Find Senior Care (City or Zip)
Join Now Log In
D
diamondlee Asked February 2018

How is the safest way to get my husband out of the shower when he falls?

OldSailor Feb 2018
The therapist showed me how to help my wife to get up. If she will follow instruction, I was told to get her to get into a crawling position, if she is near a piece of furniture she is to place her hands on the furniture so she can assist by pushing up while I am lifting from the rear. I have had to expand this by getting her to try to get foot on the floor as well while I am lifting her. So far this has worked three or four times. She is too heavy for me to lift her alone, I need her help. This will not work for us much longer since we are both in our seventies. If I cannot get behind her to help then I must call our non-emergency number for the fire department to help.
I should mention that getting her into more of a kneeling position has even helped her to get up in the step in tub. If she can get her legs under herself and have something pull or push on it really helps. But in your case I would contact a physical therapist for some instructions because it can save your back and save your LO some pain.

Sendhelp Feb 2018
Take cooler showers so he won't feel weak.

ADVERTISEMENT


Sendhelp Feb 2018
Another idea, if he has fallen in the shower/bathtub, let out all the water, place many towels (a washerload full) around him and under him as he rests. Dry him off, let him dry himself off, and keep him there until the shower and hubs drys. Use a bathroom heater to keep him warm. Bring him some orange juice, or apple juice. 4 oz. in a plastic cup. Try 1/2 cup coffee too. He is going to have to get up on his own if he doesn't want 911 called. Get up in stages. TRY showering at a better time of the day, when he feels stronger. Give him nutrients before he gets in the shower. Try supplements advised by his doctor. The reason I suggest he rest and get dried off in there is that some illnesses like parkinsons, the person can recover a weakness after resting, or massaging their legs. So you both need to discover why he is falling. imo.

Sendhelp Feb 2018
He sounds like such a sweetie, take him outside and squirt him off with the hose!

Omg, did I just say that? I meant, when it gets warmer, install an outside shower like RV's have, draw the curtain, and if he falls, hopefully the grass will be soft enough. He doesn't even have to remove his clothes if you squirt through them.

My real answer is that he is fairly young, get him a full workup by his doctor and find out why his legs give out on him.

polarbear Feb 2018
diamondlee- if my husband was this stubborn, selfish and reckless about his safety, I would get VERY angry; and vice versa, he would get VERY angry at me if I acted like your husband. We both have to be responsible for our safety because we depend on each other, and our children depend on us.

In your case, you might not have any dependent except each other. Either your husband doesn't care that he might become a cripple and be a big burden on you, or he thinks he's invincible in which case he needs to see a shrink, or he has a death wish.

Tell him if he becomes a cripple by choice, you won't be there to take care of him. See if that will wake him up.

cwillie Feb 2018
So if he isn't hurt when he falls and he has nothing else wrong then why can't he get himself up after a fall? Maybe you should both watch a few YouTube videos on the subject, search "how to get up after a fall".

diamondlee Feb 2018
my husband is 64 and the only thing he has wrong is his legs give out on him.we live in a single mobile home.I have mentioned maybe remolding the bathroom.he said no.

Sendhelp Feb 2018
How old is your husband with mobility problems, and is there dementia?

Remodeling the shower to be handicap accessible, and able to enter in a wheelchair may be next, if he is to stay home.

Call your senior center for advice and help. There are companies that do a whole house assessment for handicapp accessibility.

GardenArtist Feb 2018
Diamond, have you considered, or do you think he'd agree to no rinse products for bathing instead of a full immersion experience? It's a lot safer to just use the no rinse products and not even deal with getting in and out of a shower, especially if he refuses to use a chair, and if there are no grab bars. That's a recipe for disaster.

polarbear Feb 2018
diamondlee - A friend of my mother fell in the shower, hit her head hard, then had a stroke, and was hospitalized. After that, she became paralyzed from the waist down and was confined to a wheelchair. Her arms became weak and she couldn't feed herself or do much of anything else. That was 10 years ago and she still lives. So, tell your husband this could be his future if he fell.

cwillie Feb 2018
Yes, do get the shower chair but skip the suction grab bars, they tend to let go without warning. On another thread someone mentioned taking a cheap walker into the shower, not something I would normally recommend but better than nothing. Another option is to pay for an outside caregiver to supervise his shower time, generally an outsider can get someone to do things that family can not.

JoAnn29 Feb 2018
Only a trained person should try picking up someone from a floor. He may have to fall and have an EMS help him. It may embarrass him enough to agree to a shower chair and railings. Why don't you get a chair and the temporay suction railings and say they r for you. Then if he starts too fall they r there.

cwillie Feb 2018
If he ends up on the floor or in the hospital because of a fall he may change his tune. And DON'T try to pick him up by yourself, you will hurt yourself and then who will care for him?

diamondlee Feb 2018
no, he will not use a chair or grab bars

cwillie Feb 2018
Falling anywhere is difficult, falling in the shower is difficult X10 because he will be wet and naked. Call EMS and explain what has happened and ask for assistance.

(BTW, do you have adequate grab bars, no slip mats and a good shower chair?)

ADVERTISEMENT

Ask a Question

Subscribe to
Our Newsletter