Hair Wash

[Uzula]

Hi, can anyone recommend an aid of some sort so that I can wash my mums hair. She can no longer stand so it would have to be done from a wheelchair, I have been using those Tena shower caps but its not the same as being able to give her hair a good old wash. I have seen loads of aids on Amazon, some have got a strap that goes across the throat (not sure how roomy the strap is but mum doesn`t like anything around her neck. The reviews are not really up to much and mum wouldn`t be able to tilt her head back either. has anyone used anything that works well without the person getting soaked. Thanks

[Hidden]

All the major pharmacies have catalogues of these sort of aids. Try Boots and Lloyds pharmacies.

[Uzula in reply to Hidden]

I`ve exhausted all the online avenues and they are all much of a muchness. I was just hoping that I could find one by recommendation by someone on here, (I don`t want to waste money on things that turn out to be useless) Thanks anyway

[5855 in reply to Uzula]

I used to use a dry shampoo twice a week on mum before she died and only properly washed her hair once a fortnight , it was too upsetting for her and me , and used a plastic hair dressers cover around her shoulder and a plastic head ring,

[Uzula in reply to 5855]

Yes thank you for that, I have actually been looking for a head ring but the reviews seem to be that they are too tight, I know in advance that it will be upsetting for me and mum because she hates me even cleansing her face or combing her hair...I`m always getting shouted at..

[sassy59]

Hope you find something useful Uzula. Good luck. Xxxx

[Uzula in reply to sassy59]

Thank you.xx

[MAS_Nurse]

Hi Uzula,

I've just found these online have a look and see what you think, one of shows a person in a wheelchair using the hair wash tray:

OT Stores -

1) Hairwash tray: otstores.co.uk/p/hair_wash_...

2) Inflatable shampoo basin: otstores.co.uk/p/inflatable...

Hope this helps.

Best wishes,

MAS Nurse and Moderator

[Uzula in reply to MAS_Nurse]

Thank you, I will take a look

[SquirrelsHolt in reply to MAS_Nurse]

Morning MAS_Nurse and I've had a look at the links you've given Uzula and they seem to be a lot cheaper than a couple of other sites with identical products! Unless you are free of money worries,every penny we can save,plus the VAT,is indeed a penny towards your next aid!

Thank you !

[Angie06]

I wheel my mums chair up to the sink and have a hand held attachment on the tap so I can rinse off the shampoo for her. She could also use the attachment herself if she had the use of her hands.

[Uzula in reply to Angie06]

Thank you, it would be me that would need to shampoo and rinse her hair but unfortunately mum simply can`t tilt her head back and she would just get soaked

[Angie06 in reply to Uzula]

My mum faces the sink with her head tilted slightly forward and holds a flannel or small towel to her face.

[Uzula in reply to Angie06]

Her head would be too far away from the basin if I placed her that way

[secrets22]

I buy 'Shampoo caps' from completecareshop.co.uk you pop the packet in the microwave for 20 seconds,put the cap on the head,massage well,and no mess,its rinse free,conditioning and shampoo ...its an absolute boon.

[Uzula in reply to secrets22]

Yes thank you for that but I actually do use those shower caps (Tena) I just would have liked to be able to wash mums hair the traditional way every so often, its just very difficult though because mum can`t tilt her head back and can`t stand. Everything has changed after her 9 week stint in hospital.

[secrets22 in reply to Uzula]

No,these are not Tena that I use.

[Uzula in reply to secrets22]

Well mine ARE and they work in exactly the same way....

[Hidden]

Hi Uzula,

I'm probably not going to be of the slightest help here, as you seem to have tried quite a lot of things already, but this is the method we used to employ, back in the day as student nurses, when some patients spent much longer in hospital than they do today.

It requires the person to lie flat on their back, with the whole body except for the head relaxed on the mattress, with a nice big towel around the neck, and on some robust waterproof sheeting, draped onto the mattress and down the side of the bed. (We used to have red/brown rubber sheeting, which only old time nurses will remember, I'm sure).

The patient's head is off one end or side of the bed, whichever way is possible or comfortable, and is better supported by a second pair of hands if you can find them. It can be done by one person, but is really awkward.

