Verity's New Bed

Verity Blessing's new bed arrived!  After a year and a half of waiting, this is a really big deal!  She looks so comfy, doesn't she?  

Here she is kicked back and relaxing with her nebulizer, getting one of her six daily doses of breathing medicine:

This new bed is the Sleep Safe bed (www.sleepsafebed.com) and it is wonderful.  Nowhere for her to burrow (and remain with a hand or foot wedged until morning.)  No openings for her to get an arm or leg jammed into, leaving her stuck and screaming for me to wake up and help her.  No hard places to bang her knuckles into; just soft washable foam padding.  No more bruises or scrapes caused by a bed that cannot keep her safe.  And at the push of a button I can raise her head to the 30 degree angle at which she is required to sleep.  A bit nicer than shoving pillows under the mattress to try to position her correctly!  Push another button and I can raise the bed up nice and high to change her without wrecking my back.  Push another button and the bed glides down low enough that she can slide from the bed into her wheelchair.  When I am not right next to her the side panel folds up to keep her safe.  I am in love!  

Here was her old bed (just a regular twin bed with an extra rail built around it):

Despite our efforts to keep her head elevated, she managed to wake up nearly every morning down near the foot of the bed, her breathing gurgly and congested from laying flat on her back. And despite our efforts to keep her safe from entrapment, her strong spastic movements and wriggling and squirming caused her to shove her arms and legs past the padding and pillows we arranged around her and to get herself stuck between the rails, over and over again.

It took months of waiting, letters from doctors and therapists, documentation of injuries, and documentation of diagnoses.  And then the Health Care Authority denied the request, stating that the new bed was not medically necessary.  It took getting a lawyer involved and taking our appeal before a judge to get the powers that be to take another look at the situation.  And then, praise The Lord, the bed was approved!  I can hardly believe it is finally here!  She is finally safe and comfortable all night long.  Which means she can sleep better, and so can I.