SENIOR TECH – Do you use a credit card to pay for everything because digging into your wallet for the right bills or coin purse for just the right change has gotten too cumbersome?
Is it impossible to pluck keys off the bottom of your purse without turning it upside down?
Do you have trouble stuffing a sandwich into a plastic bag?
If so, you could be suffering from arthritis, tremors, loss of dexterity or, to use the common term, “fumble fingers.”
One of the most maddening tasks for the fumble-fingered is buttoning. I used to leave the house with my cuffs flapping in the breeze in hopes that a more nimble-fingered friend would button them when we met up. Lately, however, nobody else can button them either, even with two hands.
Luckily, there is a whole industry out there that offers gadgets to provide work arounds for uncooperative fingers, not to mention un-bendy joints, and stiff backs. I’ve found a few that are especially helpful in getting yourself dressed and out the door in the morning.
My favorite is the button hook with a zipper pull at the other end. P
How to use a button hook
lace the wire around the button and pull it through the buttonhole. To connect with a slippery or too-small zipper, use the wire hook at the other end of the button hook.
But the first stumbling block in my morning path is finding the pair of shoes I want to wear. The second is getting them on my feet. The extra-long metal shoehorn is just the ticket. The length means I don’t have to hop around on one foot while leveraging the other foot into its shoe. And the metal makes it unlikely to snap on a day when I’m running late.
How to use short and long shoe horns
Speaking of feet, tying shoelaces presents a problem for many seniors. Here you’re challenged not only by fumbly fingers but also bending, kneeling and reaching. Sure, there are Velcro models out there, but you don’t always want to herald your seniority in the gym with the tell-tale rip of Velcro. With elastic laces, you set them up once and your cool sneaker becomes a slip-on forever.
How to use elastic no-tie shoe laces
Before the shoes come the socks of course, and similar limitations apply. The sock aid makes it much easier if the distance between hands and feet seems to be getting longer. This is really an ingenious device.
How to use a sock aid
First put the sock on the plastic tube, then insert the foot into the tube and pull the sock up using the plastic grips.
Sometimes an injury, arthritis or recovery from surgery can make it difficult to pull on a pair of pants. In this case the reacher aid can be invaluable. The video clip shows how to use one. This tool also can extend your reach to pick up an article of clothing from the floor or off a hanger in the closet.
How to use a reacher aid
Hope this helps you get started in the morning.
If you have a favorite assistive device or tool, let us know. Email maryhunt-sfseniorbeat@gmail.com.
