Was really struggling blow drying my hair as my hands are so crippled, I found I couldnt grip the small brush. My lovely husband came up with this (see photo)... Its the little things that ‘normal’ people take for granted 😬
A happy post: Was really struggling blow drying my hair... - NRAS
A happy post
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Evie3
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How lovely 🥰The OT suggested a similar idea for pens and pencils 😉
Only ever saw the OT when I was first diagnosed 40 yrs ago…not even sure if that Dept exists at our hospital. I am lucky I can grip a pencil for my art, albeit cack-handed 🤣🤣
Hi Evie, I’m an artist too and have a box of lovely chubby drawing pencils from Faber Castell. The 9000 Jumbo series. Really nice to hold and fab quality, Also KUM have soft rubbery pencil grips but they make me hold pencils and paintbrushes awkwardly. Zebra Zgrip do some good biros. Finally, these paintbrushes below are good to hold from Royal & Langnickel range and have a soft grip. They aren’t Winsor & Newton quality but still very good.
Black and white image of artists paintbrushes.
Its a lovely hobby that has kept me occupied during The C word. I use Faber Castell Polychromos coloured pencils and somehow manage to grip them. Those rubber things I wouldnt have the strength to keep affixing to each pencil..lol. I will have a look at the chubby pencils…thanks. I do have those brushes but havent done any watercolour for a long time.
I found it pulled my wrist trying to heave those grips on!! Then they made me draw awkwardly .. mechanically. No flow. The FC chubby pencils are lovely. I prefer acrylic paints but have gouache and watercolours too. Been inspired by the recent revival of Watercolour Challenge! Love my Derwent Inktense box of soluble pencils. Pencil crayons are lovely. It may be the answer to put something around the middle finger to pad it and to hold the pencils against? Some thinnish adhesive chiropody padding? It might just hold pencils steady against your middle finger.
Yes I love watching Arty bits on telly….I enjoy portrait challenge. A few years ago I drew Idris Elba, cos I love him. in pastel….my hubby has to look at him on the wall every day 🥰. I mainly do animal portraits in coloured pencil. Just hope my hands behave 🤞. I too have Inktense (amongst lots of others) but need more time to ‘play’ with them. Will look out for the chubby pencils. Thanks. Happy painting x
Idris
Such a wonderful portrait 👍
That’s so lovely of Idris ⭐️👏🏻Well done. I have always loved portrait drawing but haven’t done so much lately, but used to be my preference. I really love life drawing but haven’t been able to go to classes tje last couple of years. I was fortunate to be able to do it all day every week and one evening during my art studies at college. I do love the portrait challenge too. Oh yes, lots of pencil crayons and paints and inks and watercolour crayons and wax pastels and printmaking things here .. one can never have enough! 😁
We keep talking of downsizing….but where would we put my art stash 🤣🤣. X
My art stash will be why we have to move to a bigger place! Was better when I had studio space. 😳🤪x
🤣🤣
Hi Evie , i use a blow dry brush , the one i use is very cheap and similar size to your brush . Its great as I don’t have to hold on to hair drier and brush at same time, i was finding that difficult to manage. Its great when you find something that works 😊
in reply to weathervane
I use this too. So easy
Is it very heavy tho??
The one i use is very light, it Revlon tangle free hot air styler , i got it in sainsburys. I have tried ones with bigger brushes and more expensive ones but always went back to this one
Will go and look at it…thanks. I have tiny hands so probably wont be able to grip it. My left hand is more capable but of course I am right handed..lol. Thank you
in reply to Evie3
I use a babyliss one it’s light and quick. They are often on offer in boots. I use my advantage card and get points.
Evie3 in reply to
Looked at the Babyliss one and seems you have to keep your thumb on a button to rotate either way. My thumb doesnt work so unfortunately thats a no no. Looks like it will be the Revlon.Thanku tho.
What a good idea! I’m going to try it as I have the same problem. At least I can get a shampoo and blow dry for free occasionally if I’m willing to be a model for the new apprentice at my salon. I just have to choose a time when it’s likely to be quiet, wear my FFP3 mask and keep my fingers crossed I don’t pick up any viruses there. 🤞🏻
Ooh thats handy!
Was just browsing those brush hairdryers and Dyson popped up….£899! I nearly choked on my tea! Ha ha
I would never spend that , though friends daughter has one and swears by it . The one i got was less than £20 !
Me neither! Would rather have my head shaved🤣🤣
🤣🤣🤣😁😁
I have a Dyson hairdryer with brush and curl attachments but it wasn’t that much. It was around £250 and yes expensive, but was a gift so I didn’t say send it back! I also was treated to the first hairdryer Dyson did which is going strong many years later and was £199. Both were from my hubby at Christmas time. The regular hairdryer dries mine in 4 minutes and mine is very long these days. I have a lightweight Braun too if my hands ache.
