Looking for tips handling toileting needs for wheelchair bound

Posted by jzs @jzs, Sep 30, 2023

New here and not sure this is the right group. My husband is a cancer patient, 3 years remission. He has extensive nerve damage of undiagnosed source and cannot walk or stand. Long appointments for multiple scans etc, are a nightmare to plan since he cannot go to the restroom by himself and I am not strong enough to hold him up. I wonder how other care givers handle this. Depending on adult diapers seems less than ideal. I guess I am looking for a magical solution. Thanks for any helpful ideas.

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@lacy2

Reading the above and sympathize - I thought my situation was bad but being in a wheelchair and having to use washroom never occurred to me how difficult it would be. I had radiation damage to bowel then IbsD and then 2018/19 too many antibiotics or utis and c.diff and since then fecal incontinence.... stools are “mushy” and clean up is a task and I rarely go out, shop etc. Also get a lot of UTI’s have one at present but hard to keep area soil-free! And glad we have washer and dryer...but reading how much harder it is and would be, being in a wheelchair, or paralyzed!! What worries me is the future and if moved to a home for aged or such and lying in excrement until the next shift of nurses aides - reading a story of a man left for hours - the aides were fired but in their defence they were swamped with the number of other patients/residents needing help. We still have to eat so we still have to poop - and disposable underwear may sop up urine incontinence it doesn't work for fecal - also the smell, the mess, the cleanup - no magic solution for sure and although I feel upset for myself (and have other illnesses) I feel very much for those in wheelchairs or unable to even clean themselves... I never gave that a thought, sorry. (My daughter has an automatic toilet, with water spray etc but as a person with a vaginal and with frequent bladder infections I am concerned about, and have read about, the water spraying fecal germs into those areas for a woman..... ???

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@lacy2 About your concerns about increased bladder infections if you use a bidet. I worry about that also , so I simply don’t use the washer that sprays this area.
@harley22 I have both one of those expensive toilet seats and one of the cheap little models they sell on Amazon. The cheap one washes better when using on the rear b/c of the increased water pressure it allows. However you MUST adjust the pressure on these by turning the back nozzle that says something like “ self cleaning nozzle”. For some reason it adjusts the water pressure too, so that you don’t get terribly high pressure. I’ve been using these for years and just found this out! As for the expensive bidets, I just find that the water pressure is too weak for effective cleaning on the two models I have used though the hotter water helps and they are wonderfully comfortable! Perhaps there is something I don’t know about these expensive models, but in my experience, they both seem to only allow only a weak water pressure.

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I have inexpensive bidet attachment to my toilet. Works like kitchen sprayer but is angled. Attached to bottom of tank where water hooks up. Sprays from front to back- cool water. I find mine a blessing for keeping clean.

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@dbeshears1

When I was in a wheelchair for 6 months, toileting was about the most humbling part of my ordeal. In just 10 days, my sudden Neuropathy took my legs and my hands, so I had to be lifted onto the toilet and wiped when done. I have never been so appreciative of medical assistants in my life for doing that! But I was in a rehab home. These people were trained to do the job, and sometimes it took 2 people and they had belts/tools to help. It was the extensive PT over 5 weeks in the facility that made it such where I could safely transfer myself (with bars) from wheelchair to toilet. PT was able to help get wiping ability back too to a manageable degree. At home, I needed to continue PT (and have a caregiver present) to regain as much more strength and ability that I could. Toileting by myself was my #1 motivation, even before feeding myself. I can only guess your husband would love to be independent as possible too. Is in home care and/or PT an option to help bridge the gap while he gets through this challenging period and work to maintain and improve strength & balance? Thinking of you both and praying for quick recovery.

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My grandmother is handicap wheelchair girl I would have to go into her bedroom and give her a shot of insulin and empty her catheter into a bottle and check her diaper and give her some medicine and give her brealast and slide her on a board and lift her body on her wheelchair and push into the bathroom and lift her up on the toilet and let her do her business on the toilet and wipe her button off with toilet paper and lift her back on her wheelchair and put her in the bat tub and wash her butt and her private parts off with a towel and lift her back on her wheelchair and brush her teeth and empty her bladder into a bottle and get her bra and panties on her and push her into the living room and watch TV and give her lunch and let her eat and push her back into the bathroom and lift her on the toilet and let her do her business on the toilet and wipe her asa off with toilet paper and lift her back on her wheelchair and push her back into her bedroom and take off her clothes and lift her back on the bed and cover her up with blank and let her sleep

