged 11 months) sitting and sleeping on a sheepskin over christmas,  I have been looking at buying a sheepskin to sit on ... although they are quite expensive they do recommend them for medical use to sit or lay on to prevent pressure sores and stiff joints.

[Wildrose]

I don't have a problem with the needle slipping out, but I never move my arm when I adjust. I just move my bottom, I usually shift from side to side and end up half lying on my right side (fistula is on the left) for a large portion of the run. I also have severe restless leg syndrome so am often miserable during the last hour or so of dialysis... sometimes the whole run is that way if I didn't get enough sleep the night before. For anyone with restless leg syndrome, I rub lavender essential oil on the soles of my feet before dialysis. I really think it helps.
Another thing I do is to make sure I start out sitting as far back in the chair as I can get (meaning scoot back as far as you can when you first sit down). That seems to help with positioning later on as eventually I seem to slide down.

[kitkatz]

Target has a cushion advertised on TV that is great, 20 bucks. I use it on in my chair along with a bubble mattress thingy, plus a pillow.

[Sugarlump]

Interesting that a lot of people say they slide down the chair during dialysis, thus affecting position and comfort.
I think I need a new chair...

[Simon Dog]

Two issues" comfort and boredom.

As to comfort - Drive brand wheelchair cushion.

Comfort - I bring a board (shelf) with a riser on each end to set across the two build it tables at the side of the chair to make a desk.   I set a laptop on the desk and do stuff online for a couple of hours.  When I get tired of that, I watch a movie from Redbox using Bost headphones.   In order to minimize rental time, I copy the Redbox movie to my hard drive using the software from www.slysoft.com.    Or, more accurately, that is what I used to do.  Now that I do home hemo, I stream Netflix.