New Mattress

In early high school, around '97-'98, I started having trouble with pressure sores. Therefore, I got an air mattress for my bed to help reduce and prevent sores. This was a three-cell mattress, head, middle, and foot, that worked pretty well.

This mattress had thousands of tiny holes that continually lost air, so it had a pump that ran continually to keep it inflated. I was very aware when the electricity went out, because I went flat quickly. In any case, I could easily sit in bed and do whatever I wanted and still have good pressure relief. With a few replacement cells, I've used the same mattress ever since high school.

Unfortunately, like a lot of my equipment, it is now no longer produced and I can't get replacement parts. A few months ago, we noticed my butt was really sinking in when I sat up. When I was flat, I resembled a hot dog in a blue bun, making it difficult to do my cares and attempt sleep. For the first time in more than a decade, it was time to get a new mattress.

The first one I received was two inches too long for my bed, so we started looking at what it would take to lengthen my bed. However, after further testing, we noticed the air mattress was not made for sitting, just laying, so it was back to the phone and supply company. The second attempt is now underneath me and working well, at least for now.

Unlike the old system, this one doesn't lose air, so the pump isn't constantly running. The new quiet in my room was nice, but has taken getting used to. The first day I had it my caregiver and I committed that it sounded we were speaking louder. The second major item is that the air continues to move while I'm sitting, or laying.

Every four minutes, the pump comes to life and adjusts the air in various places. At one point, my keyboard will be just right, a few seconds later I find it moving closer or further away and I need to adjust it. I would say it's a good change and should help with my current sores and hopefully reduce problems in the future. My keyboard is going away again, so we'll see what comes this week.