SCI.help › I'm Back Home
MONTHS – YEARS AFTER INJURY
I'm back home
Home is where the real rebuilding happens — the routines, the gear, the money, and the independence you piece back together one solved problem at a time. This page is everything on the site for this stage, organized the way the problems actually show up.
Your home base
Daily Living Guides →
Bathing, dressing, driving, travel, parenting, work — 16 guides for the everyday stuff.Community-vetted gear
The Equipment Guide →
Wheelchairs, cushions, catheters, and the products people with SCI actually recommend.The money side
Disability & Benefits →
SSDI, SSI, Medicaid, insurance appeals, and working without losing coverage.
Emergency? Pounding headache, flushing, high blood pressure (T6 or above) can be autonomic dysreflexia — open the AD protocol now.
Just discharged? Set up your base
The first weeks home are the most dangerous transition in the whole journey — supports vanish overnight. These get the house, the help, and the backup plans in place.
- What to Ask Before DischargeStill in rehab or recently out? Close every gap on this list
- Home ModificationsRamps, doorways, bathrooms — and how to fund them
- Finding Accessible HousingWhen modifying the current place isn't enough
- Hiring & Managing PCAsFinding, paying, and keeping good help
- Assistive TechSmart-home, voice control, and computer & phone access
- Emergency PreparednessPower outages, evacuations, and backup plans for everything
- Backup PowerKeeping vents, CPAPs, and power chairs running when the grid isn't
- The Equipment ExchangeFree and low-cost used gear from the community
Daily routines & self-care
The everyday skills that turn a hard day into a normal one. Every guide written by people who do these routines themselves.
- Bladder ManagementCatheters, medications, kidney protection, UTI prevention
- Bowel ManagementPrograms, timing, diet — the guide nobody else writes honestly
- Bathing & ShoweringSafe, efficient shower routines and setups
- Bed Baths & No-Shower DaysA dignified skill for UTI days, low-energy days, and travel
- Dressing & ClothingTechniques, adaptive clothing, and tools that speed it up
- Oral Hygiene & GroomingAdapted tools and setups for limited hand function
- Nutrition After SCIWeight, skin health, bowel function, and metabolism
- Sleep & Bed PositioningTurning schedules, mattresses, and protecting skin overnight
- Temperature RegulationStaying safe in heat and cold when your body can't adjust
- Transfers & Wheelchair SkillsThe mechanics of independence
Stay healthy at home
The complications that land people back in the hospital are mostly preventable — if you know what to watch for and act early.
- Pressure InjuriesThe daily checks that prevent disasters — the #1 preventable readmission
- When a Sore Won't HealEscalation steps before it becomes a surgery
- UTIsSymptoms, when to treat, and prevention that works
- Suprapubic Catheter ChangesHow to change your own — safely
- Autonomic DysreflexiaThe emergency protocol everyone in the house must know
- AD Safety CardsPrintable cards for procedures, ER visits, and caregivers
- Medication & Supplement SafetyInteractions and risks specific to SCI
- Spasticity & SpasmsTriggers, stretching, meds, and when spasms signal trouble
- Pain & Nerve PainNeuropathic pain, shoulder pain, and real options
- Mental Health & AdjustmentThe dip after rehab structure disappears is normal — and treatable
- Blood ClotsDVT and PE — signs, prevention, and when to act
- Low Blood PressureOrthostatic hypotension and the lightheaded transfers
- Respiratory CareBreathing, cough assist, and pneumonia prevention at home
Get out & get moving
Independence doesn't stop at the front door. Driving, travel, fitness, and the programs that get you back out there.
- Adaptive DrivingHand controls, evaluations, and getting back behind the wheel
- Wheelchair Van Finder537 verified dealers nationwide, with NMEDA badges
- Traveling With SCIAir travel, hotels, and wheelchair logistics that work
- Service AnimalsDogs, rights, training, and programs
- Adaptive FitnessExercise, shoulder protection, and FES options
- Adaptive Sports & RecreationFrom handcycling to hunting — how to start
- Adaptive Sports & Support Finder612 programs and peer groups across all 50 states
Money, benefits & legal
The paperwork side of survival. Benefits take months — if anything here isn't started yet, start it this week.
- Disability & Benefits HubSSDI, SSI, Medicare & Medicaid — all 10 guides
- Applying & Winning AppealsMost first applications get denied — appeal and win
- Health InsurancePrior-auth, denials & appeals — getting equipment approved
- Paying for In-Home CareMedicaid waivers and getting family caregivers paid
- Benefit Money TrapsCrowdfunding, settlements, and marriage rules that cost people benefits
- Legal & Financial GuideInjury claims, settlements, special needs trusts, ADA rights
- After-Injury Legal ChecklistDeadlines and decisions that can't wait
- Avoiding ScamsStem-cell clinics and miracle cures that target this community
Life, love & work
The parts of life that make the rest worth managing. All of it is still on the table.
- Relationships & DatingDisclosure, intimacy, and dating with confidence
- Sexual Health & IntimacyThe honest guide to sex after SCI
- Pregnancy & PostpartumCarrying, delivering, and parenting a newborn with SCI
- Parenting With SCIRaising kids from a chair — including your legal rights
- Returning to WorkVoc rehab, ADA accommodations, and protecting benefits
- College After SCIAccommodations, housing, and scholarships
- Peer SupportFinding people who've been exactly where you are
- Peer Stories & VideosThe best real-life SCI channels and stories
- Community ForumCompare notes with people who get it