The patient's hair is surrounded by a halo-like device which is elasticated in the middle to allow the hair to be threaded through, and I'm not sure if you have looked at those already on that popular site we all like to use online, but they are really simple and just slip over the hair which then sits on the top of the device. (The one I saw is by Manito and is described as a shampoo cap.)

Then you use a large receptacle on the floor to catch the water, which is contained in a large jug, only a little of which is used to just wet the hair enough to be able to rub the shampoo in.

Then comes the much more thorough rinse from the jug and into the receptacle. I can't say it's totally mess free and needs a bit of a clean-up afterwards, but does give a proper wash, unlike some of the more modern methods.

But it does also require a little bit of agility which might be too much for your mum. So if that's the case, I hope you can find something else which will enable you to do a more thorough wash than is possible with most other methods.

Very best wishes.

[Uzula in reply to Hidden]

Thank you very much Callendersgal, yes it would definitely be too much for mum and what with her increasing aggression due to vascular dementia, it would just be too hard especially as I`m her sole carer and no other hands available. Maybe I`ll just stick to the bloody caps, I can see her scratching her scalp really hard but I can`t put scalp oil on her hair like I used to for 24 hours before washing because of the oxygen she is now on 24/7. One can`t use any old creams anymore either because of it (oxygen) I was advised by respiratory team Burts Bees is best. Oh well, onwards and upwards

[Hidden in reply to Uzula]

It IS a problem isn’t it, and your poor mum would probably be so much more comfortable if she could have a good hair wash. But you can only do the best you can, given what’s available commercially. Still hope you’ll find a solution though. Those caps really aren’t the greatest. Good luck with your quest.

[Jacki66 in reply to Uzula]

Hi Uzula, I think the link to the plastic shower tray over the basin is probably the best one for your mother. It looks to me as an extension of what is, in reality, a hairdresser's basin.

[irenesbabes]

Morning Ursula too use the shower caps,not Tena ones,Mum is permanatly in bed and doubly incontinent with her dementia,we do have carers 4 x a day and I find the cheaper caps very useful.It probably doesn't help you very much but have been using them for quite a while now and they seem alright as when I take the cap off her hair is wet so just needs to be towel dried. Hope you find something suitable soon best wishes.

[Uzula in reply to irenesbabes]

Thank you.x

[irenesbabes in reply to Uzula]

Hi Urzula Mum is unable to sit up at all which is why i use the caps,she also has a moan every time I do it so I do fully understand what you are going through.

[Greenspark]

Hi Uzula

I've just been wrestling with the same issue with my mum. Recently she hasn't been able to get into the bath and stand while I shower her like she used to. We've developed a way of washing using a large underbed storage tray with a non-slip mat as an impromptu shower tray, and bowls and jugs of warm water, which works pretty well.

However washing hair like this isn't really practical as the water would go everywhere, so we were stuck for a few weeks. The solution we've found is so low-tech but seems to work - my mum sitting in her armchair (I should think a wheelchair would work too), an empty bowl on her lap tray. Me with another bowl of warm water and a jug. I put shampoo on her dry hair with a tiny bit of water to moisten and she spends a few minutes lathering it up and getting it spread all over her hair (kind of like hair dye). This way, the shampoo stays quite thick and doesn't drip too much. Then I carefully pour warm water over her hair while she leans forward over the empty bowl and rinses. Not sure if this would work for everyone, it's a bit homespun but it did the job surprisingly well for us compared to the other things we thought of.

Have to make sure there no electrical things nearby, and a few towels draped around help stop her neck getting too wet. My mum only needs one shampoo and doesn't use conditioner which makes it easier, though I should think a leave-in conditioner would work for people who do use conditioner.

[Uzula]

Unfortunately none of that would work with my mum (only wish it would)...glad it worked for you though. Its not even because her mobility is so poor which it is and I would give these things a go, its because she does nothing but shout and tell me to `hurry up` all the time. She`s a very difficult person, always has been and her shouting at me all the time whenever I do anything for her just makes me feel too stressed and rushed. She`s a bloody nightmare but anyway thank you for responding. Her hair feels disgusting just using these caps all the time aaarrrggghhhh