Arthritis and Clothing

Getting dressed is not a problem for everyone with arthritis, but even those little aches and pains can interfere with certain daily tasks on a regular basis. Regardless of how severe your arthritis is, you may find yourself needing to make some changes in the way you dress to accommodate your arthritis. Here are a few tips to follow to make those changes smooth and easy.

First, analyze which joints are causing you the most difficulty with dressing, especially in the morning. Remember that arthritis stiffness can take over an hour to go away after you get out of bed, and you might not want to wait that long to get dressed. Adapting how you get dressed to work around those particular stiff joints will make sure you don't get thrown off schedule.

Next, decide if an easy adaptation will fix the problem. It could be that your hips and knees are stiff in the morning and you can't bend to put on your socks and shoes. If this is the case, try sitting on the bed or in a chair with a footstool in front of you. Use your hands to help lift each leg on to the footstool, and then bend the shorter distance to put on the sock and shoe. Another common problem (for women) is that your shoulders are too stiff to reach around behind your back to hook your bra. In this case, place your bra behind your back, hook it in front, then slide it around and place your arms in the straps. These are just two examples of simple adaptations you can do at home with the clothing you have and items you already have around the house.

If your stiffness is a little more severe in the morning, you may need to purchase different types of clothing. This does not mean you have to buy adaptive clothing. You just need to think a little bit about the clothes you buy. If you have a hard time lifting your arms due to shoulder stiffness, buy front closing shirts or blouses. Avoid pull-overs or, if you must have them, make sure they are large and loose. If your fingers don't want to move in the morning, avoid clothing with small buttons or hooks. Make sure zippers have large tabs. Buy pants with elastic waistbands. If you have a hard time bending due to back or hip pain, wear slip on shoes or shoes with Velcro closures. Make sure your socks stretch easily. Avoid heels.

Adaptive devices can also make dressing easier without having to buy special clothing. These devices have been around for many years. Before the internet, you used to have to purchase these items with the assistance of occupational therapists that had access to the medical suppliers that distributed this type of equipment. Now anyone can purchase these devices directly. If you have trouble bending, elastic shoe laces and a long shoe horn will help you slip your shoes on and off. If your fingers are too stiff to pinch those tiny zipper tabs, use a zipper pull to hook the tab and pull the zipper closed. There are dozens of devices available to accommodate just about any problem. A good source for adaptive devices for arthritis is The Wright Stuff Inc. Arthritis Supplies at http://www.arthritissupplies.com

Many of the devices listed above were actually invented by occupational therapists. If you don't understand how to use them, or if you need some help solving your problems with dressing at home, you might want to consult with an occupational therapist in your area. Check with your health insurance plan for a list of occupational therapists that provide outpatient services. If you would like to know more about occupational therapy, please visit The American Occupational Therapy Association at http://www.aota.org/Consumers.aspx