After a spinal cord injury, it's important that you are aware of your vulnerability to certain medical conditions. Your medical team may have informed you of common dangers such as burns, pressure sores, and muscle spasms. However, there is a lesser-known medical problem unique to many people with a spinal cord injury that is serious and can be life-threatening. It's called autonomic dysreflexia.
Autonomic dysreflexia can occur for some people with a spinal cord injury with dire consequences—stroke, seizure, or cardiac arrest. It can happen when autonomic dysreflexia triggers cause your body to overreact to many different types of stimuli below your spinal cord injury. One complication is your autonomic nervous system can send your blood pressure spiking to dangerous levels.
It can be difficult to ask for help, especially from your adult children. As parents, many of us are used to being the ones offering support, not the ones receiving it. That shift can feel uncomfortable, even emotional.
