I have noticed several threads regarding some issues of the differently-abled (I dislike being PC, but I hate the term disabled more) on the forum. Some of us are Diabetic (myself included), a few have vision or mobility problems, and at least one person has Parkinsons.
First off, I would like to thank all of you for insightful ideas to compensate for some of the modeling issues we face. At least for me, being supportive of my efforts, without feeling sorry for me, means a great deal.
Model railroading is very much theropy for me. It relieves stress (which is one reason I don’t get to excited about prototype operation or absolute prototypical correctness), and helps me keep my vision, and fine motor skills sharp.
Second, I would like to restate some of those ideas:
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. This one is most important.
Join a club. Most are friendly and helpful.
Concentrate on the aspects of the hobby you can do. Maybe you can’t superdetail rolling stock, but what about scenery and buildings? Or Operation?
Use specialized tools. The magnifing work lamps, and glasses are obvious, but there are others like arm braces and such.
Change scales. Larger scales are more robust, and easier to see and handle.
Benchwork can always be made higher, lower, wider, or narrower based on need. It can also be build without legs in front so you can roll a chair under it.
Good ones, Nick. As a modeler with diabetes, nueropathy and severe nerve damage due to spinal menengitis, I thank you. Your comments and suggestions are well received.
Very good list! I wholeheartedly agree.[:)] I too have multiple chronic medical problems. I do what I can do. Right now, there is very little that I can’t do,[tup] but recently I have begun feeling the accumlative effects of some of the problems.[tdn] Model railroading is one of the few things that takes my mind off of the problems, relaxes me and makes the day better. [:)]
I would add don’t be afraid to have other modelers help you out in your hobby pursuits. This can be volunteer efforts or paying others who do this sort of work professionally or semi-professionally.
I’m not ashamed to say that several of the nicely finished locos on my layout have been done by my friend Larry Eyman, and I have paid him to do the work. However, I especially like to do the weathering, so I’ve asked Larrry not to weather the locos but to leave that part to me. [swg]
I think the point here is to be okay with “sharing the wealth” so to speak, and not require that your layout be your own personal ego trip. There’s certainly pride of craftsmanship and all that, but I personally view the hobby as more about people than stuff. For me it’s not about seeing who can die with the most toys, if you will.
If, like me, you find yourself building a layout that requires more time and resources than you alone can muster, having some extra hands to pitch in helps make it achievable in something less than several lifetimes! [swg]
This hobby kept me sane after I went over the handle bars on a dirt bike 25 years ago, thereby turning myself into an instant paraplegic. I was already into Model railroading in a minor way, but now it became THE substitute for all the things I could no longer do. I now have a 20’x40’ building pretty much filled with an around the walls layout. I built and installed all of the benchwork, laid all the track, wired all the stall motor switch machines, wired everything for an Onboard control system(an analog forerunner to Digital Command Control, which I’ve now converted to), built all the bridges, including a working Bascule bridge, etc. Then I had to ask for help with the scenery, for which I have no aptitude.I was very fortunate in running into two great guys-Brad Lloyd and Dave Connery, who have done a beautiful job of scenery. It’s almost 90% complete, now.
So don’t let ANYONE tell you that you can’t do something because of your disabilties, because you’ll never know unless you try!
Joe said:I would add don’t be afraid to have other modelers help you out in your hobby pursuits. This can be volunteer efforts or paying others who do this sort of work professionally or semi-professionally.
Joe,I know you mean that in a kind way and I am sure there are those that should heed such advice.
Now comes the other side of the coin.The ugly side.
Take a modeler like me that has been doing all of his modeling work for the last 54 years then WHAMMY! I had a near fatal heart attack and ended up losing the use of my right hand.Out comes the self pity party that lasted for a year.After psychical therapy I regain limited use of my right hand and still thought my detailing days were over and done.I mean how could I ask another or pay another to add the very basic details that I once did or put KD couplers on.That would be unacceptable to me…And thus it was so for the last year.
Now comes redemption…[:D]
A very wise man once told me that can’t died and can buried his sorry behind. So,I started to add details with my left hand a very limited use of my right index finger and thumb.To say I was clumsy at the beginning would be a under statement not only was I clumsy I also manage to break some small detail parts.That was 3 weeks ago…Today I can add KD couplers,add detail parts,drill and such like.
All it took was the proper attitude,perseverance and a foam cradle.[:D]
We should not forget, though, that many diseases and disorders have a path that is in one direction, and that is total disability, and eventually one’s sad demise. While an injury can sometimes be ameliorated, even if incompletely, Parkinson’s is a one way street, and the disabilities associated with it leave no room for optimism.
