Single handed help!

Oct 18, 2015

Hannah K.

I dislocated my elbow on Friday, so my left arm is in a wrist to above elbow plaster cast and sling. There's some stuff which I really cannot do such as wash my hair, tie my hair up and tie my shoelaces (all of which my mum is doing for me or I'm wearing slip on shoes), however I can put makeup on (just about, but I have to use my mouth to unscrew lids) and I find it difficult getting dressed and am having to wear v-neck tshirts and pull them up as opposed to over my head. I am also having to use micellar wipes to take my makeup off as I found it difficult to use my cream cleanser one handed.
I was wondering if anyone had been in a similar situation to me and if they had any tips or tricks to make it easier regarding hair, makeup, personal hygiene, skincare, getting dressed, etc.

Thanks!x

Oct 18, 2015

Roz X.

You poor dear!! I'm so sorry and wish you a speedy recovery. How sweet of your mom to be so helpful during these rough days.

I have been in a similar situation and found cotton balls and a great toner to be a lifesaver. Microcellular water may prove really helpful paired with your make-up wipes. An aloe based toner like Thayers or Mario Badescu Seaweed Cleansing Lotion are pretty fantastic and keep your dkin refreshed.
For hair..sleeping in 2 or 3 twisted sections will give you some waves without tools. If you use dry shampoo, now is the perfect time to pull it out to save on washing. Kenra hairspray is flexible hold and helps extend styles..permitting you to brush and not lose your waved locks. I remember my mom helping brush my hair. It was nice, actually. A wet brush if you have one will keep tangles at bay. They have silky, non tugging scrunchies that are great for sleeping in a bun and also giving a bit of wave while preventing tangles during sleep.

A CC cream may save you some steps. I love Lumene's Time Freeze as it provides some sunscreen and color corrects. I recall liner being a pain and instead lining with shadow, which was easier for me and quite forgiving as it is softer line. If you do line, Kat's felt tip liners are pretty fantastic, but I'd hate for you to invest in it and not be able to use it so I hope other members can share their experiences.
Slip on sweaters or already buttoned cardis were a lifesaver! Yoga pants and leggings are certainly user friendly for dressing. Flats, also great for getting shoes on and off quickly or slip on such as Vans. Baby wipes are a quick way to wash up and help cut back on the baths for a bit.
Hope that helps. My best to you, hun.

Oct 18, 2015

Alyx T.

Rozberry has great points. I often dislocated my elbow (until recently it was 3-4 times a year), and I have wrist issues lol. So I have gotten really good at one handed beauty routines. Unfortunately it's mostly about practice. For clothes, if it's warm out I'd just put on a loose sundress that has like a vneck or a tank top type neckline, that way I didn't have to pull anything up like pants. Big sweaters are nice too. If it's winter time I usually go for a big sweater and leggings or whatever pants, and I don't even bother with a bra or anything. Just a tank top underneath lol.

Hair wise, I agree with rozberry, dry shampoo, and braids or twists if you can for easy no heat waves. I found practising shampooing got easier. Because it happens to me a lot I tried for a few weeks to do it one handed. Unfortunately for me it's my right hand that is often in a wrist thing, and I'm right handed. But practice is key unfortunately. If your mom is good at braiding I'd do that every night. If not, then if you can move your arm, just to a position that it can "hold" the loose pieces, it'll take longer, but you might be able to do a twist that way. I know my mom can't braid so I always have to find a way to do something lol.

Makeup wise honestly I usually just do a base of bb or cc cream, mascara and maybe a nude cream eyeshadow, but I was missing my dominant hand, so it was harder for me to apply anything else nicely lol.

Skincare, wipes! Honestly a lifesaver. I also used spray toners and spray oils that way it was easier to apply lol. I actually got my mom to help transfer my jojoba oil into a spray bottle because that way I only needed one hand, and could just spray then massage it in rather than use two hands to open it and stuff.

I wish I could help more, I know how crappy it is to be in that situation!

Oct 18, 2015

Hannah K.

Roz - Thank you so much for your lovely response! My dad was in the hospital with me from 2pm til 11pm on the Friday so my mum is helping me out at home :) the ideas you suggested are great, I'm using my dry shampoo tomorrow morning as I have school and won't have time to wash it. Thank you so, so much for all the ideas, they're all fantastic :)

Alyx - Painful isn't it! The ball of my elbow rolled under the bone and dropped, pushing the bone up. I think when they reset it was the worst bit though, I was on morphine and had an oxygen mask. Weather-wise, it's not going to be too bad this week (for England!) so I'd get away with tshirts and dresses. I didn't actually think of dresses and I've got one which would be perfect, so thank you for that suggestion! I have a few of those blanket scarf wraps I could wear too if it gets cold, you're reminding me of everything now!:) Bras are a pain in the a*** to get on right now! Mines my left so it's my non-writing hand and whatnot so it could be a lot worse. Luckily, my toner is in a spray bottle too so at least I can do that by myself but my moisturiser is in a tiny twisty lid pot so it's difficult to open. Thank you so much for all your fab suggestions, you've helped me a ton!

Alma - Thank you so much Alma! I have the fracture clinic on Friday so fingers crossed I get this damn cast off then!