Practice indeed does make perfect. We often see CVA patients a number of years post-stroke who find they have lost some capacities from their initial rehab, sometimes due to bad habits, but often these can be regained with practice. Sometimes it means practicing each stage of the transfer many times before putting them all together to go from lying to sitting, and reverse. The most efficient way to do that transfer is:

1. Sleeping on the left side of the bed so that his right / strong side is positioned to help him in the movements.

2. Lying on his back, have him bend his right knee up with his foot on the bed.

3. While pushing with the right foot to roll the right side of his pelvis over towards the left, he should reach with his right hand toward the side of the bed, effectively rolling onto his left side by pushing with his foot and pulling on the mattress with his hand.

4. While holding the side of the mattress with his right hand at the level of his right shoulder, he should then move his legs to the side of the bed. If he is able, he could help his left leg with the right, but otherwise may need help sliding his legs forward to the edge of the bed.

5. He should then lower his feet over the side of the bed while pushing with his right arm to get his upper body up off the mattress. He may need some help with lifting his upper body and/or controlling the descent of his legs.

Getting into bed is the reverse of the above--sit, lie upper body onto left side, lift legs in, roll onto back. Never let him just sit down and flop into bed. It seems easier at the outset, but then valuable transfer skills are lost.

In all cases where you are helping him, make sure to protect your own back. Never bend over from the waist, and make sure you bend your knees and keep your back with the normal slight hollow in it. Move your body weight from one foot to the other in the direction you want to move your Dad, never twisting your body as you move.

If you are doing this as an exercise you should avoid doing all the work for him, as tempting as it is when we see someone struggling. Maybe just stabilize his body at each step to give him a chance to move further after a short rest. If I were treating your Dad, I would get him to just do steps #2 and #3 many times (i.e. 10 times, several times a day for several days) without trying to go further. Once that got easier, I would add #4, and finally #5.

There are technical aids that can help stroke victims to do these transfers. One is a kind of grab bar: Part of it goes under the mattress, while the rest is beside the bed at the level of the upper body. It provides a hand-hold to pull on for rolling onto the side, and also as a point of support when going from sitting to standing. Another very useful thing if it is affordable is an electric bed. That way the upper body can be raised using the bed controls and to alleviate some of the effort required to raise the weight of the trunk. There are also easy-chairs that through electric controls can raise the person to almost-standing.

Good luck, and hope this helps.