For abled bodied individuals, waking up in the morning and getting dressed is a routine that they have performed over and over for as long as they can remember. It is something that for the most part is taken for granted. Taken for granted until a physical impairment takes hold of them and they now have limited mobility. Simple tasks of putting on your clothing can become very frustrating.

I know that there are some of you out there who have bad arthritis. Your painful finger joints make it almost impossible to button your shirts and or pants. Then there are you out there with bad backs that make it difficult if not impossible for you to bend down and put a sock on or tie a shoe. Those of you who have had a stroke who find it hard to do just about anything. There are some assistive devices that you can use that may make your life a little easier. These devices can help you in everything from closing a hard to get at zipper to putting on those $300.00 pair of shoes. I’ll talk about them below.

Dressing Sticks: this is for the individual with limited reach. It is a long stick with a handle on one side that either squeeze close the claw or there is a button that squeezes closed the claw. The other side of the stick has a hook or grasping claw that closes on the piece of clothing. They can be used to pull on jackets, pull up your pants or fix your shirts. It is also good for the individual that has difficulty bending or has a limited range of motion of one arm or hand. The can be a valuable tool for a disabled person.

Button Hooks and Zipper Pulls/Rings: as anyone who has arthritis in their hands, or as had a stroke that has affected their hands can tell you, buttons can cause major frustration as they try to pull the button through the button hole. I’m not going to be so bold as to say that there is a definite answer, however a button- hook can make the job a lot easier. Button- hooks consist of a handle with a wire loop on one end. The hook is placed through the button- hole. The loop is then placed around the button and the individual pulls the button back through the button- hole.

Sock Aids and Long Shoehorns: this reminds me of that old show "All in the Family". There was a scene when Archie was talking with Mike as he put on his shoes and socks. Mike was putting on a sock and a shoe on his right foot and then a sock and a shoe on his left foot. Archie was confused as he insisted that the proper way to put shoes and socks on was to first put on both socks and then put on both shoes. Archie’s reasoning was that if you had to run out of the house in a hurry and it was raining out that you would at least have socks on to cover your feet. Mike’ s logic was that by putting on a sock and a shoe, you could hop around and keep at least one foot dry. (Just a little humor).

Those individuals, who have bad backs and can not bend, know all to well how hard it is to put on their socks and shoes. Fortunately, sock aids can come to the rescue. The individual puts a sock on a thin piece of plastic or cloth that is designed to hold the sock open, he/she then slips his or her foot into it, and then pulls the sock on with the two pull tabs that are attached to the Sock Aid.

To put shoes on, an individual can use Long Shoehorns. These are like regular shoehorns only with long handles. It allows the individual to put his/her shoe on without bending.

Elastic Shoelaces and Velcro Adapters: OK, so you individuals with bad backs have gotten your socks and shoes on with the aid of the Sock Aid and the Long Shoehorn. Now how are you going to tie the shoelaces, with either Elastic Shoelaces or Velcro Adapters? With the Elastic Shoelaces, you tie them first, then you slip your feet into the shoe. Because the laces are elastic, they will stretch to let you fee in the shoe, and then they will contract to give you a tighter fit. Velcro shoe adapters are tied into the lace holes. They then simply work like any other shoe with a Velcro closure.

Long-Handled Brushes and Combs: these kind of speak for themselves. They work like any other brush or comb except they are attached to a long handle. These are for the individuals who have limited motion in the shoulder or pain and weakness in the shoulder and or elbows. The handles are angled which allows less bending of the arms.

I hope that this has helped some of you in your daily venture to get dressed. Please don’t be proud and struggle when you can have some help. Below are the names of a couple of places that you can order these products. I picked these because they offer an 800- number.

AliMed, Inc.-1-800-2252610

North Coast Medical-1-800-8219319

Sammons Preston, Inc.-1-800-323-5547