Tips for arthritic repair people

They have figured out butter may be better for you than margarine.

If you want olive oil garlic bread, mince/crush garlic in a pan with a little olive oil and cook it until the garlic has started to brown, then spread that on your bread or just use it to dip the bread in. You can also put some italian herb/spice in there for another little bump.

I use evoo on a lot of things. I also use garlic and janes garlic salt sometimes. I won't use margarine for anything but use butter on bread and in foods that I cook. If I use bread it is usually gluten free from whole foods or I make cornbread.

Get a pair of high-grip gloves, the ones with the rubberized palms, and wea r 'em. Greatly reduces the muscle force you need to exert to grasp things. Less force on the joints and less fatigue. You'll notice the difference at the end of the day.

Use a cordless driver instead of a hand screwdriver for any job that requir es more than half a turn. Or find bit holder with a t-handle or ratchet han dle that you can operate with motions other than twisting your wrist.

Avoid lazy-man loads of multiple tools and parts crammed in one hand while you use the other one to open doors or climb a ladder. Use a tool apron tha t keeps both hands free, or a tool tray that you can carry comfortably and put down easily.

Minimize exposure to vibration from reciprocating tools, or shock forces fr om hammering. If you can't avoid forces, try the gel-padded shock-absorbing gloves.

Re-think tasks that require sustained static force from the affected joints . Use clamps, locking pliers, straps, bungees, cable ties, blocks and shims -- whatever -- for those loads, and save your hands for the skills that ne ed them. Engineer each job so that you can let go and give your hands a res t at any point; don't try to hold something in a difficult position with on e hand while you put the bolts on it with the other. Even if you expect the weight to be manageable, if the job takes longer than you expected you cou ld be stuck in a spot that gets less and less comfortable, and if that heav y thing starts to slip, it can take your hand or wrist into an angle you re ally don't want it to go.

Chip C Toronto

Chip, these are precisely the sorts of suggestions I was looking for. THANKS!

I have a 6" round textured rubber mat I got from a local plumber that helps in all sorts of jar opening and similar situations. FWIW, it was from "Joe the Plumber" - just not the famous one.

Gave up manual screwdrives a long time ago. Wrist twisting has turned into agony at times. Got an assortment of electric screwdrivers, from pistol-gripped to tubular to a tiny one that takes jeweler's screwdriver tips.

I have regrettably found that with arthritis, the old ways of being able to hold things like screws in my hand while I operate a tool are over. It's sort of like drinking water after your mouth is numbed with Novocaine. (-: