If you’ve recently been in an accident or otherwise injured, it can be surprising just how much of your daily life can change as a result. Not only are you likely to be out of work, but you might even find that home life can be a little harder as you’re no longer able to do as much as you once could. But what can you do about it?
Accessing the property
For one, you need to think about how you’re going to get in and around the home. If you have to spend time in a wheelchair, you might need to consider ramps into the property, or transfer aids like a wheelchair lift. You can also consider replacing doors to either widen them or made it easier to open them more fully so that you can proceed through them without as much difficulty. This is typically only necessary for the most serious injury.
Helping with hygiene
What is more common after injuries affecting the legs, back, or joints is that you might have more trouble bending, sitting, stretching, standing for long periods of time, and so on. Unfortunately, many aspects of using the bathroom depend on this. As such, it might be worth looking into things like adding rails by the toilet and the shower so that you can sit with more ease.
Getting to sleep
As a result of injuries that affect the back or the joints, not only can sleeping become more difficult, but simply getting in and out of bed can be more painful, too. To that end, you may want to look at a hospital bed rental near you. You might also need to consider switching to a mattress that can offer better support for the areas that are more likely to suffer pain if all the pressure of your sleeping position is put on them.
Life in the kitchen
In the kitchen, you might need to consider adjusting your storage so that the things you use most regularly are put easily in reach without you having to bend down or reach up to grab them. Otherwise, if you have to spend time in a wheelchair, you can look more closely into installing a lower worktop so that it’s easier to prepare meals and clean up after yourself when you’re done.
Work to restore your independence
A lot of the points here have been about helping you accommodate the home to your needs but, providing on what route to recovery is available, it can help to focus your efforts on that, too. From things like occupational therapy to help you regain mobility to yoga to improve your overall health, you could steadily decrease your reliance on aids around the home.
Hopefully, it won’t be too long before you’re able to gain enough independence that you won’t need the tips above, whether it’s by recovering from your injury or adapting your home to your new needs. Until then, the tips above can help.