Do you recommend the hairdryer J? My h's hairdresser swears by it, one of his customers brings her own in for him to use & says it cuts drying time of her shoulder length hair by half. Ever since (just after Christmas) my h has been searching for one & aside from one purchase, which we don't talk about 😦, there's no stock to be found anywhere. Just want to be sure it's worth continuing to be on the update list really.
It takes 4 minutes to dry my very long hair. It doesn’t make your hair over heated and actually reduces split ends. It has 3 levels of hot air and 3 levels of cold air so a lot of combinations there. It’s quite easy to hold. Isn’t the lightest of hairdryers but not too heavy. Think mine had two years guarantee and both the regular one and the curling wand type one been going strong for years. My hubby uses the regular one too as his hair is quite long at the moment, and he’s not a hairdryer fan but likes it because it’s so fast! You mean you can’t find Dyson hairdryers online at the mo? I can see Boots have the standard Supersonic one for £329 and the Airwrap Complete one is much more expensive. Around £540, I saw. My hubby must have got a real bargain when he bought my Airwrap about 4 years ago. x
That's really helpful to have the same confirmed J, thanks. No, Boots haven’t had them since Christmas, it says Stock coming soon & no stock at any other store. John Lewis is the same, Argos have one but it's in Wallsend, over 100 miles away, only click & collect too so won't deliver to my local store, I asked. Dyson haven't had them since Christmas either, though my h has sent his email for them to notify us for one of the 3 out of the 4 on the site (don’t want a gold one!) when they are available. Guess I’m just going to have to wait.
I hope you find one soon. Sounds like a lot of people got them for Christmas. x
Me too. That's what we figured. Thanks. x
I’ll keep a look out online too for you and let you know. You’ll really love the Dyson. It also makes your hair look fuller. x
Aw, thank you, that's so good of you. My hair has got even curlier & I was at a bit of a loss how to cut down drying time, the reason my h took interest. My hairdresser is layering it more but it still takes an age to dry. PIP to the rescue, hopefully, eventually! Anyway, what are you doing still up? I hope you're ok? x
Hi, I am ok thank you 💗 ... couldn’t sleep as had a major consultant phone appointment on Monday and there was a lot to sort and to contemplate. The cogs were turning round loudly and I was wide awake! Hope you are alright? x
Good, pleased you're ok, but not the reason you were up til silly o'clock. Hope it's a little clearer now & have a better sleep tonight. I'm fine thanks, well, raging toothache but there you go. x
Oh nooooo. Sorry to hear this. Hope you can get it resolved ASAP. I’ve a lot to sort out here re the vaccines and a new med soon. My head was spinning after four phone calls from my immunologist but he did those to help. x
Thanks. I hope it all falls into place for you & spinning head has settled. x
Thank you. I’m sure a few good night’s sleep will put it right! Hope you have managed to get in at the dentist. 🙏🏻x
We will all be following your journey….especially with the move from Ritux🤞🤞x
I’ll let you know when something finally happens! Thank you for your kind thoughts. 💗 How are you? I’ve not been on so much lately as so many medical phone calls and emails etc. Just such a lot to sort. x
I am good thanks. Had private app with Rheumatologist…armed with your facts etc. However he said ‘they’ were immunologists. Said I would be silly to stop Ritux when I am so well. Looked at bloods which he said were excellent. My family said as I wasnt going out much I shouldnt substitute Mobility for Immunity. So thats where I am now. We r very careful when meeting people indoors having LFT’s…but thats not often. To be honest I am more worried due to being asthmatic rather than being immunosuppressed. I hope u arent in too much pain now off meds. I would b in a wheelchair. x
Booooo arrrgggh, I just typed you a message but it got zapped off 🤨 when I tried to post, I’ll try again tomorrow. Glad you had a good private appointment. (Where does that leave you now with nhs? ) x
Oh thats annoying😳.Switched back to NHS now. Hadnt seen Consultant for 2 years….the RA nurses cant tell u enough…I had no choice. He realised that. X
I was prepared to do the same so fully understand. x
Evie where was that ? I have a Dyson air wrap with attachments and it cost nowhere near £899, less than half that. I know they’re expensive but they are good for my hands 😊
Because you are worth it?
Some store is making a heck of a profit, if the buyer doesn’t check around, & who doesn't on a high value item! On the Dyson website all versions are £449.99, when in stock.
Still expensive😳
I don't disagree, but if it makes life easier for someone, helps towards caring about their appearance & they have the wherewithal to pay £450 then it's probably worth every penny.