So, when one of our own confesses, in anguish, that he is exhausted from attempting to delay the onset of a certainty, we should not lecture him about fighting against the disease; he knows how to do that, and has been doing so for years. What he hoped for was understanding, maybe some encouragement, and some suggestions about how to stave it off for another few months.
Another thing to think about is your support network. My OT (occupational theropist) could make a Marine drill sergent cry. She wouldn’t let me quit, until I could do for myself. My family also wouldn’t let me take to my bed and stop living.
If you don’t mind me saying this guys, this is a very inspirational thread and should give us able bodied modelers pause when we are frustrated at not getting something accomplished. I just finished reading “Reach for the Sky” the book about Douglas Bader, the famous WW2 fighter pilot with no legs. His story is truly inspiring and a valuable lesson in what a determined human spirit can accomplish. For everyone of you for whom just getting out of bed in the morning is a trial, I truly admire you.
wow, heavy stuff here. Optimism is the key (of course, who would ever start building a layout whithout optimism?) and for me too that (and my wife) has been what has kept me going this last year, after being told I have MS which explained my weird tiredness. With fingertips getting number, I just HAD to do another p2k tank car kit just to prove I still could. And build my boyhood dream s-curve. Somehow my dexterity got almost back to normal partly due to all the fidgeting with model trains.
I actually hate these kind of Halelujah-stories because they seem to deny that something CAN go seriously wrong, but still, what’s made the hobby so valuable for me: some goal you can set yourself and then, every time you continue the work, gathering the optimism needed to actually attain it. The same mindset is needed when for whatever reason you cannot work anymore, you want to look back and be content with your life so far - cause the fun can end any moment.
I must disagree with that train of thought…One should never give up…To give up enjoying one’s life till the end is self destructive.Encouragement is needed most at that time.After all keeping active can prolong one’s life…Being inactive leads to depression which is a disease that can shorten ones life by gun,knife,rope or other means.
Believe me. I know about numb fingers. I can’t feel mine most of the time. I have to look at the keyboard here to make sure I hit the right keys, because I can’t feel them. It makes layout work pretty dangerous sometimes because I can cut myself and not know it.
Just finding this forum probably saved me from myself. I’ve been reading ya’lls stuff for several years now, learning from your advice and your mistakes. Also finding sense of purpose and putting it to use. You don’t have to have somebody tell you that you can do something, just reading what’s been posted by someone in worse shape than you are, about how they overcame the difficulties caused by thier disabilities, is uplifting. Sometimes it’s the best medicine of all. By God, if they can do it, so can I. I’ve learned how to use my limitations as a plus and now nothing is going to stop me until I just finally can’t get up anymore. Never let anyone, especially yourself, tell you that you can’t do something. That’s a one-way street and believe me, I know. I was well on the way down it when I discovered this wonderful forum. Reading the stuff posted by the people here, reading how they help others in need made me realize that I can use all the knowledge I’ve accumalated over the years, all the skills I’ve learned that I can pass on, that I can make a difference to someone else in the hobby. I hope whoever reads this finds purpose and strength in it.
This layout was made by a gentleman with MS. He had some help with the benchwork, but all the scenery and detail work was done by him. His structures are amazing. http://railsidepmd.com/gallery/Gene-VanderArks
Sounds bad, jailbreaker. Can have any of a gazillion different causes. Go see a doctor. My particular numbing is caused by hampered comminication between “the brain” (or what’s left of it, LOL, I’ll have another drink) and the other end of the neurones due to hardening wound tissue (after inflamation, noone knows why or how, the MS-mystery) in the insulation around the nerve cells.
Jeffrey, you’re doing a great job with those keys! And that engine IS going somewhere, right?
Brakie, I did not say that a person should give up. Please reread my post, and you will see that my caution was based in reality, stark though it may be. I did not urge our friend to give up, but only asked those of us who insist on chiding him to keep going that he wants very much to to that, and does not need the lectures. He needs encouragement, not different ways of telling him how to suck eggs.
Around a big oval, through a mountain up a train lift and around another oval.
Sounds like jailbreaker may have chronic back stress. My numbness is partially from nuerophathy due to diabetes but mostly due to spinal menengitis that I had as a child. The fever was high enough that everything I’d learned to that point, was wiped out. I was only two years old at the time but I had to go through life with very strict limitations and always had to attend schools with a special education program. Not easy to find in the 60’s and 70’s.