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Carer problems

Wibbles

My wife /carer has bursitis in her left knee
She does virtually everything for me - from shopping to helping me to get to my doctors appointments
But needs to rest in order to get rid of the bursitis
What can we do?

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Comments

janer1967

Hi there

Sorry to hear this maybe speak to your gp for a referral to social care for some temp carers or contact social services yourself

chiarieds

Hi @Wibbles - you might consider doing online shopping for the short term. Also has your GP indicated anything that may help her? If not, she should likely avoid kneeling, & otherwise overly bending her knee.

If she hasn't been referred for physio (& of course that may currently take some time), she could try using a small bag of frozen peas wrapped in a towel over the affected area several times a day to help reduce the swelling. Also she could try resting with her leg elevated with a small pillow/cushion behind the knee to provide support.

Rest can be important, but, with possibly some prescribed painkillers from her GP, or even over the counter ones, keeping active is equally important. This is all presuming her GP has ruled out the need for antibiotic intervention.

I have personally previously found a tubigrip knee support 'comforting,' but other than that can't comment on any therapeutic improvement. Anyway, usually knee bursitis ordinarily quickly resolves, so hope this proves to be the case.

Wibbles

woodbine said:

@Wibbles are there any family members who could help out whilst your wife gets some rest ? if not is there a carers organisation (most counts have them) that might be able to offer some ad hoc help?

No family, except for my Dad, who is in his 90's - so can't be expected to help !

Hannah_Alumni

Hello @Wibbles

If you don't mind me asking, what kind of help do you need getting to doctors' appointments? Is it just travel, or do you need aids / adaptations for traveling?

The suggestion above to get deliveries, even asking if your local shops and pharmacy if they can deliver will be a big help towards your wife resting.

Wibbles

Hannah_Scope said:

Hello @Wibbles

If you don't mind me asking, what kind of help do you need getting to doctors' appointments? Is it just travel, or do you need aids / adaptations for traveling?

The suggestion above to get deliveries, even asking if your local shops and pharmacy if they can deliver will be a big help towards your wife resting.

I am virtually immobile, and my speech is virtually non-existant too !

"Local shops" do not deliver - it would mean DELIVEROO or similar

But my wife would never use such a facility - she doesn't trust them to get the order correct

Hannah_Alumni

@Wibbles Such a shame they go through Deliveroo. I would be the same and not trust them to get it right.

I would suggest maybe a neighbour? if you are on good terms with them. Also, could you attend any appointment virtually whilst your wife rests up?

Wibbles

Hannah_Scope said:

@Wibbles Such a shame they go through Deliveroo. I would be the same and not trust them to get it right.

I would suggest maybe a neighbour? if you are on good terms with them. Also, could you attend any
appointment virtually whilst your wife rests up?

Sorry - virtual appointments don't help me - my speech is virtually non-existant when under pressure and my wife has to speak for me !

Neighbours can't help, they are in their 80's on one side and 90's on the other and can't walk themselves - they use Deliveroo

poppy123456

What about deliveries with places like Tesco, Morrisions, Asda etc etc? They pretty much sell everything you could need.

Surely she doesn't need to rest all the time? Sitting down in one place all the time also isn't good for this and some movements is also good. https://www.webmd.com/pain-management/arthritis-bursitis

Wibbles

poppy123456 said:

What about deliveries with places like Tesco, Morrisions, Asda etc etc? They pretty much sell everything you could need.
Surely she doesn't need to rest all the time? Sitting down in one place all the time also isn't good for this and some movements is also good. https://www.webmd.com/pain-management/arthritis-bursitis

I dont know whether they are now delivering again - 2 years ago, during lockdown - we tried to get a free slot (both myself and my wife were classed as extremely vulnerable to covid) but we were unable to get a delivery slot within a MONTH (really !) - so, at the time, my wife decided to do it herself and every week since then - she has done just that

janer1967

I always get a next day delivery slot with asda with morrisons it's few days it is a lot better now to get delivery slots

Wibbles

janer1967 said:

I always get a next day delivery slot with asda with morrisons it's few days it is a lot better now to get delivery slots

Maybe we will try then

poppy123456

Wibbles said:

poppy123456 said:

What about deliveries with places like Tesco, Morrisions, Asda etc etc? They pretty much sell everything you could need.
Surely she doesn't need to rest all the time? Sitting down in one place all the time also isn't good for this and some movements is also good. https://www.webmd.com/pain-management/arthritis-bursitis

I dont know whether they are now delivering again - 2 years ago, during lockdown - we tried to get a free slot (both myself and my wife were classed as extremely vulnerable to covid) but we were unable to get a delivery slot within a MONTH (really !) - so, at the time, my wife decided to do it herself and every week since then - she has done just that

2 years ago is a long time and there were a lot of people wanting home deliveries back then. There will be a lot more slots now. Or maybe even click and collect, my daughter and her partner do this every week. It's so much easier than walking around a supermarket.

Hannah_Alumni

Wibbles said:

Hannah_Scope said:

@Wibbles Such a shame they go through Deliveroo. I would be the same and not trust them to get it right.

I would suggest maybe a neighbour? if you are on good terms with them. Also, could you attend any
appointment virtually whilst your wife rests up?

Sorry - virtual appointments don't help me - my speech is virtually non-existant when under pressure and my wife has to speak for me !
Neighbours can't help, they are in their 80's on one side and 90's on the other and can't walk themselves - they use Deliveroo

No don't be sorry @wibbles I wondered if having your wife help you virtually could be a way round it all. How is she doing now?

I agree with many of the people above about online food shop deliveries. I usually do my food shop online and find that only during busy weeks like the upcoming Christmas week, it can be hard to get slots. Just to let you know, companies such as Morrisons, Tesco and Asda have stopped using plastic carrier bags. We tend to pack the food into reusable bags when it comes to the door, but you can add a note to the order asking for some assistance or if you forget, many of the workers are happy to come in and help unpack it for you.