#spoon saving tips

Upright Is Right #42

This hack is simple. Avoid stacking items and instead store them upright when you can. 

Think of a bookshelf and how simple it is to get each book in and out of its place due to the books being upright. Now imagine that all those books were instead in stacks. If you want the books at the bottom of the stacks you have to pick up all of the books above. The upright organising method just makes more sense. Applying this to your kitchen makes even more sense. Many items in the kitchen are heavy (plates, metal cooking equipment, wood chopping boards) and so picking up multiple to get to the bottom of a stack isn’t always easy for a spoonie (especially when we need to do this for a few items needed for a meal, then put them all back again). There’s no need to be doing this when we can just store things upright. It also often saves space too :)

Plates, cooking trays, cutting boards, pot lids, food storage lids, and more can easily be stood upright. You can buy racks designed to hold flat kitchen items. Plate cradles are also an option but only work with round items like plates and cooking pot lids. These options are usually designed to fit inside a cupboard and even save space. Tubs, baskets, or even a magazine file can be good for flat items (aside from fragile things such as plates). Pots and pans often come with a hole in the handle so that you can hang them. Pots and pans are quite heavy, especially when stacked so I love that they do this. 

I’m sure there’s even more that I am forgetting but you get the picture. Avoiding stacking your items can save you a few spoons every day. You’ll likely notice the difference too. 

All spoonies have those days that leave you with no spoons. So we crash in that one spot we always go to when we are hurting; whether it is our beds (my personal favorite <3), our couch or a nook somewhere in the house. When we get to these spots however, sometimes we don’t move for hours except for absolute emergencies. So here are some things that need to be on that bedside table (or any table within arm's reach of that spot) for every Spoonie. If you do not have a table however, check out my DIY Bedside Caddy, it works just as well.

Medications: Always keep an extra pill holder with your medication in them in case you cannot get to your main supply during this time, but like we have said before, KEEP THIS OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN!!!

Electronic Chargers: Since playing on phones, tablets and laptops use up very little spoons, this is a common and enjoyable activity for Spoonies, but this also means the batteries on these die very quickly. Having chargers by your spot (whether having to use an extension cord or not) makes it very easy to continue your fun. If you have many electronics with many chargers, investing in a plugin outlet with many spots is a good purchase.

TV Remotes: To prevent having to stand up to change the TV channel when our favorite show goes off, keeping the TV and DVD remotes with you is very useful.

Waters & Snacks: To keep from becoming dehydrated while recovering, keep a water bottle with you. If you have issues with your heart and have to consume a lot of salt, you could keep Gatorade or Powerade. For snacks, try fruit snacks. You can find these organic, sugar free, vegan, etc.; whatever you need for your dietary needs. This is a spoonie essential!

If there is anything I missed, please let me know :)

An easy way to save yourself some spoons is to look into buying (or making) some kitchen cleaning wipes. It makes cleaning up in your kitchen (or bathroom) much easier and quicker. You literally just wipe up the mess and then pop the used wipe into the bin.

Cleaning counters, appliances, cupboards, etc just takes seconds with no preparation other than pulling out a wipe. Cleaning and disinfecting handles, dials, and buttons, and other small things and places is especially easy with a wipe in my opinion. Wipes also mean no more gathering your cleaning supplies, putting them away, or cleaning and disinfecting your sponges/brushes/whatever. 

You can make your own wipes quite easily if you like to avoid certain chemicals. There are many recipes online and I know Pinterest has a bunch of different recipes to suit different needs. Many just involve you mixing some natural cleaning liquids together and soaking some kitchen-roll in it.

You can of course use these wipes across the home as many are multi purpose. They are especially good for the kitchen which often creates a lot of mess which is why they are a part of the kitchen series :)

It’s a bit embarrassing for some of us but when we don’t have many spoons, a bath or shower can be one of the worst things to do. For me personally, it doesn’t just use up a bunch of spoons. When I get out of the bath, I feel super achy, my joints feel more fragile, and everything needs more spoons. So here are some tips to help you survive those times when you need an extra day or two. I’ll add to this if I find or think of any more. -Dry shampoo- If you have long hair and it’s a bit too oily, use some dry shampoo. Look for what works for you. You can get white spray on ones or powder ones, that you rub in and then brush out. You can get ones that are coloured so you don’t need to brush them out so much. Some people like to just use talcum powder which is apparently very effective. Dry shampoo gets rid of that greasy look and gives your hair some volume too. It really does help freshen you up imo. -Invest in a really good deodorant- If you have a really good deodorant, you will feel clean for longer and you washing up will be quicker as you’ll have less to deal with. I personally love Mitchum deodorants. They work much better than any other brand that I’ve tried drastically. I think they live up to the ‘lasts for 48 hours’ line more than any of the others. The popular/more effective ones are the cream and gel deodorants.

-If you can’t have a bath or shower but you really need to have a wash, have a wash at the sink- Fill it with hot/warm soapy water, use a flannel/sponge/whatever and just do what you can. Just wash the important parts basically. It’s not perfect but it’ll do when you need it. 

-Try using a shower stool- It can make a pretty big difference when it comes to spoons. When I really don’t have the ability to have a proper bath, I sit on my stool and have a shower. I do what I can then get out. I find it makes cleaning your lower body much easier too. I recommend it because it really does make having a bath/shower much less spoon consuming. (thanks to biggunzcdb for reminding me of this!)

-This is something I hadn’t even thought of! It was suggested to me by  n-mourners and llynethsfandomblogthing. Using wipes is an easy way to clean up a bit. You don’t need to worry about water and soap getting on the floor, or anything like that. You just pop the wipes in the bin when you’re done. There are different options you can go with. I personally get exfoliating facial wipes which would be especially good for those of you with acne or other facial skin troubles. I will be trying out these other options soon. Baby wipes are another simple option. Camping wipes sound like a good idea as they are designed to handle your hygiene while you don’t have a bath or shower around (and you can buy no-rinse versions too). If I missed anyone else who suggested this, let me know :)

-Consider asking for help- It can be embarrassing for some but it’s ok to ask for help. There are times when my shoulders sublux or get otherwise injured so I can’t reach everywhere. When this happens, I usually have to ask my boyfriend or Mum to give me a hand. I’ll wash everything that I can do myself and at the end, I’ll call them in to help me with my hair, back, or whatever I need. If you’re shy you could wear a swimming costume or wrap a towel around you.