Choosy about Chairs...

 

C

Are you sitting comfortably?

Getting in and out of chairs is something that often becomes more difficult as we age. One of the main reasons is that the large muscles of the legs tend to become weaker, but aches and pains from arthritis and various other complaints can also play a part. Luxurious deep, wide armchairs with squashy cushions make for a lovely soft landing when sitting down, but it can be an inelegant struggle to get back up again!

If you are in the market for a new chair, think ahead and aim to choose something that is not just stylish but practical as well as comfortable. The ideal is to aim to be seated comfortably, but not slouched in the chair, so a fairly straight, high back to the chair is an advantage. You want to have your knees level with your hips and your feet firmly on the floor. If the chair is too low your knees will be higher than your hips and more effort is needed to get up. If the chair is too high your feet will be dangling, this is not comfortable and can lead to swollen feet and ankles. The chair should be reasonably firm to provide support. Don’t forget to look at how wide the seat of the chair is, aim to feel supported in it without it being tight. Check the ‘depth’ of the chair- the distance from back to front- make sure the back supports you without needing lots of cushions behind you and that most of your upper leg is supported. Firm armrests are important as these give support to push up from. If at all possible try the chair in the showroom before you buy as mistakes can be costly. If you prefer lounging on the couch, remember that these offer less support when sitting and when getting up. You might want to think about a chair and use a footstool to put your feet up.

If you are unable to try out a chair, you may want to ask your Occupational Therapist for advice or help with measurements. Your OT can also help if you are not able to buy a new chair as there may be equipment that could be used to make the chair you have more suitable for you.

So, this is great, you know what to look for in a chair to make getting in and out of it easier. But, as always, prevention is better than cure and age proofing your life involves keeping strong, particularly in your leg muscles, for as long as possible. So don’t neglect the exercises or activities you enjoy that make you use your leg muscles, walking is one of the best and the sooner you begin the better!

Bathing Beautifully....

B

Bathing beautifully…

 

 

There is something horribly undignified about the idea of getting stuck in the bath- and in fact it can be serious if you really can’t get out and there is no-one to summon for help. Best to avoid this happening in the first place by thinking ahead.

Having a bath is a luxury lots of people don’t want to do without. It’s so relaxing and soothing for aches and pains. The process of getting in and out has a few danger points-

• Slipping and losing your footing.
• Teetering on one foot at a time while stepping over the side of the bath.
• Lowering down from standing to sitting in the bottom of the bath… and then getting back up.

Slipping is less likely using a non-slip mat, but wash and rinse it regularly or soapy residue will make it slippery too! Also, try to avoid bath oils as they make for a very slippery surface.

The teetering on one foot can be avoided by using a bath seat that allows you to sit your bottom down first (thus getting your centre of gravity safely landed) then swing your legs over the side. Or have a grab rail fitted on the wall to hold onto.

The getting up and down can be solved by sitting up on a seat placed in or over the bath so you are not right in the bottom of the bath. However this is not always popular as you don’t get to lie flat out in the bath. The height of luxury may be a powered bath lift or even a ‘walk-in’ bath- both cost a bit (or a lot) of money but might be worth it if you love your bath.

A shower could be the answer, but if it is over the bath you still have the stepping in and out issue to think about, and slipping…

The better your balance and the stronger your muscles, especially in your legs, the longer you will feel confident to get in and out of the bath, so keep up the exercise as much as possible. It can be a good idea to have your bath when someone else is around in the house.

Many people actually decide that they are happy just to have a strip wash and not worry about using the bath or shower. If you are a younger friend or relative worrying about someone not having a bath or shower, so long as they are managing to keep clean and are happy with this, don’t forget the generation who are in their 70s, 80s and above probably didn’t grow up with the idea that having a bath or shower daily was essential, in fact many grew up in homes with no inside bath and maybe no hot water, so it may be that ideas of what is essential differ between the generations!

If bathing is becoming a struggle, don’t wait for a disaster- plan ahead and ask your Occupational Therapist for advice.

Age Proof Your Life

 

A

Age Proof Your Life

The population of the developed world is getting older.

• One in 4 babies born today will live to be 100
• The number of people aged over 65 is expected to rise by 50% in the next 20 years
• The number of over 85s is predicted to double in the next 20 years and treble in the next 30 years
• 3.8 million older people live alone, 70% of these are women
• These figures are based on the UK, but other comparable countries may be ‘ageing’ even faster!

My theme for this year’s A-Z Challenge is Age Proof Your Life.

As an Occupational Therapist (OT) with over 20 years experience, mainly in working with older people, I have had the privilege of witnessing at close hand the ways that many people cope with the challenges of growing older, whether in good health or poor, whether surrounded by family or alone and whether financially comfortable or not.

Last year I used the A-Z Challenge to reflect on a study visit I had just completed to the USA (I am UK based) to study Lifestyle Redesign®, an occupational therapy approach that enables people to make changes in their lives that are long lasting and health promoting. Research has shown that this approach has benefits for the health and wellbeing of older people that are sustainable and reduce the need to use health and social services. Lifestyle Redesign® is based in the theories of the OT profession and also those of Occupational Science. To read my report click the WCMT Study Visit report tab above.

