Get A Handle On Dressing—With A Long Handled Dressing Stick!

“You can never be overdressed or overeducated.”-Oscar Wilde

Sometimes it’s hard to, “get up, get dressed, and get going!”    At times it seems that there are just too many steps in any one given activity, that it can be overwhelming.

But, to break down the whole activity into smaller parts, makes it more manageable, realistic, and doable!

In this way, I learn which steps of an activity I can do alone, and for which steps I need assistance.  Then, I gain the self-determination to do the steps I can do for myself, but to ask for help with the steps I can’t do for myself.

This reminds me of the Serenity Prayer by Reinhold Niebuhr which goes, “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.”

To feel and to be confident is not merely about being dressed, but is more about the approach to getting dressed.  When I complete the steps of an activity I can do for myself, I sew self-reliance and I reap productivity.  Then, I only ask for help with the steps I can’t do myself.  When I do my part, I feel my best and therefore, “I am my best!”

But, how can I do my part when dressing?  A long handled dressing stick (LHDS) may help to get a handle on some steps needed to get dressed and undressed.  So, whether it’s a weak core, poor balance, a post-op recovery from total hip replacement, or pregnancy, a LHDS can make dressing easier.

But how?  A LHDS aids to take off shoes, remove socks, don/doff pants, reach for clothes on a hanger, and more.  But what exactly is a LHDS?  Here’s a photo of my handmade LHDS which consists of a cup-hook on one end for hanging, a wooden dowel rod, and a hat-hook on the other end, which is the working end of this item.

So, here are a few examples of how to use a LHDS.  To follow along, you’ll need a LHDS, slip-on shoes or shoes with elastic shoe laces, socks, and an armchair or wheelchair, whichever is more comfortable and stable.  Here’s How I Do It (My husband and Golden are showcased in this demonstration):

To Remove Shoe:  Sit back in a stable armchair or wheelchair, grasp the cup-hook end of LHDS and place the hat-hook end on shoe’s “counter,” which is the end under the ankle, by the heel.

To Remove Shoe:  Then, with your hand on the LHDS, push downward while relaxing foot to slide shoe off.

To Remove Sock:  Sit back in a stable armchair or wheelchair, grasp the cup-hook end of LHDS, and place the hat-hook end under the sock’s edge or cuff.

To Remove Sock:  Then, with your hand on the LHDS, gently push downward while relaxing foot.

To Remove Sock:  Then, slide sock off.

To Loosen Shirt From Shoulders:  Hold cup-hook end of LHDS and place hat-hook underneath the placket front of the dress shirt.

To Loosen Shirt From Shoulders:  Then, lower and loosen shirt from shoulder.

To Reach for Hanger In Closet:  Hold cup-hook end of LHDS and use hat-hook end to obtain hanger from clothes rack.

To Reach for hanger in Closet:  Then reach for shirt on hanger with other hand.

How-To-Tips:  Here’s how I made my LHDS at home.

You will need a vinyl coated cup-hook, a wooden dowel, and vinyl coated hat-hook.

Insert hat-hook into one end of wooden dowel; make a starter hole if necessary.

Insert cup-hook into other end of dowel; make a starter hole if necessary.

Photo of completed LHDS.

I purchased this wooden oak dowel, vinyl coated cup-hook, and vinyl hat-hook at a local home store. Wooden dowel rods come in a variety of wood types, but I prefer oak as it’s stronger and more durable.

FYI, there are commercially available LHDS’s online or at healthcare supply stores.  Here’s a photograph of one type that has a nifty adjustable handle to lengthen or shorten as needed.

Here is a comparative photograph of a commercial versus handmade LHDS.  One may be more advantageous than the other depending on your specific needs.  Whereas the handmade version is studier, heavier and can be cut to desired length, the commercial one is shorter, adjustable, and lighter.

Helpful Hints:  Keep LHDS in a convenient location that’s easily accessible, yet neatly tucked away when not in use.  This prevents clutter and promotes safety.  Benjamin Franklin believes, “there’s a place for everything and everything in it’s place.”

As a refresher, start and end the day doing a little something special for yourself.

Socrates said, “know thyself.”  So, when I know what I can do, then I do it.  Likewise, when I know what I can’t do, then I need to ask for help.

To break down the whole of an activity into the sum of its parts, makes completing the parts of an activity more manageable.  It takes many acts to have a play, so knowing my role and knowing my parts, gives me the self-reliance, pride, and confidence of a standing ovation.

“If You Look Good, You Feel Good, and If You Feel Good, You Do Good.”- Georges St-Pierre