Starting out. The first six months posthospital for spinal cord-injured veterans

Thirty-one former patients were contacted 6 mo after their completion of a spinal cord injury rehabilitation program: 14, paraplegics; 8, complete quadriplegics; 9, incomplete quadriplegics. Mean age was 38.5 yr. Most respondents were living in a family setting. Income ranged from substantial to barely adequate. Half of the respondents needed no assistance with activities of daily living; for the others, family members were the primary helpers. Almost all described their social contacts as sufficient for their needs. Half had not needed to use community resources for the disabled; the others had used a range of resources. Two respondents were employed, four were in school, six others had plans for eventual employment. Neither extent of disability nor income seemed related to likelihood of entering the workforce. Most respondents reported frequent local travel; some had traveled extensively. The large majority engaged in one or more hobbies and/or physical activities. Just over half of the respondents had had no sexual activity after discharge. Of the sexually active, half had found the experience frustrating. Except for the 30- to 39-yr-old respondents, the majority expressed satisfaction with most aspects of their lives.