Do you use senior helpers/aids?

I have a degenerative disc in my lower back from an injury about 42 years ago when I was an auto mechanic that gives me much pain off and on. To top it off I have OA in my knees and hips which are getting worse.
It's kind of funny how some days when Harper and I head out for our walks I will be in pain at the start but seem to be able to walk out of it. Other days it is opposite and I'm in pain by the time I get home. We only do a kilo or 2 at a time and then try to get out at least once more in the day for another walk.
I do find myself using the tub bar that I put in for Annie a few years ago and I use the hand rail going to the basement now.
 
Around here we have railings added along all changes in elevation I installed before getting my knee replacement. My wife has two sets of walking sticks, a couple of walkers and a wheelchair lift to avoid the stairs whenever possible. Grab bars in the shower and around the toilet. Shower chair I got when my knee was replaced which neither of us seems to use any more.

We get house cleaning help every two weeks and Lia has help in her studio weekly and help online with various office things regularly. Some day maybe I'll get some regular help with the garden but probably not.

We each have a couple of the special cushions I first got while seeing a chiropractor. I keep on one my desk chair and one on my seat in the kitchen. Hers are in the kitchen and in my car. (I find the seat in my new car to be the most comfortable of any in the house including those cushions.)

Lia liked the superior kneeler I got the for the garden when my funky old one died so she got one she uses for various things in the house. I have a super light 6 foot orchard ladder which I use a lot and pole clippers and a pole saw to avoid using a ladder at all so far as possible.

LIa has a huge number of lotions and potions she uses. We both use liquid tears but she has had cataract surgery and I haven't yet so I use it more. I have hearing aides and glasses I wear for everything now. We both have CPAP machines and she has a special gizmo she uses to clean all the parts. I just change the masks twice monthly and the hose and harness about monthly.
 
I jst now used an older 2 wheel handi cart to go to mailbox,
which is 60foot down a steep driveway, to check on what a
little brat was attempting to steal when I saw him and hollered
at him....he put it back in.....no kudos for that, he shouldn't hav
been in the mail box in the first place...the item was an Dental
advertisement!!!!!! but i did make the trip without problems!!!
 
Alizerine said:
A cane can work for getting items from a high shelf at the store. Just aim for the cart and be careful.
Click to expand...
Yes to that! ā€¦ itā€™s also a good dancing partner ;) ā€¦
Seriously though, I find my hurricane a nuisance for walking!! Just donā€™t like it, and find a walker is so much easier to get around with, since it keeps you balanced. Canes donā€™t.

In the bathroom I have a built-in grab bar on the bath wall, put in by the Apartmentsā€¦. I also have another grab bar over the center of my garden tub.
I use both at the same time for security.

I have a grabber but rarely find it useful for anything. If I used it to grab something in a kitchen cupboard, I would probaby break something. lol
 
hawkdon said:
Does anyone use one of those pedal machines for their
legs??? See them on tv adverts all the time now...thought
my legs might benefit from something like thatz??
Click to expand...
Hawk,

Before you buy check with your PCP and Medicare.

In some cases, like knee replacement, Medicare will authorize the rental of a Continuous Passive Motion or CPM machine during rehab.

It might be a way to at least check it out before you buy.

Good luck!
 
RadishRose said:
When I was young I thought.... when I got old and needed a cane, I'd (somehow) trick it out with hanging feathers, beads, roach clips and star charms. The old hippie stuff.

But I didn't. *sigh*
Click to expand...
There is still time. šŸ˜‰šŸ¤—šŸ¤­

il_570xN.1923670012_5ejp.jpg
 
I have to admit that there are days that I have thought of using a cane or a longer walking stick. I even turned some pieces of would and put on each end of old adjustable length windshield scrapers to make walking sticks. I resist using them because I would hate to become dependent on them.
Plus it would be very difficult to shoot clay birds while holding a cane.šŸ¤Ŗ
That is where I'm heading this morning.(y)
 
When I want something from the top shelf at the supermarket, I use the handle of my cane to pull it off the shelf and catch it with my left hand. I've done it for other shoppers, too, and they think it's pretty cool, but it won't be if it's pickles and I miss.

I have a wheelchair that my son bought for me when I had covid and I've used it since when I'm sick. It's always hard to give it up when I get better.
 
Della said:
When I want something from the top shelf at the supermarket, I use the handle of my cane to pull it off the shelf and catch it with my left hand. I've done it for other shoppers, too, and they think it's pretty cool, but it won't be if it's pickles and I miss.

I have a wheelchair that my son bought for me when I had covid and I've used it since when I'm sick. It's always hard to give it up when I get better.
Click to expand...
My mother used to use her wheelchair as a transport vehicle to carry the laundry basket, bags of groceries, etcā€¦
 


Back
Top