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@kevincall

My grandmother is handicap wheelchair girl I would have to go into her bedroom and give her a shot of insulin and empty her catheter into a bottle and check her diaper and give her some medicine and give her brealast and slide her on a board and lift her body on her wheelchair and push into the bathroom and lift her up on the toilet and let her do her business on the toilet and wipe her button off with toilet paper and lift her back on her wheelchair and put her in the bat tub and wash her butt and her private parts off with a towel and lift her back on her wheelchair and brush her teeth and empty her bladder into a bottle and get her bra and panties on her and push her into the living room and watch TV and give her lunch and let her eat and push her back into the bathroom and lift her on the toilet and let her do her business on the toilet and wipe her asa off with toilet paper and lift her back on her wheelchair and push her back into her bedroom and take off her clothes and lift her back on the bed and cover her up with blank and let her sleep

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My grandmother is handicap wheelchair girl I would go into her bedroom and give her a shot of insulin and empty her catheter bag into a bottle and check butt and give her medicine and bring her breakfast into her bedroom and let her finsh her breakfast and slide her naked body on a slide board and put her on her wheelchair and push her into the bathroom and lift her on toilet and let her do her business on the toilet and I would wipe her butt off with toilet paper and put her back on her wheelchair and empty her catheter bag and put her in the bat tub and was her butt off with water and wash her private parts off the with a towel and her her bra and panties on her and brush her teeth and push her back into the living room and watch TV and watch her and give her lunch and let her eat it and when push her back into the bedroom and take her to the bathroom and lift her on the toilet and check her butt and wipe her off with toilet paper and empty her bag into the toilet and lift her back on her wheelchair ND push her back into her bedroom and lift her on the bed and change her diaper and cover her up with a blanket and let her sleep and go back into a and check her out and see if she awake and slide her back on her wheelchair and push her back on the toilet and take her diaper off her and let her do her business and lift her back in her wheelchair girl and push her back into the living room and let her watch TV and watch TV with her and give her a shot and empty her catheter into a bottle and get dinner for her and eat dinner and drink and let her finsh dinner and push her back into her bedroom and take her clothes off and take her to the bathroom and lift her on the toilet and let her do her business on the toilet and wipe her butt off with toilet paper and lift her back on her wheelchair and push her back into her bedroom and lift her on the bed and roll her over on side and put some stuff on her butt and put power on her butt and to roll her over and empty her catheter bag and cover her up with a blanket and change her diaper and let her sleep in bed

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My grandmother is handicap wheelchair girl I would have to go into the bedroom and give her a shot of insulin and check her depends on her and give her medicine and bring her breakfast into her bedroom and let her eat and slide a board under her body and put her on her wheelchair and push her into the bathroom and lift her and take depend off her and put her on the toilet and let her do her business on the toilet and wipe her butt with toilet paper and lift her on her nude body and take her to the bathtub and put her in the tub and wash her private parts off with a towel and dry her off and put her bra and panties on her and put her back on her wheelchair and brush her teeth and change her depends and push her out into the living room and watch TV with her and get her lunch ready for her to eat and drink and push her back into her bedroom and close the door and take off the bra and panties and push her into the bathroom and take her depends off her and lift her on toilet and let her do poop and empty her catheter bag into a bottle and wipe her butt off with toilet paper and put her back on her wheelchair push her into her bedroom and lift and slide her on the bed and cover her up with a blanket and let her sleep and leave the room and go back into the bedroom and close the door and change her depends and put new clothes on her and bra and underwear and slide the board under her and powder on the board put her on the wheelchair and push her into the bathroom and lift her nude body on the toilet and check and see if she done pooping in the toilet and wipe her butt off with toilet paper and empty her catheter bag into the toilet and put her into the tub and help her clean her stuff up and a towel under her butt and put another towel around her and dry her off with it and put bra and panties back on her with her clothes and put her back on the wheelchair and push her out in the living room and take her outside and take her back into the living room and watch TV and with her and bring her catheter bag and a shot of insulin and push her to the table and fix her dinner and drink and push her away from the table and push her back into her bedroom and close the door and take off her bra and panties and clothes and push her into the bathroom and lift and take off her depends and put her on the toilet and let her poop in the toilet and empty her bladder bag into the a bottle next to the toilet an wipe her off with toilet paper and put her diaper on her her aND lift her on the wheelchair and push her to her bed and lift her into bed and roll her over on the side of the bed and put stuff on her butt and powder on her body and roll her and put night time catheter in her bed and cover her up with blanket and let sleep until the next morning

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