Make These Changes to the Home for People with Parkinson's: Part Two
Yours truly, Maria Lindbergh!
For those of you who don’t know, I’m an occupational therapist who’s worked in rehabilitation and long-term care settings for most of my career.
From a medical perspective, I understand the everyday needs of people with Parkinson’s with tasks like getting dressed or going to the bathroom.
Some of my clients in rehab were able to return home, but a good chunk of them could never go back.
That’s because their homes weren’t set up for them to be safe in taking care of their everyday needs. Without a doubt, unsafe homes led to falls, injury, and hospitalization.
I don’t think it’s fair that if you have a progressive diagnosis that you’re automatically confined to a long-term care facility because of your home setup. Sometimes, these facilities are a fate worse than death (sorry, not sorry, nursing home industry)!
Every person should be able to live wherever the heck they want no matter their age, ability, or socioeconomic status!
I know that making changes in the home will profoundly make a positive difference in how people with Parkinson’s are able to do what they want and need to do.
In the first part of this short series, I focused on the best changes to make to the bathroom for people with Parkinson’s. To read part one, please go HERE!
So without further ado, please read on for 10 changes to make to the rest of your home!
1) Color Contrast
While recently working in a hospital, I met a lovely woman with Parkinson’s who told me she had problems with double vision.
Double vision is a common symptom for people with Parkinson’s. And while I won’t get into all the medical reasons why it happens, her complaint about double vision let me know that there were probably some other eye symptoms happening alongside that she may not have realized.
People with Parkinson’s tend to also lose the ability to distinguish colors that are similar to each other. It’s hard for them to tell the difference between eggshell white and ivory or baby pink and romantic pink.
These colors simply blend together; they look the exact same.
So this becomes a huge problem for people with Parkinson’s because it makes it hard to move around the home.
Your eyesight plays a huge role in where you plan to put your feet! Similar colors make it difficult to determine where the floor and wall meet or changes in floor height. If you have a bathroom with a white toilet, white walls, and while flooring, this is a recipe for a ton of falls and hospital stays!
The solution to breaking up color is to create color contrast. You need to use a combination of very light colors and very dark colors.
It doesn’t really matter if it’s white and black, yellow and navy, etc., just as long as it’s a very light color and a very dark color.
This photo by Unsplash shows light-colored walls and flooring that make the black sofa stand out.
Going back to the all-white bathroom example, you can easily break up the color monotony by replacing the white toilet seat with a dark-colored toilet seat. To see an example, use this link to see my Toilet Talk video where I install an oil-rubbed bronze toilet seat on my white toilet.
You can also use a dark-colored rubber-backed bath mat next to the shower, dark-colored towels, install dark-colored grab bars, dark-colored shower seats, dark-colored storage or organizers, etc. You get the idea.
Light colors + dark colors = less falls.
In this photo by Pexels, the vertically placed brick becomes a marked boundary in the entryway and is differentiated with the horizontally placed brick and the tile floor. The color contrast between the black and white of the tile against the red brick also distinguishes the boundary. This helps people with Parkinson’s walk through doorways easier.
And if you’re remodeling your home or building a new one, oh boy, let me tell you something that will really help out with moving around: adding a color contrast as a marked boundary at all the doorways in a beautiful, decorative way.
This makes it easier for people with Parkinson’s to walk through the doorway.
I’ve seen people use light and dark-colored tile decorations or style luxury vinyl laminate flooring in a pattern to mark the boundary on the floor.
If this isn’t the very definition of “hiding in plain sight” I don’t know what is!
The moral of the story is color contrast everywhere in the home! For more information on how Parkinson’s can affect the eyes, head over to the American Parkinson Disease Association.
Check out this article for more ideas on how to add color contrast to your home.
2) Lighting
Another essential change to make at home is to make sure that frequently used entryways, staircases, rooms, and pathways are well-lit.
Shadows can throw off people with Parkinson’s by creating hallucinations. For instance, if there are shadows on a staircase, it can make it really hard to figure out the right place to put your feet!
Picture of well-lit staircase by Pexels.
To combat shadows, install more lighting at different angles. Obviously, overhead lighting is great, but I’m talking about lighting that washes up or down the walls, lighting on the rise of each step of your staircase, or lighting underneath handrails!
You can get really creative with this!
Remember to add more lumens in places where you’re focusing on detailed tasks, like the stovetop for cooking, the bathroom for shaving and clipping your fingernails, and your favorite comfy place for reading that crime thriller.
To read an article on bathroom lighting ideas, click here!
Bonus tip:
Motion-sensor night lights are an absolute must for nightly bathroom trips! I recommend putting them all along the path from the bedroom to the bathroom to prevent falls during Nature’s Call.
3) Entryways
Zero-step entry by Pexels.
Make the main entryway to your home a zero-step entry; that means NO steps and completely flat!
This will help people who use canes, walkers, and wheelchairs to easily get in and out of the house. To read more about zero-step entries, go HERE and HERE!
If you’re remodeling or adding a new entryway, make the door width 32-36 inches, preferably 36 inches. This will ensure there’s plenty of room to safely move through doorways with or without equipment.
Plus, it helps out anyone who’s carrying in groceries or laundry baskets!
All door handles should be C-shaped lever handles! Lever handles make it so much easier to open doors.
When the levers are c-shaped instead of completely straight, that will help people keep their hands from slipping off the handle.
Lastly, like I mentioned above, entryways with marked boundaries make it easier for people with Parkinson’s to walk through. It’s just more straightforward on where they plan to put their feet.
