When you get a fracture, it changes how you conduct your daily routine. You may even need to take some time off of work. However, the worst thing you can do is become a couch potato. You should ensure you remain as active as possible, given your condition. Staying active is crucial to the healing and recovery process. When your bones become dormant, their ability to regenerate becomes slower. After getting home from the hospital, you may need to reorganize your house to ensure safety and create an environment that will allow you to heal faster. You do not need to stretch yourself to remain active but make an effort to exercise naturally by doing activities in the house that make you move. You may also need to prepare and rearrange your house to accommodate certain bodily restrictions as you start your healing journey.
5 Ways to Prepare Your House
1. Rearrange Furniture
When you come back from the hospital, your routine environment may not serve the best interest in your healing. Your incapacitation from the fracture and the use of a walking stick may require you to have open space so you can move with ease. Have a friend over who can help you rearrange your furniture. The new set up should allow for ample space for safe movement. If you have a two-story house and your bedroom is upstairs, consider using a room on the ground floor to avoid the possibility of an accident while using the stairs. Excessive pressure on the fractured area may also slow healing and, in extreme cases, impair it. So, even though rearranging may disrupt the feng shui of your house, making it accessible will help you heal faster.
2. Clear Your Rooms
You may never have noticed, but most of the time, people have so much junk in their house that they don’t use. Take time to sort all the clutter in your room, such as books and magazines that lie around. You can use this opportunity to clear all the unnecessary clutter, so you won’t trip over anything. Remember to secure the rugs in your rooms, especially large rugs. You may put away small mats during the healing period to ensure safety while moving. One wrong move in the house and you could find yourself back at the doctor.
3. Enhance Your Lighting
The house should have proper lighting at all times, especially at night. The walkways in the house should have adequate lighting and the bedroom should have a bed switch to ensure you do not grope in the dark at night. The outside area around the house should also have proper lighting. You can add switches as you enter and exit a room to avoid darkness while moving around the house. As crashing into unknown furniture in the dark could set you back months in the healing process.
4. Secure Your Stairs
Living in a multi-floored apartment means you will use the stairs at some point. Avoid frequently using the stairs and limit it to when necessary. The guard rails on your stairs may be low and not provide support and protection from a hard fall. Add handrails on your stairs to give you the help you need while using it.
5. Have a Phone Ready
You may be living alone in the house and may need support when an emergency occurs. Always keep your phone close to you at all times. This is very crucial because it marks your safety in case of an accident. If you can, have a friend or family at your place during the recovery period to help with laborious tasks and who can respond in case of an emergency.
