Lifehacks for Life on Crutches

I wouldn’t wish life on crutches to anyone after having to deal with them for the past two months, which is kind of funny because the 12 year old inside of me still thinks crutches are kind of cool. I know some people don’t have a choice, and when you don’t you just deal with it, but crutches really get in the way of life as we live it these days. It’s not the actual use of the crutches, as it is a good total body workout, but it is how it limits what you can and cannot do that can be a bit frustrating. You see not only do you have limited mobility of your lower limbs because of your injury, you also lose the use of your hands to do anything other than hold on to your crutches. Gone are the days of making a mug of coffee and drinking it as I get ready for work in the bathroom and making a plate for dinner and carrying it to the family room to eat while watching tv. Of course I learned some tricks of the trade and came up with a couple myself to make life just a little easier these past two months and I want to share them with you just in case you, God forbid, find yourself on crutches in the future!

1) pockets–because you no longer operate in a handsfree environment, you must figure out how to carry with you necessary items and therefore pockets become a necessity. Even in the early days after surgery, I would throw on a hoodie or a robe when crutching around the house in order to have a place to put things. Now when leaving the house, I always wear a jacket with pockets…preferably three pockets!

2) an apron–to give you more options for pockets, I have come to rely on an apron as well. I have both a kitchen apron that goes over your head and something similar to what a server would wear in a restaurant and both have worked well. The pockets on an apron are larger and are typically in the front, so you are able to carry more in them without getting in the way of your crutches.

3) mason jar–this has become essential equipment for me to function as you can put a drink in your mason jar, tighten the lid, put it in your apron pocket and carry it with you to drink where you want as it’s spill proof.

4) lids–actually lids on everything become essential to being mobile so stock up on your Rubbermaid or Gladware–put a lid on it, drop it in a bag and carry it with you.

5) rolling cart/chair with wheels or gliders–trying to get things from room to room is a bit difficult when your hands are holding on to crutches. One way I managed to do that with things that didn’t fit in my apron pocket was to use a barstool with gliders which I pushed around the house. You could also use a chair or cart with wheels–might actually work better.

So those are my lifehacks for life on crutches, do you have any to add?