Living with Arthritis

Have you ever ached to find easy-to-open packages or bottles? Or products designed to be comfortable and effective, as well as easy to use? Products that can generally make living with arthritis a little easier? We have pooled a few of these items together. Most are available at a speciality store. However if you have any great ideas we would love to hear from you and with your permission add your ideas to our list.

Work smarter

No matter where or when you work, take frequent breaks to stretch stiff joints and sore muscles.

Try to be realistic about what you can and cannot do. Ask yourself these questions:

• How much standing, walking and sitting are you comfortable doing?  
• How much lifting and reaching can you do? 
• What is your fatigue level? 
• Can you hold objects or open car doors easily? 
• Are you able to perform repetitive hand movements without aggravating your arthritis? 

Consider your abilities on both "good" and "bad" days in making these judgments.

Try to find ways to do the job comfortably, or make the decision to find another way of doing the job that is right for you.

House cleaning

When cleaning around the house, it is a good idea not to take on more than one major cleaning job a day, try to allow a lot of time to get the job done. Take frequent breaks, listen to music – whatever will help make the job as easy and pleasant as possible.

Scoop Dish

This round dish features a scoop edge that gradually rises from front to back. The contoured rim allows food to be trapped and pushed easily onto utensils. They have a non-skid base that prevents the dish from sliding. They are usually moulded of  heat resistant plastic and are dishwasher safe.

Jar openers

Jar openers, whether electric or manual, do most of the work for you by reducing the amount of twisting force to just a bit of a turn. Many can be installed under a kitchen cabinet for easy access.

Cutting board

A cutting board with suction cups on the bottom can help stabilize your cutting surface. Most cutting boards also includes vertical metal rods to hold fruits and vegetables in place. That way, you won't need to struggle to use a weaker hand to hold your food in place for cutting. You can also use the little rubber mats that most caravaners use to place under any item that you want to prevent from slipping about.

Grip utensils

Look for vegetable peelers, ladles, and other kitchen utensils with larger grips. Knives have a wide grip that may be easier to grasp, and the offset blade reduces the strain on your wrist.

Holding on to something that has a larger handle eases the strain on your hand and wrist. There is a wide variety of choices to suit each individual.

Spring-loaded scissors

Various scissors on the market have springs built into them. Springs eliminate the need to open the scissors and decrease the pressure needed to close them. Other household tools come in spring-loaded versions, too.

Levers for faucets and doorknobs

Lever handles make it easier to turn faucets on and off and control water temperature in the shower or tub. Consider lever handles for other areas of your home as well. For instance, cover or replace your doorknobs with a lever-style handle to make opening doors easier.

Drinking Straw Holder

A drinking straw holder clips to the lip of glass and cups. Straw angle can be adjusted by use of different holes. Accepts all straw sizes.

Good grip strap

An expandable elastic strap is ideal for persons with limited grip. Just attach the strap to the utensil and slip the hand through the loop.

Aerosol can holder

A lightweight but sturdy plastic adapter fits most household and personal care aerosol cans. Large handle and adjustable trigger make spraying simple. Easily moved from one can to another. Great for anyone who hates pushing spray can buttons with painful fingers or arthritic hands.

Back sponge

Specially designed bath sponges attached to wire handles allow you to wash your back with minimal effort. You can also bend them to fit your body shape.

Dental floss aid

Instead of trying to twine floss around your fingers and hold it there, try a dental floss aid that secures the floss for you. You can find these at grocery and all-purpose stores. Or you can make your own

Foam tubing

Put foam tubing — which you can buy at most hardware stores — over the handle of any device to make it easier to grasp.

Hair Dryer Stand

One popular arthritis aid is a portable 19-inch hair dryer stand. The neck flexes to adjust to any angle and it fits all hand held dryers. This product is ideal for one-handed styling.

Table top nail clippers

These feature a large plastic pad moulded to the stainless steel lever. Clippers mounted on plastic base with rubber for increased stability.

Nail file holder

Ergonomically shaped nail file holder for independence in nail care. Fits securely in the entire hand. Comes with emery board and Files are easy to replace.

Elastic shoelaces

Turn a labour-intensive tie shoe into an easy no-tie version with elastic shoelaces. Tie your shoelaces as you normally would and then let go, or use the spiral type and don't worry about tying at all. No bending over to fumble with the laces on these shoes — just slip them on and you're on your way. Other types of closures exist for your shoes, including Velcro.

Shoes

It’s time to toss those fashionable, yet oh, so uncomfortable pumps that cramp your toes, rub your heels and squeeze your bunions. A well padded, well fitting shoe with plenty of room for your toes – and their imperfections – can make a world of difference in the way your feet (and the rest of you) feel. Most shoe stores will be able to direct you to speciality fitting shoes.

