Bathing is so important, yet it can be one of the most difficult things to do. Whether you find it difficult getting in and out of the bath or washing yourself easily, there are many mobility aids available that can make bathing easier.

Here is a guide to some of the equipment that is available.

My bath was already fitted with grab rails at the top, but they didn’t really help me get into the bath. I bought a rail that stuck up about 12″on top of the bath. It fixes on to the edge of the bath, and makes a very sturdy handle that gives me support at the right height for climbing into and out of the bath.

Bath steps and bath step stools make the distance you have to lift your leg up to get into the bath much shorter. Another advantage of these steps and step stools is that they are portable and can be used to stand on in other areas of the house, and make things much safer when you need a step-up.

If sitting down in the bath is difficult; a bath stool might be useful. These have suckers on the bottom so they don’t slip and often come in several heights. The lower ones keep you high enough off the bottom of the bath, but low enough to still be able to enjoy your bath. The higher ones can be used to sit under the shower or if you need a bath chair that leaves you sitting higher up.

Bath boards are a good alternative to shower or bath stools. These sit across the top of the bath from one side to the other. They secure tightly, and I think they feel very safe. They are really good if getting into the bath is difficult as you can often slide on from sitting on the edge of the bath. This is actually my favourite piece of mobility equipment for the bathroom, simple to use and does not take up valuable space in the smallest room in the house!

If a bath seat or stool is not suitable, a bath lift might be. These can be hydraulic, electric or inflatable and gently and slowly lower the you down into the bath, and back up again. They are especially useful if you need someone to help you into the bath. This way they do not need to lift you at all.

If your shower has level access, there are many wheeled shower chairs available. These can be self propelled, or attendant propelled.  Some have a convienient shape cut out of the seat so you can wash yourself properly. This kind of chair can often also be used as a commode chair over a toilet. In this case once piece of equipment can be used for two purposes.

Once you are in the bath or shower there are many gadgets that can help assist you with washing. These range from long handled sponges to toe washers. They reduce the need for reaching and twisting, so make washing a much less physical activity.

When I was in hospital, they said an Occupational Therapist would come and see me once I was home. At first I couldn’t even say the word – it seemed like a tongue twister to me! I had no idea what they did, or that they could help me at all.

Once she came out to the house I changed my mind completely.

Mary was just brilliant. I showed her around my home and showed her how I did everything I needed to do. From getting up in the morning to making meals. From doing household chores to even things like switching the TV on.

We then sat down and she went through how I could do some of these things in an easier way.

Sometimes it was a case of just being organised, other times she had an idea for a gadget that could help me.

These are some examples:

Bed leaver – this really helps me get in and out of bed without needing my carer so much.

Pick up grabber – I call this my litter picker, as it’s just like the ones you’d see Council Workers with picking up litter from the side of the road. I use it to save me bending down to pick things up that I’ve dropped.

Bath stool – I often avoided having a bath and had a shower instead. But to be honest I really prefer a bath. It was just difficult getting in and out. With the bath stool, I am not sitting on the floor of the bath so it is now so much easier. I already had a grab rail above the bath which was good – at least I was doing something right!

Riser chair – I didn’t really think I could get one for my front room, and certainly didn’t know where to get one from.  I sometimes found it really hard to get up out of my chair. With this one, I press a button and it lifts up the back of the chair, and helps me get up. It is just like the ones in hospital – but looks much nicer!

I’m so glad Mary came to see me. She came back to see how I was getting on. To be honest things are much easier. I don’t think I was seeing the wood for the trees. She helped me see the easy way of doing so many things that I was making so difficult. The mobility aids she suggested were great. Not everything worked for me, but most of it did.

I need to use a bed lever to help me in and out of bed, and I thought I would pass on my thoughts of what is good and bad about it.

A bed lever is a simple aid. I always called it a bed grab rail, but it’s not really a rail. I suppose a ‘bed grab arm’ describes it best. It is an L -shape, the bottom bit is a wooden baseboard and slides under the mattress. The upright bit is coated metal and makes a rounded handle that sticks up about a foot above my mattress.

It makes transferring from a wheelchair to the bed much easier. You need to have to be able to weight bare, as to use it you need to stand and turn a little. You grab hold of it, like you would grab hold of someone’s arm to transfer into or out of bed. It means I do not need help to get into and out of bed.

Pros

• It makes transferring into bed, much easier and safer.
• I am much less likely to fall; now I use the bed lever.
• As it is a barrier at the side of the bed, it makes me feel that I am less likely to topple out of bed when I turn over!
• It gives me more independence at bedtime.  I do not need to rely on carers as much.
• It is very sturdy as it slides under the bed so it feels (and is) very secure.

Cons

• Like most mobility equipment it is a little unsightly. However it is less intrusive than most aids I’ve seen! And at the end of the day, the most important thing is that it helps me.
• Sometimes it gets in the way when I want to reach to my bedside cabinet, or get something from the floor.
• Sometimes it needs repositioning, which requires lifting up the mattress a little and moving the lever. You need lots of hands to do this so I usually need help.

Overall, I think the bed lever is a great product. It is quite discreet. It is really useful, and makes transferring into and out of bed so much safer. Of all the mobility aids I have, this and my mobility scooter are probably the most useful ones I have.

I had been using a traditional walking frame (Zimmer frame), but found that it was making me walk much slower than I really wanted. I found it very frustrating. I was advised that a rollator might be more suitable as it has a more smooth movement, instead of stop start, stop start.

I have bad rhumatoid arthritis, and my walking is difficult and painful, I wanted something that gave me security from falling around the house. Outside, I tend to use a wheelchair, but inside I want to avoid this if I can.

The rollator seemed a good idea, but there are so many to choose from. These were the points that I found really useful.

• I measured the doorways in my house – (all of them, just incase any were different!), the rollator had to fit through the doorways, and some were much too wide.
• The height had to be adjustable, I am very tall at 5′8″, and didn’t want something that hurt my back, or made me stoop.
• A basket was important, as I need to carry things about at home. If I am holding the rollator, the rollator needs to hold things for me.
• Easy grip brakes were important. You can get models that have brake handles designed especially for people with problems using their hands, like arthritic attachments.
• Some rollators fold up smaller than others. Bare this in mind if you need to put it in the car, or away in a cupboard.
• The weight also varies greatly, models seem to start at about 5kg. If you need something lighter, try a walking frame – some come with wheels too.