I'm 8 months pregnant with my first child and a right arm above elbow amputee. Are there infant car seats that don't require two hands to unlock the carrying handle? Any advice on care for a newborn/infant with my one arm would be appreciated as well.
Thanks
Thanks everyone for your responses. I truly appreciated them. I will check into these options :-).
I haven't seen one but I'm sure there has got to be something out there that would work for you. You might try finding a local amputee support group and see if you can meet another mom in your same situation. I think it would be helpful to get advice from someone who has personal experience. Good luck
YES! I tried to look back in my records to see who I contacted & unfortunately can't find them, but a friend of mine's hubby lost his entire arm in a car accident. I remember contacting the State Highway Safety and they put me into contact w/ a manufacturer who DOES make them. They are expensive, though, but they're much more versitile than the normal.
Babies get pretty heavy pretty fast so I'd suggest buying something like a sling and/or a baby bjorn to help you carry the little tot around. As for car seats, go to a local babies rus and try them out. They have a lot on display so that you can fiddle around with them and see how they work for you. Best of luck!
PS. Make sure hwatever sling you get is safe! There have been some recalls lately..
There is a lady on facebook and if you search for "carseatlady" she may be able to help you. She knows all about carseats. You might also want to call some of the carseat makers (like britax, graco, etc.) and ask if they can safely modify something for you.
I used to work with a lady whose mother had an above the elbow amputation. She had 3 kids and did great! You'll be a great mom!!!
I remember with my car seat you could pull the handle to unlock the seat and then slide it a little and it should stay unlocked enough for you to just pull the seat out. It is a little different when the car seat is actually buckled to the seat. Do you have a Toys R Us in your area that has a seat in the store. Then you could buckle it in and try a few out to see what would be easier?
Another option is to get a seat that isn't the typical Graco infant seat that they outgrow sometimes before they are even a year old. With our second baby we started right out with a Britax that went from 5-65lbs. It was meant to stay in the car. My daughter is 31 months and it's the only seat we've had to buy for her.
Something like a mayawrap might be a great option for you for carrying the baby. It is a ring sling so you can adjust it with one hand. Once you get it pretty well adjusted you would then only make minor adjustments when you take the baby in or out. You can nurse baby in it hands free as well which is really nice. And you can carry baby a variety of ways so you get a lot of bang for your money.
