eSCAping Type 1

Life with a disability is tough; I really can’t sugarcoat it.

I have a tendency of doing half-chores: dishes will stay in the dishwasher, laundry in the dryer… I am unbelievably lucky to have a husband to literally help me live. I think I could get by unassisted, but every second would be overwhelming and exhausting.

However, if you want items to make days easier, do I have some personal recommendations for you! Behold five things I use on an almost-daily basis to do just that…

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn some commission at no additional cost to you if you click on a picture or link and then buy something. Please know, I wrote this post before I even knew that was a thing you could do, so all these recommendations are 100% genuine!

 

1. Roomba

Vacuuming when you can’t balance dangerous and time-consuming, so why not let a machine do it for you? A Roomba is a glorious little buddy who zooms around & cleans dirt, dust, and pet hair while you do whatever your heart desires.

I wouldn’t recommend having it on when you’re not home – it does require some babysitting when it gets stuck under a chair or sucks up a lamp cord, but since it connects to your phone, it’s easy to just press “Pause” until you can get to it and help it out. It also has to be emptied pretty frequently, though I’m sure having a German Shepherd plays a pretty big part in that.

But it DOES work and IS worth it – I love mine.

 

2. Tervis Cups

A slightly degrading part of having hand tremors as an adult (besides not being able to use a lighter, or apply liquid eyeliner, or wear contacts, or sign a check, or cut steak for dinner, or… ah, sorry, I digress) is needing, essentially, a sippy cup.

Drinking anything without a lid opens a plethora of spilling opportunities – it’s highly likely that liquid will end up anywhere but your mouth. Luckily there actually are a lot of helpful options available!

I, personally, love Tervis Tumblers: they have a wide variety of sizes and designs to fit your personality; they’re lightweight and dishwasher safe; the lids are easy to get on and off, but stay on when you put them on; the drinking opening easily slides and won’t spill when it’s closed; and they can be used for any beverage, hot or cold!

I literally have an entire cupboard full of these.

 

3. Meal Deliveries

How anyone survived before Meal Delivery Services were a thing is beyond me.

No longer do you have to plan out dinners for the week, then search for particular ingredients at the grocery store (which you’ll only end up using a tablespoon of, and then throwing the rest out in a month because you only needed it for that one meal), then make a ton which is okay because you have leftovers but who really wants to eat the same meal twice in a row anyway…?

Even without a disability, that’s nothing I would want to do.

Now, I love being able to hop online, choose three meals out of a menu of weekly options, then having the already-measured ingredients with step-by-step recipes delivered right to my door. I love that I’m improving my cooking knowledge by making recipes that I probably wouldn’t think of on my own. (Granted, chopping an onion takes me about an hour, but I’m doing it while I can!)

I’m not going to lie – I’ve tried nearly every company in order to see what we liked the best. (And to take full advantage of those first-timer promotional deals.)

So, here are my honest opinions:

As far as taste, quality of ingredients, & meal options go, I recommend Hello Fresh – it is, hands down, my favorite.

However, I’ve recently been ordering Home Chef instead solely because – as someone with a disability – their recipes are easier to cook. They have less ingredients, the meat is sometimes already cut up, and each meal has everything in its own plastic bag with a handle and zipper.

So, not as environmentally-friendly, and even though the meals taste good, they’re just not as good, but as far as making life easier goes, it definitely has my tried-and-true recommendation.

Now, whenever I talk about Meal Deliveries, someone ALWAYS brings up the cost. So, let’s address that. Yes, $60 a week does seem like a lot for three meals. But you’re feeding two people, so that’s only $10 a meal. Not gonna lie, I can easily spend more than that at Taco Bell feeding just myself with less-quality ingredients. Plus, I bet you spend more than that grocery shopping (I know I did).

Try them out using these links/pictures – Hello Fresh will give you $40 off your first box (and $20 off mine), and Home Chef gives us both $30 off our next boxes. No catch, you can cancel right after you get it.

 

4. Candle Warmers

I’ll admit, I have a slight candle obsession; they have consistently remained on my Christmas list for six years now. But losing fine motor skills makes using a lighter pretty impossible.

So, I bought a bunch of Candle Warmers! Now I can just flip a light switch instead of potentially burning down my house, or myself.

Yes, it does take longer to notice the aroma since you have to wait for the wax to melt from the bottom up, BUT you could buy smaller candles, or those wax melts, or buy a fancy warmer that heats on all sides, or just be patient 🙂

I have found that my candles last longer and look nicer, since the wax isn’t only evaporating around the wick, and I’m a lot less frustrated since I don’t have to spend hours trying to spin a tiny piece of metal and then hold down a button with one finger.

 

5. Terry Cloth Bathrobe

We’re getting up close and personal with this last one, but I’m okay with it!

Showering when you have hand tremors and no balance is terrifying at best. And once you somehow maneuver washing your hair while holding onto safety railings (though Batiste Dry Shampoo is a game changer and probably should have gotten its own recommendation) you still have to figure out how to dry off without falling over now that your energy is zapped.

Here’s where your Terry Cloth Bathrobe comes into play! Not having to towel dry by just slipping this on and being able to move without dripping over everything is pretty convenient. Who knew a bathrobe could provide time and safety and stress-relief along with comfort and dryness!?

 

 

If you have any recommendations or tips to share, please comment below! The money I save not buying stilettos has to go somewhere, right?