The day before Thanksgiving I slipped on my front steps and broke my foot. Suddenly, life became a lot more challenging. Hopefully you'll never break anything, but if you happen to come home from that holiday skiing trip with a souvenir, here are some of the things I've learned that will make your life a lot easier.
Roll Up The Rugs: Rugs, especially those without a rug pad under them, can slow down a wheelchair or slip under a crutch. Roll them up or remove them.
Investigate a food delivery service like Fresh Direct: Though friends have been kind enough to ferry me to the grocery store (a broken right foot means driving is out) or do my grocery shopping for me, food delivery is invaluable. Even if you think of yourself as someone who doesn't cook, you'll need things like juice and milk.
Another thing about eating: Since you won't be able to purchase fresh food on a regular basis, meal planning and your freezer will become your allies.
Amazon Prime is my homegirl: The mailman has become my best friend, though I doubt the feeling is mutual now that I've started ordering everything from Amazon. With a subscription to Amazon Prime, which cuts out the cost of shipping, anything I order from Amazon will cost the same as if I was able to run to the store to get it. Shampoo, vitamins, even some food! I'll definitely stick with this after my foot heals.
Consider renting alternate modes of transportation: While I use my crutches when I go out, I've rented a knee walker for getting around the house. A type of scooter, it's not only fun but it means I can move a cup of tea from the kitchen to the living room (an impossible feat on crutches) and do short errands in the neighborhood. Hands-free crutches are another option (great for channelling your inner pirate). You need to get a prescription from the doctor in order for the cost of these items to be covered by your insurance. An office chair on wheels can also be useful. You can kneel on it with your back leg and scoot around on it, or you can use it like a wheelchair. (Useful if, like me, you want to help out with the cooking in a friend's kitchen.)
Accept the help of friends and family: This may be the hardest one on the list. Especially if, like me, you're used to being independent, asking other people to do things for you, or allowing them to do things for you, can be challenging.
Clothing will be a challenge: No skinny jeans for me (the cast doesn't fit through the leg hole). No high heels (While walking in high heels is okay, I do a fair amount of hopping around, a much harder trick to manage in heels.) Crutches make your shirts ride up (something to think about if you have the midriff of a person over the age of 35) and they're also tiring and sweat-inducing (layer, layer, layer). You may need to wear gloves to prevent blisters on your palms.
Things on high shelves are no longer accessible: I'm small, so I'm used to climbing on counters and chairs and drag stepstools around in order to reach things. Not an option when you're on crutches. If this keeps up much longer I may have to consider purchasing one of those grabber things.
Electronic media: This isn't like a regular stay at home situation. You need to stay off your feet, so things on your to-do list, like cleaning out the closet, will not get crossed off. You'll be spending a lot of time keeping your limb elevated, i.e., lying on the couch watching a lot of tv or reading. With Netflix, Hulu Plus, and an IPad or a laptop, I'm barrelling through all those movies and tv shows I never got around to. My iBooks, Kindle and Zinio applications are also getting a workout.
Bathing: I purchased a sleeve to keep my cast dry while showering or in the bath. Much more effective than the garbage bag and duct tape option.
(Image: Shutterstock)
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When I broke my arm, the best thing I did was have my hair washed at a salon. At a local Great Clips the service was only $7 plus tip, and the TLC was pretty nice too. With long hair I found I could go a week between washes; normally I wash it about every 4 days. One time though I did visit a different salon where the operator seemed in a hurry, and when I got home I discovered she had left suds in my hair. Yuck -- had to pay double and have it redone at the place in my own neighborhood the next day.
Attaching a basket to a knee walker makes it possible to carry multiple items.
In a straight-leg non-weight-bearing thigh-high cast you can't get around, especially in a second-floor walkup. For doctor appointments an ambulance crew of three or four would show up to escort my husband down the stairs. We installed a second handrail to make the stairs somewhat more navigable, but getting over the 1/2 inch threshold was a real problem. A rented a hospital bed helped; he lived in the living room for three months. Basically, if it wasn't on the bedside table it didn't exist. The barber made house calls. When the Rodney King riots erupted, and a building down the block was torched, we made arrangements with neighbors to help us if an evacuation was necessary. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuJyii75Nwg&sns=em
I could write a book.
I used to use an apron with pockets so that I could stash things in there while I hopped up and down the stairs. This, of course, did not help out with a cup of tea but other things could be carried back and forth that way. Not fun!
