Over the past ten years, I’ve watched my elderly mother dealing with painful arthritis. As it’s become worse and worse, it’s impacted her mobility, her ability to handle normal daily tasks, and has had an ever-increasing effect on her mood. Long-term pain can lead to depression and a feeling of helplessness. That’s something no one wants to see a loved one go through.
Because she was having such a hard time getting in and out of the tub, my sister and I had to take it in turns to go around to her house and help her bathe. My mother’s fiercely independent, and I can tell you that she hated the loss of her privacy and dignity. I knew we had to do something about the situation, and began to look at options for installing some kind of disabled bath aids in her home. After looking through a lot of walk-in bathtub reviews, my sister and I eventually chose one and set about getting it installed.
Major bonus – arthritis pain relief
Our greatest concern was for our mother’s bathroom safety, so it was a very pleasant surprise to discover that the walk-in bathtub could also make a huge quality-of-life difference for her. Yes, she’s gained independence, thanks to the easy step walk-in tub. But she also found out straight away that bathing in the tub soothed her pain. The tub has something called a massage hydrotherapy system, with 18 warm jets, and using it once a day (which she can do, now that she doesn’t have to rely on one of us to come over) has actually allowed her to decrease her pain medication.
The improvement in her mood was noticeable almost immediately, so much so that one of the grandkids (4 years old) said, “Grammy, you’re a laughing Grammy again!” Before we installed the walk-in bathtub, Mom was very much against us hiring a home care nurse, and was becoming increasingly difficult to deal with. I think she was scared that she’d lose all dignity, and that’s a thought she couldn’t bear. But she definitely feels more in control now, and is suddenly fine with us getting a nurse in, which we’ll be doing starting next month, part-time. For Mom, there’s a big difference between “having someone around to help” and having someone do everything for her. Knowing that she can still bathe herself means keeping that sense of control that’s so important for her pride.
Mobile for longer
Of course, finding the means to control arthritis pain also means extending the length of time that your elderly parent is mobile. When the pain goes unchecked, a sufferer becomes more and more afraid to use the affected limbs, and that leads to muscle wasting and further stiffening of the joints. By supplying a therapeutic solution, like the walk-in bathtub, you’re literally making sure that your parent will be capable of staying home for longer, and may never need to be moved to a nursing home.
Greater mobility means greater independence in other ways, like being able to go shopping or visit with friends, and all of these activities contribute hugely to your parents’ emotional wellbeing and quality of life.
If you’re thinking of installing an easy step walk-in bathtub, I recommend that you check out the different walk-in tub models here. I found Active Forever very reasonable in their prices, and the range of tubs is really good. You’re bound to find the right solution to fit any bathroom.
Talk to your doctor, how excercise plan fit to your health and lifestyle. this provides many benefits.