I will draw on this experience as well as the theories and evidence that underpin the profession of Occupational Therapy. An OT can help you to live life your way. OTs believe that you are what you do and we look at ‘occupations’ as the meaningful activities in your everyday life. OTs look at the whole person and how occupation shapes your life. An OT can help find ways to incorporate health promoting activities and routines into daily life resulting in greater life satisfaction, health and wellbeing.

An OT can help you continue to have an active life as you get older by finding ways to make everyday tasks easier or by helping you to try something new to aid independence. An OT can offer solutions and alternative ways of doing things when everyday activities become difficult to help you to get the most from life.

When illness, injury, disability prevent you from doing the activities that are meaningful in your life, an OT can help restore health, independence and wellbeing.

OTs are experts in understanding and working with the complex interaction between an individual with all their preferences, abilities, limitations and aspirations, their home situation and lifestyle and their occupations.

So whether you are an older person, looking to the future, an OT yourself or just interested- I hope you will find my posts this month interesting and stimulating.

I will not be presenting lots of ‘heavy duty’ theory, but where relevant I will try to provide links or references for further reading for those who do want to read further.

Key References

Craig, C & Mountain G (2007) Lifestyle Matters. An Occupational Approach to Healthy Ageing. Speechmark. UK

Jackson, J. (1996). Living a meaningful existence in old age. In R. Zemke & F. Clark (Eds.), Occupational science: The evolving discipline (pp. 339-361). Philadelphia, PA: F.A. Davis Company.

Mandel, D. R., Jackson, J. M., Zemke, R., Nelson, L. & Clark, F. A. (1999). Lifestyle redesign®: Implementing the well elderly program. Bethesda, MD: The American Occupational Therapy Association.

World Congress on Active Ageing

 

Last month I attended one day of the WCAA in Glasgow to present a poster about my study visit to the University Of Southern California to investigate using a Lifestyle Redesign® based approach to improve the hospital to home interface for older people.

The congress was held at the armadillo (otherwise known as the Scottish Exhibition & Conference Centre- but it looks like an armadillo!). Delegates included academics, various health and social care workers and professionals and a lot of older people. In addition to the serious presentations there were lots of fun activities going on in the main hall. I met one older couple who had arrived on their bikes and I last saw as I left playing a highly competitive game of table tennis together!

The day that I attended, the focus was on falls and bone health. Many of the presentations were about exercise, it’s benefits for falls prevention and bone health and a lot of discussion about problems with uptake and adherence to exercise programmes. My main reason for attending was to present my poster, and I had many interesting conversations with delegates viewing the poster but the presentations I attended got me thinking about how a Lifestyle Redesign® based approach could help to deliver a more holistic and lifestyle management orientated approach to falls prevention for older people. OTs sometimes find that their role becomes one of advising about environmental hazards and recommending equipment, but these factors on their own have only a limited impact. Incorporating health-promoting changes into daily routines could have a more significant and longer lasting impact on falls prevention- and on health and well being.

I intend to look at this in more detail in a later blog post- so watch this space.

Keeping up with the blogs...

I have started following a couple of great new blogs and want to share them with my followers- thank you to everyone for keeping on reading my blog!

• Age Scotland (the Scottish 'arm' of Age UK) is a charity that works to improve the lives of all people in  later life. Age Scotland celebrates ageing and challenges ageist prejudice.

• KT-Equal is a consortium of UK researchers dedicated to extending quality life for older and disabled people.

Both have really interesting blogs that are regularly updated and that you can easily sign up to follow. They both fit in completely with the whole ethos of Lifestyle Redesign and all my learning during my travel award.
To see what they have to offer look at 'Blogs I am following' (scroll down the right hand side of this page).

Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Award Ceremony

Last month I attended the WCMT award ceremony in Westminster, London (right next to the Abbey) for those who have recently completed their travel fellowships. The ceremony was organised very much like a graduation and there was lots of time to meet other 'Fellows' before and after the formalities. The guest of honour was Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, who spoke about her athletic career and her subsequent involvement with the WCMT. She is an inspiring role model and I think we all felt it an honour to have her present our award.

Receiving my award from Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson

The whole day was so inspiring. I met people who have done such a range of travel fellowships, the variety of things covered is incredible. The ways that people intended to make use of their learning was also very interesting. Many people, and the WCMT staff, felt that the benefits would be apparent over time, not always immediately. Long lasting and profound changes have been seen in the future work of many Fellows. I felt more and more aware of the great honour that I have had in recieving a travel award- and very concious of the motto engraved on the medallion, 'With Opportunities Comes Responsibility'.

Study Visit Report

At last my report is completed and available through the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust website. I have added a link to the web page- go to the tab at the top of this page and you will find it, or use this link in your browser:

http://goo.gl/6KaFm