I feel for you. I had one knee replacement surgery in May and another in September. (I'm so glad I don't have more than two knees.) My daughter was there to help through the worst of the recovery but I didn't want to wake her up in the early morning when I was ready to get up. I used a walker with no shelf. I wish you could have seen me making coffee and taking it to the dining room table. I needed to hold on on both sides of the walker so I would fill up the kettle with water, put it down on the counter in the direction of the stove as far as I could reach, walk with the walker to where the kettle was, and repeat 'til I got to the stove. Same on the way back to pour the water through the filter. After pouring the coffee into a cup, I would use a similar strategy to get to the dining room door and then place the cup on a chair next to the door and then carefully drag the chair closer to the table and then sit down and take the cup off the chair. It sounds funny now but at the time it was hard, hard work.
Good to know. There are a lot of things here that I'd never thought about. What are hands-free crutches? Off to google.
I really appreciate this article. As someone who needs every room to be wheelchair-accessible, I furrow my brow when I read that a floor *needs* a carpet (when all I can think is how it would trip me) or even a landing strip in the front hallway (which would just make it more difficult to get into the apartment and navigate it. A third design recommendation--pull pieces away from the walls and let your furniture float--is entirely impractical as every piece of furniture that isn't against the wall is just an obstacle for the wheelchair and makes my home unwelcoming for me, even if it may sooth the nerves of those with very specific notions of proper interior flow. I think of this whenever I read about these recommendations for the able-bodied.
A few years ago I was incapacitated for a different reason (severe vertigo for several months) and I could not REACH for things or tilt my head & body up OR down. It made laundry impossible as well as getting things down -- or putting things away. I did some short cuts such as keeping one plate, bowl, cup, mug, etc. on the counter for the duration, rather than putting them in their regular cupboard spot.
A friend's grandmother loaned me one of those grabber things and at first I was like, how lame, I'll never use this.
It turned out to be the MOST useful thing EVER!!
Sweaters with pockets became my wardrobe when I broke my leg. Fingerless gloves help keep your hand from getting raw while keeping your fingers free. Never did figure out the hot tea with crutches trick, just went slow... very slow. A travel mug with handle probably would have worked, but I prefer ceramic mugs too much.
Then, when your cast comes off and your skin is in need of serious help, get Miracle Foot Cream or some similar cheesy skin cream (they're usually on the bottom shelf at the drug store and you would never think of buying it in normal instances). Within a week my skin was moist and back to normal. The physical therapist thanked me and had to learn my secret :)
I feel for you. I've recently gone through a similar situation only I didn't break any bones but severely injured several ligaments on my right foot instead. Top it off with a bone marrow oedema and, voilà!, I had to take a four month leave from work. Fun fun fun.
I don't have much to add to your amazing tips, except that I totally subscribe to the idea of buying as many goods as you can on the Internet, watching as many movies and TV shows as you fancy, and wearing clothes with pockets, lots of them. And, if you play an instrument or would like to try your hand at a new language, this is the perfect time for practising.
I've had three orthopedic surgeries (in childhood) on my legs and feet for bone related birth defects -- four if you count the amputation of my pinkie toe! (Did that make you cringe?! ;^) )
I had a thigh-high straight non-weight-bearing cast for 9 months -- and I still went to school every day with crutches. (It can be done!) On stairs, I just sat down and levered myself up or down on my butt. Not dignified but effective.
One very important tip -- do NOT rest your body weight on your armpits on the crutches! (If you have that style.) You can do serious nerve damage that way. Always put your weight on your hands.
And go slow. I often tried to hurry and that was when I hurt myself.
Decorating for accessibility could be an occasional feature here -- many of us have temporary issues, and many could help out aged parents or others who need wheelchair access etc. (I was project manager for my Library's recent renovation, and we have to legally provide ADA access -- aisles at least 36 inches wide, no cul-de-sacs of a certain length to get out of if a fire alarm goes off, etc. It's educational!
I second the suggestion that going to a salon to have your hair washed and dried when dealing with a broken upper body bone(s) is fantastic. It does wonders for improving one's mood, not to mention appearance. A professional wash and style last longer than the ones I do myself, so I only went twice a week. It was a bit expensive, but totally worth it.
All of these suggestions are great. I've broken multiple bones; no matter what you break, your life sucks until you are fully healed.
Lots of good stuff here. I had a total shoulder replacement in 2011, & got very good at cooking & cleaning 1 handed--but there were times when I had to take jar & jar opener to a neighbor. Also could NOT put the duvet in its cover singlehanded, even using my teeth. Ah, friends. Since my huse is set up for multiple dogs, it adapted well to a disability, oddly enough--a minimum of stuff to trip over when I was drugged up, for example.
I think a post or 2 on accessibility is a great idea--at least on designing with a back-up plan, whether temporary or long-term.
I had surgery on both feet at the same time once; one of those molded plastic patio chairs in the shower was super helpful!
Also, during other surgical recoveries, I learned to have a little caddy of some sort with the stuff I'd need (i.e., spill-proof Camelbak water bottle, phone, reading material, chap stick, etc.).
Use a backpack. I went upstairs on my knees and downstairs on my bum.