Practicals: Physical Items
Hey Hey Caregivers,
Welcome back for the last week of our Practicals Series. I hope you have found a few things to be useful and make your day-to-day caregiving life a bit easier (if you've missed any of the previous posts, go back and check them out). Today, I'll be sharing five of my favorite things in the realm of caregiving.
Pill crushers
If you have many meds to give that need to be crushed, you know how tired your hands can get - especially if you have a less-than-ideal pill crusher. This is my favorite pill crusher (in size large). The grips for it are pretty big, so it is much more comfortable to use and it does a great job crushing the pills quickly.
Bed chucks
If your care recipient is incontinent and they squirm around a lot in their bed, these chucks might be a really great option for them. They have awesome handles on the sides that you can use to help position your care recipient (that can make bed mobility so much easier). Another thing that I love about this version, is that they don't have the straps all the way under them, so I think they lay flatter and seem more comfortable than other versions that have strapping all the way across.
Compression Stockings with Zippers
Smokes, footwear is such a challenge when it comes to dressing so many of our care recipients. I'm starting off with compression stockings, which are certainly one of the hardest things to get on and off of our care recipients each day. If this is a struggle for you, I just have to share that there are compression stockings that have zippers and I highly recommend asking your medical provider if they could be a good option for your care recipient.
Billy Shoes and Kiziks
Billy shoes are amazing and have zippers that go around the sides of them, so you can zip off the top half of the shoe and set your care recipient's foot in the shoe and then zip it on around their foot. So slick!
Kiziks are a newer form of tennis shoes that have a heel that pops itself up. I was pretty skeptical of these working well with AFOs, but I am happy to report that I've seen great success with them sliding on really easily.
Dysem
Dysem is a great option to help prevent things from sliding around. It comes in a big roll or precut in different sizes/shapes and it is tacky but peels up really easily. This product is great if your care recipient tends to pull on their plate or bowl or cup and they tip over because of it. It can also be super useful if your care recipient spends time reclined in their wheelchair and they are trying to have a book or something on their tray that slides down because of the tilt.
What are your favorite physical items that make your caregiving tasks easier? Leave a comment and let me know what you recommend!
❤️ Rebecca