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Walkie Talkies Keep Us in Contact
Walkie talkies (or two-way radio) provide a way to communicate with one another while still giving you your “space”. We use them everyday around the house when I’m upstairs and Steve is down, or if I’m inside and he’s out. We take our Midland walkie talkies grocery shopping so Steve can ride a scooter and check out the store while I shop. That way we’re always in contact with one another, yet it gives him the freedom to be independent.
My concern is always for his safety, but I don’t want to make him feel trapped. The walkie talkies are a great solution. One thing Steve missed the most was his Saturday morning coffee time at a local restaurant where a crowd of guys meet. As his caregiver I didn’t feel comfortable leaving him alone without someone “assigned” to him to help if needed. But yet I didn’t want him to feel like he needed a “babysitter”. We found a solution by using the walkie talkies.
Early Saturday morning I take him to the restaurant with both of us equipped with a walkie talkie. On the way, I stop at Kwik Trip to get some coffee, and I bring along my Bible and other reading materials. I help him out of the car and he walks into the restaurant on his own. I wait in the car enjoying my coffee and quiet devotion time. When he’s ready to leave about 35 – 60 minutes later, he just calls me on the walkie talkie and I drive the car up. This is a win-win situation for both of us. He gets some normalcy back into his life, I have some private time and the assurance that he’s safe.