Have a look at the Babyliss Big Hair Petite….it’s a brush that revolves & dries & styles your hair at the same time….it’s very easy….not cheap….but I couldn’t ‘manage a brush & a hairdryer……wouldn’t be without mine.There are other makes too…but this is the only one I have trued.
wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-15mm-... Used for all-sorts; my OT recommended. . Still have 3 left for the kids to whack each other with 😂
Evie3 in reply to
Thanks…however my son manages a plumbers merchants so have plentiful supply😉
I have similar thing (pipe lagging) on my walking pole so easier to hold if not using it. I also have cushioned cutlery: sold as such.
I have a shaped knife with a barrel handle. My left hand isnt too bad at gripping
It's the Oxo Good Grips rocker knife I find invaluable.
Wonderful. Thanks for posting.
Great idea with the hair brush. 👍 How nice. Struggle to open things and pass them to my man to open. Worse just now with the rain! Dropping a lot of things!
Five weeks to the end of March and clock change - hurrah - February is my nemesis! All the best folks 💐 🌼
Green230461 in reply to
I agree SAD goes daffy come up best time of the year💐
That is a lovely, caring thing to do. As you say, simple but effective.
in reply to Sheila_G
It’s often the simple things that work best. In our house we all types of gadgets but one of the best and easiest is a strip of ribbon attached inside doors, cleaning bottles, boxes etc that I can just pull to open if my hands aren’t working that day. Just working on something to help getting socks on now!
Createsomething in reply to
Hi I'm new on here but thought I'd join in the convo today. I have an electric jar opener and it's a Godsend. I don't know what I'd do without it as I live on my own. I really struggle to get my socks on too. I've bought 3 different 'Sock aids' but none of them work for me. One of them stretches my socks out so wide as if they were fitting an elephant! The others just end up getting stuck, wedged between my sock and my foot. I don't understand how they can justify developing these robots that look, move and speak like humans, yet they can't first develop a device to help us out our socks on!!
in reply to Createsomething
Hello, nice to chat to a new person, you’ll find this site so supportive snd informative, it’s my daily balm!Re socks - I have some leg warmer ( like we wore in the 80s) I’m nearly 60 so remember these well and as there’s no foot to them the slip in easily and fit under boots! Easy to knit to if your hands allow 🧦
Createsomething in reply to
Hi yes it's great having all these lovely people to chat to😊. Reading through the posts, I see how supportive and friendly people are. Yes I remember leg warmers! Cos I wanted to be just like the dancers in Fame, so my Grandma kindly knitted me some leg warmers. I was so chuffed with them I think I wore them in bed too haha😁 Knitting is the only craft I can't seem to manage. I think it's cos I'm easily distracted so I skip stitches accidentally then I can't work out how to repair the holes, so I have to unravel it and start again then I give up. I love the look of crochet, and my Grandma tried to teach me that as well as knitting when I was about 8 but it all seemed like double Dutch to me haha. x
in reply to Createsomething
Ha ha, sadly my wrists are too stiff and immobile for hand crafts but I’ve started to learn to bake (aged 60) but stirring things and rolling out pastry is awkward for me so I try things that don’t need much mixing up 😃
Evie3 in reply to
Its dexterity for me. Knitting is a thing of the past☹️. We bought a mixer in lockdown. Great for cakes, but as u say rolling pastry is difficult. No need nowadays with ready rolled 😉
Createsomething in reply to
That's great that you're learning to bake😊. I made some corned beef pies a while ago. I couldn't have done it without my mixer though. It blended the corned beef into the potato and mixed the pastry too. I was amazed at how good the pastry turned out. I enjoyed decorating the tops as you can see.
Pie
Looks yummy. I made shortcrust in my mixer…hubby thought it was the best he had tasted 🥰
Thanks😊. Oh fab, but he'll be wanting you to make pies every week now haha😁
I have to b strict…..keeping the weight off is a constant battle 😬🤐
in reply to Createsomething
Even though I’m veggie that looks smashing!
Looks yummy! A Yorkshire lass like myself would want lashings of gravy too! 😄 I use my hand blender and Ninja for mixing things for baking. My food processor is much too large and it has more coating the inside of the bowl and blades than in the bowl, so a nuisance. Need a smaller one. It’s good to make your own food if you can and have lovely home cooked meals. Well done. 👏🏻💗😋
Ooh yeah, gravy too! Unfortunately my hands haven't allowed me to do any baking since this photo was taken...I looked at when it was taken and it was 2020! I can't believe how the time has disappeared. I'm hoping to start a new med soon called baracitinib. I should have started it a few years ago when it was first offered, but I was scared of having a reaction to it, and of the side effects. I'm trying the Mind over matter technique, and believe it will be positive for me rather than negative😇.
