Saturday, September 11, 2021

Life with chronic conditions: Hacks make life easier


Whether you’re a caregiver and/or living with a chronic condition, the more tips to make things easier, save money and accommodate a body that may not be working the way you want it to, the better. So in addition to previous posts listed, I’ve added some new hacks on things like brain fog, hearing and vision loss etc.

-       Entertaining Hacks

-       Cleaning 

-       Food 

-       Parenting 

-       Use your smart phone for better health: This includes a way to keep health records, get help if you need it and keep track of the exercise your getting each day 

-       The KonMari Method for Tidying When Affected by a Chronic Condition

 

Brain Fog

• Take pictures of where you parked your car-include space & floor numbers. In mall parking lots, take a photo of the view from the car to the main door.

• Use descriptive words next to names in phone directory, such as Diver Dan

• Use Tiles on key chains and other items you have trouble keeping track of.

• Keep a task list/book. I use the “Reminders” feature on my phone and have lists for various things, such as grocery store, passwords, gifts etc.

• Everything has a home. When things don’t have a home, they pile up and cause clutter quickly, so designate a space for all the items that you need.


 

Hearing loss/Sensitive to noise

• Hearing loss makes brain loss worse if it goes untreated. 

 • The right ear is better designed for speech and the left ear for music. Turn your right ear to your speaker and if you want to relax and listen to music, put the speaker on the left side. Avoid using headphones or ear buds as they introduce too strong of sound waves into your ears and can cause damage over time.

• Face one another when talking. Don’t yell from another room

• Make your hearing stronger by exercising your hearing. Sit quietly with your eyes closed and just focus on the sounds. Figure out which one is furthest away from you. Can you hear anyone talking? What are they saying? How about environmental noise? Practice identifying each different sound you hear. These kinds of hearing exercises can improve your hearing aptitude. They teach your brain to easily pick out the sounds that matter and filter out the rest of the noise.

• A set of high fidelity (musician) earplugs attached to your key chain can be a life saver in a noisy space. High fidelity ear plugs lower the volume of your surroundings without muffling or distorting the quality of the sound.

Live Transcribe uses your phone to provide a transcription of speech to text on your screen in real-time, adding punctuation and adapting to context.

ª Microsoft Translator is a free app currently capable of allowing up to 100 participants to communicate with one another in a conversation captioned in their preferred language.

• Today’s hearing aids are not the ones your parents and grandparents used. Go to a reputable audiologist. Learn more about hearing aids. 

 

Low Vision

17 Ways to Modify Your Home 

 

In the Kitchen

• Instant Pots are the best and they save time. Look for one on sale during "electronic" weeks. My weekend meals, those that take longer to prep and make, are now weekday meals thanks to the Instant Pot.

• Souper cubes: My sister gave me one of these and it’s a game changer. I use my Instant Pot a lot and put the left overs in the one cup cubes and freeze. I pop out one at a time for quick meals.

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