NationStates Jolt Archive

My mom fell on the ice last Monday (Dec. 10) and broke her left arm near the shoulder (thankfully, she's right-handed). It's a complicated break and they're not sure if they'll have to do surgery yet; she's in a sling for now. She's bored out of her mind because she's been forced to take leave from work and she can't do a lot of the things she enjoys, like make crafts, because they require both hands.

Has anyone out here had a similar problem, where the use of one arm is severely curtailed? Got any ideas for things for her to do? She's in the sling for eight more weeks, provided all goes well ...

Thanks!

My mom fell on the ice last Monday (Dec. 10) and broke her left arm near the shoulder (thankfully, she's right-handed). It's a complicated break and they're not sure if they'll have to do surgery yet; she's in a sling for now. She's bored out of her mind because she's been forced to take leave from work and she can't do a lot of the things she enjoys, like make crafts, because they require both hands.

Has anyone out here had a similar problem, where the use of one arm is severely curtailed? Got any ideas for things for her to do? She's in the sling for eight more weeks, provided all goes well ...

Thanks!

What kind of crafts does she like to do normally? that would give us a hint as to one-armed activities...

What was she doing, ice skating?

Origami paper crane.

My mom fell on the ice last Monday (Dec. 10) and broke her left arm near the shoulder (thankfully, she's right-handed). It's a complicated break and they're not sure if they'll have to do surgery yet; she's in a sling for now. She's bored out of her mind because she's been forced to take leave from work and she can't do a lot of the things she enjoys, like make crafts, because they require both hands.

Has anyone out here had a similar problem, where the use of one arm is severely curtailed? Got any ideas for things for her to do? She's in the sling for eight more weeks, provided all goes well ...

Thanks!

Get her hooked on CnC games ;)

considering how my broken arm didn't stop me from participating in fight club, I doubt I'll have any worthy advice

Get a stack of DVDs for her, or audio books if she's not able to hold a book and turn pages herself.

Well I can think of one activity that she can do with one hand and some Jelly, but I don't think you want to suggest that to your mom, no....

Hmmm, She could always go outside and enjoy nature.

Get a stack of DVDs for her, or audio books if she's not able to hold a book and turn pages herself.

www.radiolovers.com

7th Saga's controls were designed so someone could play it with one hand and do mapping or soemthing with the other, but I'm afraid that only works if the one hand is the left hand...

Get a stack of DVDs for her, or audio books if she's not able to hold a book and turn pages herself.www.radiolovers.com
or http://www.secretworldchronicle.com/

but only if she likes that kind of stuff.

oh, then there's...
http://www.wowio.com

yeah, you gotta register, but it's cool... no fees or nuthing...

This is an excellent opportunity for your mom to widen her film palatte. Get her a bunch of really good DVDs that she needs to see but has never seen.

Audiobooks work too.

considering how my broken arm didn't stop me from participating in fight club, I doubt I'll have any worthy advice

Do NOT talk about fight club!

Go bowling. The only sport so boring, they serve alcohol to the players.

Seriously, it could be an opportunity to learn to use a one-handed keyboard. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chorded_keyboard) I'll take the plunge myself some day.

mousing arround on the internet only takes one hand. and so does for that matter using a conventional keyboard. its just slower then touch typing with both but it can certainly still be done. as i did this entry, from clicking on reply aal the way through using just my right hand to make sure there would be no real problem, other then a little slowness, with doin so.

=^^=
.../\...

Nationstates? ;)

thankfully i was ok when i broke my arm a few years back. it was the left one, so browsing the net was fine for me (i'm right-handed), and i had plenty of experience typing one-handed ;)

What kind of crafts does she like to do normally? that would give us a hint as to one-armed activities...

Oh, I'm thinking here. She's done some needlepoint in the past ... lots of wooden crafts, but more buy the pieces and assemble into something you wouldn't expect. Like a wooden bowling pin that's the basis for a snowman. The problem with stuff like that is you need to hold it with one hand and work on it with the other.

What was she doing, ice skating?

No. Not intentionally. ;) She's a paraprofessional at an elementary school in town and was escorting a class of fifth-graders in from recess. She turned a corner and slipped on a patch of ice.

Clapping in a zen style.

Rioting? It only takes one arm to throw a Molotov cocktail.

get her addicted to computer games.

Introduce her to my wife. You can have a Broken Limb Support Group.

My wife broke her leg on the last day of November, and she's suffering from a major case of cabin fever. I suggest getting her out as much as possible.

For crafts that require two hands, look into a table mounted vise grip. She can use the vise grip to hold, then her good hand to do the crafting. Might be slower, but a fun challenge? This would work well for needlepoint, it would be like working on a large frame, but in small scale. You might need to thread a bunch of needles for her ahead of time though.

Get her a brush, some water color paint, and paper. She can paint one handed. And to keep the paper from moving while she is working, a small piece of tape anchors it to the table nicely.

My mom loved books on tape for times when her hands were busy (like driving) so that might be a good idea too.

get her interested in the mindless babling that goes on in internet forums.

mindless but addictive