Add on handles

Add on handles may be fitted to a wide range of gardening, home, and workshop tools, to give them a firmer, more positive grip. These special handles can be attached to your own tools to convert them into ergonomically correct tools which keep the hand and wrist in a comfortable position. Two handles can be added to long shafted tools such as rakes, hoes, brooms, etc.

Big button Remote Control

Large buttons and bold easy to read characters make these remotes user friendly. Touch sensitive lighted keypad for operation in the dark. Replaces up to 4 standard remotes and can be used with any combination of TVs, VCRs, and cable boxes. Extra large frames are easy to grasp and difficult to misplace

Playing card holders

People with pain and/or limited use of their hands will find using these playing card holders is easier than trying to hold multiple cards in one hand. Card holder features a unique slot design that allows cards to be easily added or removed. Pencils and small coins fit the extended front of the holder.

Universal Hand Clip

Ideal for people with arthritis or limited hand strength. Spring action hand clip fits snug against the hand. Attaches to phones, cups, bottles, hair brushes and other items with heavy duty hook-and-loop (Velcro) adhesive back strips.

Zipper rings

Instead of fumbling for that zipper, try using a zipper ring. It's bigger than the zipper tab on your clothing and gives you more leverage for pulling. An ordinary key ring will do the trick. Once you zip up your trousers, tuck the key ring under a belt. No one will know the difference.

Buttonhook

The buttonhook might take care of all your buttoning problems. If you find yourself fumbling to grasp the button, just slip the hook through the buttonhole. Then catch the button and pull it through the hole.

Writing utensil grips

Get these rubbery slip-ons for your pens and pencils at any store where school or office supplies are sold. By providing you with a wider and better grip, they ease the strain on your fingers. You can also buy pens that come equipped with a grip. Pens with felt tips, rolling balls or gel ink require less pressure to put ink on paper and tend to write more smoothly than other pens.

Garden Tools.

Available are revolutionary gardening tools which use gears to increase your cutting power. The ergonomic handle designs also make these tools easier to use.

Book holder

Use a book holder to prop up your book while keeping your hands free. The book holder saves your hands from the pain of grasping your book for long periods of time and reduces the strain on your neck created from looking downward.

Cane/Walking Stick

For those who must depend on the use of a cane, there is a walking stick that was developed to benefit serious cane users. This cane was designed for the comfort of your hand but engineered it for the wellness of your body. The design has yielded a product that offers a cane user a new level of confidence in performing their daily activities.

Cane Wrist Strap

Helps keep your cane at your side, and eliminates the awkwardness of trying to find a place to set it down. A black wrist strap connects to a rubber strip that fits most standard wood and aluminium canes. No more bending and stooping to pick up a dropped cane.

Heat/cold packs

Heat can increase blood flow and help restore movement to injured tissue. Warmth can also reduce joint stiffness, pain, and muscle spasms. As with cold packs, heat packs have a role in easing pain from both acute and chronic injuries, such as sprains, strains, muscle spasms, back pain, whiplash, and arthritis. Doctors often suggest using cold packs for the first day or two, and then switching to heat if the symptoms persist or become more chronic.

Fabric hot packs, filled with rice, can be whipped up on a sewing machine. These packs can be heated in a microwave for about three to five minutes, until comfortably hot, and used as you would use a hot water bottle. Use regular white rice, not instant. And make sure you use an all-cotton fabric, as synthetics are not suitable for heating in a microwave. These handmade hot packs can also be stored in the freezer and used as cold packs too.

Wheat bags are excellent, place a cup of water with the wheat bag heating for approx 3 mins in a microwave. Although we find that 1.50mins on high is enough. About 1/3 of a cup of water heated at the same time will make sure that the wheat does not get overhot.

You can also make your own cold pack by wrapping some ice or a bag of frozen vegetables in a towel. Frozen Peas make a great pliable cold pack.

Hot packs, heating packs, and other warming devices are available online or at drugstores and most physiotherapist rooms.

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If you have pain, stiffness or swelling in or around a joint for more than two weeks, it's time to see your doctor. These symptoms can develop suddenly or slowly. Only a doctor can tell if it is Arthritis. But "you have Arthritis" is not a diagnosis. Ask for a specific diagnosis of the type of Arthritis you have. There are more than 100 types, each of which has different treatments. Getting the right treatment requires getting the right diagnosis.!!

We hope that this list has been of some help to you. If there is any other way we may be able to help you or if there are any questions you would like us to answer please Click here  . We will do our best to get back to you as soon as possible.

Disclaimer: This article is not meant to replace consultation with trained health care professionals. The publisher and author are not responsible for any adverse consequences of effects resulting from the use of any of the information or suggestions contained in this article. All research has been done in good faith, using recognized sources