Because I have been intolerant to a lot of meds, I was scared starting Rituximab which is an infusion. However they took it really slowly with me…giving me antihistamine and steroid beforehand. Hope the same with you…these new drugs are a lifesaver for me…and I hope they will b for u
I hope it will work great for you and let you do some baking and lots more again.
Thank you! I've got ideas of little craft projects I would like to do so fingers crossed 😃
I hope so for you. My art keeps me sane. I don’t do it for therapy but it does help.
Thanks. I know what you mean, my art / craft helps keep me sane too 🎨🖍️🪡
Sheila_G in reply to
Yes. Over the years I have acquired all kinds of gadgets and my husband is on hand to do anything I can't do. He puts my socks on for me when I can't but I wouldn't know how to do it myself if in a flare.
My husband is my rock…..married 51 years…40 of them living with me and RA.⭐️⭐️
Same here. Married 41 years and 20 years with RA. We are very blessed to have such attentive husbands.
in reply to Evie3
That’s heartwarming 💕
Good hubby, bet the whole forum will be doing the same thing, I know I am! Thanks for sharing.
Brilliant I see he's like my OH who comes up with similar ideas.I can't remember hands that have strength or worked as they should .
Yes, it is the little things that most take for granted...no doubt we did oursleves before the onslaught of RA, but what a clever hubby to sort that out for you. I was given, some forty years ago, when Occupational Health visited your home and arranged for all sorts of aids, slide on foam covers for things like cutlery etc. Sometimes I find holding my toothbrush is particularly hard but I haven't found a solution for that. Maybe I could try something similar to what your husband has done for your hairbrush. I'll get my hubby on the case! 😊
Evie: please find out if you have an occupational therapist (OT) available at your hospital. I have found that the OTs have been possibly the most helpful people I have seen in the many years of having this disease.
They have looked at how I do things and advised better ways to avoid strain on my joints, shown me (and sometimes lent me) devices to try, and fitted me with a large variety of splints to try out. OTs have just made my life better!
I’m sure most of us struggle with these things. I bought some pipe lagging it’s very cheap can be cut to fit most things I use it for pens, toothbrush cutlery and loads of other stuff even have some in my bag if I go out. I would rather look a little silly if we go for a meal out (which we haven’t done for a very long time) than ask my husband to cut my food up like a child. As far as hairdryers etc are concerned I’ve bought a travel hairdryer very light and small but still packs a punch if I can’t manage my full sized one.
I take my knife for cripples when we have been out….certainly get looks! Never ask for steak.
Dear Evie3,
Most Cafes/ Restaurants WILL 'Cut Up' a meal, prior to Serving it, if you Speak to them in advance. I went into a Little Chef (remember those?), with a 'rather dis-abled' friend, on our way back from Holiday, some years ago now. LC were absolutely 'wonderful', to my friend, and even Opened the 'Disabled' Toilet for him- and All Without prior booking.
Many of these Outlets, including ones at Shopping Centres (Mulls), ARE also extreemly 'Disabled Friendly'- even having suitable Changing Areas, should they be needed.
Yes there Are Places, and indeed People, who are Uncaring BUT there ARE Also Many that DO 'Cater' for the Less Able.
My own Mother has 'Multiple Food Allergies', with Very Serious Re-Actions indeed- should she consume an Allergen (is that spelt right?). The Vast Majorityof Places either say 'No' straight away, or, are willing, to Try To Help. Some have even had fun, sending out- Seemingly Exasberated Chefs- in order to ensure my Mum's food is OK for her.
So my advice to Everyone, not just you Evie, is ASK- you may, very well, be pleasantly surprised.
Take Care
AndrewT
Nice post Andrew.I do have an ‘erk’ with disabled toilets tho. A simple slider on the door or similar is all I ask for. The number of times there is a twisting lock😡. Even at the hospital….and yes I have written/asked. There should b a template for all. I have been locked in a train loo and airplane loo years ago…..its so embarrassing ☹️
Yes I quite agree, about those locks! One place, I stayed at, had a 'Nice Wide, Disabled Friendly Lift (Elevator)..... with the 'outside call button' Way Up the wall! If Only 'They' let the USERS design these things!!!
Hey Ho
AndrewT
What a great idea! You can buy triangle grips for pens and pencils that really help me 🌹
Every time I find something so difficult that was a take for granted thing I marvel at just how much we don’t realize we have until we don’t have it any more. Great hubby you have there. 😊
So true
Often it is the simple things that make all the difference.
Very clever
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