4) Bedroom
Photo by Pexels of gorgeous bedroom with bed linens tucked in the corner, white bed linens contrasting against dark brown flooring, bedside table, easy to access light switch plates, and lots of natural light.
Use less bedding!
If you’re feeling cold at night, wear warm pajamas and use one heavy blanket to keep your legs from getting tangled up in sheets!
When you make your bed, ensure that the bedspread is tucked in well at the corners and not draping on the floor.
I’ve worked with too many people whose bedspread caught their legs and tripped them!
Place a table lamp within reach of your bed in order to turn it on and off when you’re sitting down safely.
A bedside table next to the bed is helpful to place eyeglasses, tissue, cell phones, or a glass of water! Bedrails with pockets on the side are great options to store your personal belongings too!
5) Pathways
You want easy access for walking around the house to the rooms that you use the most, like the bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, and living room. All pathways to these rooms must be clear, clutter-free, and at least 32 inches wide to accommodate a walker or wheelchair.
No stacks of magazines next to the recliner or piles of random household items on staircases, please! No wires running along the floor or long 96 inch curtains. No wrinkles in the carpet or throw rugs!
Falls free is the way to be!
6) Floor
Look! No flooring threshold transitions, Ma! Photo of doorways in a home by Pexels.
Speaking of staying falls free, installing a low-pile carpet or luxury vinyl laminate flooring will really help out.
Not only are these types of flooring durable, but they’re also easy to maintain AND they’re easy for people to move around.
Have you ever used a wheelchair or walker on a plushy carpet? It’s a full-body workout! Trust me on this!
Also, please LIMIT the use of flooring threshold transitions between rooms.
In a perfect world, there’d be no threshold transitions whatsoever. They make it more difficult to walk or roll over thereby leading to a higher chance of falls.
A really good flooring professional will know the tricks to make a smooth inclined transition between rooms.
Don’t take “no” for an answer on this one!
7) Seating
Getting up and down from chairs and sofas can be challenging for people with Parkinson’s.
You’ll want to look for firm, taller-height seats with armrests. Think about using chairs with seat height around 17-18 inches tall, but this depends on the height of the person.
If you’re unsure about the best seat height, hire an occupational therapist or a home safety consultant to help you figure this out.
Some no-no’s for seats for people with Parkinson’s include:
Chairs that swivel
Chairs that rock
Chairs without armrests
Chairs with super soft, cushy pillows with a low seat.
If you want a lift recliner, get on with your bad self!
Read here about lift recliners and here to learn other ways to get up easier from chairs.
(FYI: I’m an Amazon affiliate. If you purchase using these links below, I receive an itty bitty commission.)
8) Technology
If you have family members or personal care attendants helping you out, baby monitors are a great way to keep your privacy and ask for assistance as needed.
Another option is to install cameras in your home for caregivers to check on you. It’s all up to your level of comfort though! Some people don’t mind cameras while others think it’s a bit too much monitoring!
There are also many personal safety alarms in case you’re in need of emergency help, think Life Alert. I also wrote an article discussing different types of passive monitoring devices that you can learn more about HERE.
Whatever you choose, it’s a great idea to consider adding some sort of tech to get help when you need it!
9) Stairways
This photo by Pexels shows how you can have contrasting colors on the rise and tread to make a beautiful staircase (with a gorgeous bride and groom!) that makes it easier to see where each step begins and ends. All this staircase needs is another handrail along the wall.
Make stairs even easier to see by putting edging on each step that’s in a color that contrasts with the rest of the step.
If you have light-colored steps, use dark-colored edging. You could also paint the tread and rise of the steps in contrasting colors.
Match the colors to your aesthetic! In my home, I’d probably do a combination of really light and really dark earth tones, like a cream color on the rise and a dark chocolatey-brown on the tread.
A handrail on each side of the staircase is an absolute must to feel secure when walking up and down the stairs.
(Please don’t use a 2x4 as a handrail! I’ve seen these in too many homes. You need a handrail with a circumference you can comfortably grip.)
10) Home Sweet Home
Make home comfy and to your taste! Photo by Unsplash.
Lastly, make sure to keep your home comfortable and set up for your tastes!
Play music that you like.
Add scents that you love to your linens and clothing.
Grow indoor plants that are easy to care for.
Put soft blankets near places you like to rest
Add pictures of loved ones and fabulous places you’ve visited.
Add comfortable outdoor seating to enjoy the great outdoors!
These recommendations will help people with Parkinson’s live safely at home. You have my permission to print off this blog post and use it as a checklist. Just get it done, son!
I highly recommend hiring an occupational therapist or home safety consultant to help you make changes to your home that are specifically designed for you! Having a professional onboard will ensure that you’re making the most informed decisions and will save you money in the long run.
So put those grab bars in the shower and take up those throw rugs before you have a harder time moving around!
Remember, you better do it before you need it!
For more information on changes to the home or anything else Parkinson’s related, please head on over to the Parkinson’s Foundation.
Have you made any of these changes to your home? What do you like or not like about them? Tell us all about your experience in the comments below! Please contact me if you have any questions!
Please share this blog post with a friend or family member with Parkinson’s. Don’t let them miss out on how to make their home safer!
Hard Time Wiping? Let’s Talk A-booty It!
(Hey, did you know we have an awesome online course for people who have a hard time wiping after using the toilet? It’s an awkward topic that you can learn how to solve in the comfort and privacy of your own home! Learn more about the course HERE!)