I think most people haven't encountered people with CP. I personally haven't met anyone with CP that has jerky/twitchy features, so I wouldn't even associate spastic with it.

IIRC, use of the word "spaz" was the source of one of the ugly kerfluffles in Bureaucracy. (Some dude who I disremember -- obv. not a current poster -- said that because this is a board about BTVS, and because the show used the word, that should be our touchstone, and therefore it was okay to use it. I posited that it was a damned good thing this wasn't a Huckleberry Finn board.)

Spaz dates back to junior high for me, with "tick tick boom" and "it's the jitties" (which is a good thing, although I have no idea where it came from or what it actually means). I don't think any of us ever thought about it being offensive.

Spasticity just means that the muscles tighten and can't relax. My sister's brain damage was one-sided, and her right hand draws up into a claw and her right leg muscles tightened so that she was on tiptoe on that side, at least prior to several surgeries. Spasticity has nothing to do with jerky features, but contributes to the awkward gait.

The law changed on Jan. 1 so that I couldn't use my FSA money to pay for OTC drugs including allergy medication. I went to the doctor and got a prescription for Allegra. My insurance paid for a refill or two, and today they suddenly won't cover my prescription because Allegra is available OTC.

Someone is getting screwed here, and I'm pretty sure it's me.

ION, is there something you can apply to wires and cords so cats don't CHEW THROUGH the cord to a cable box? Something bad-tasting but safe?

Amy, apple bitters are supposed to do the job, though I've never tried it myself: [link]

Amy, for dogs the progression I recommend is Bitter Apple, to Bitter Cherry, to a product called Yuck!

Usually, one of the first two does the trick. If not, Yuck really is nasty. As a last resort, hot sauce nearly always works. It really is a last, last resort but if it comes down to a hurt tongue vs. electrocution, I'm going to pull out the big guns.

You can also try wrapping the cord in aluminum foil, if no actual wires are exposed.

Spasticity just means that the muscles tighten and can't relax. My sister's brain damage was one-sided, and her right hand draws up into a claw and her right leg muscles tightened so that she was on tiptoe on that side, at least prior to several surgeries. Spasticity has nothing to do with jerky features, but contributes to the awkward gait.

Yes, but I think when kids use it they mean hyperactive, not in the same sense as in spastic CP.

I should add, Bartleby casually chewed on exactly one thing in my house. Roughly 10 minutes later, the place was coated in Bitter Apple. He never chewed on anything else.

With one weirdly notable exception. He dug under a stack of books/papers, to chew up my 1999 'book'. Three times.

His permanent record in one vet office states "Destroys financial records."

I still have the book in a big ziplock just in case I get audited for that year. I suppose I could throw it out, but it's a good story.

Must have been a tasty glue, or something.