It’s time for “spring cleaning.” Hate it or not, it is time to roll up your sleeves and get ready to wash away winter blues. Spring cleaning, as you know, is more intense than the simple dusting and decluttering that passes for housekeeping these days. Bright sunshine filtering through dirty windows is all that it takes. Before you know it you feel compelled to wash walls, turn mattresses, clean windows, wash curtains, beat rugs, and rearrange the furniture.
Spring cleaning is hard work, especially for seniors who struggle with deceased muscle strength, joint pain, and decreased stamina. Of course the sensible thing to do would be to hire a cleaning crew, but many feel that a more personal connection is needed for this “rite of spring.” Family members may or not be invited to help, but to many delegating the task to strangers just seems wrong.
Enlisting the aid of modern technology can make spring cleaning more palatable. Of course flipping a switch to activate a robotic vacuum cleaner isn’t the same as getting down on your hands and knees, but it does a pretty darn good job. Resign yourself to the fact that “clean is clean” and start looking for products that you feel you can work with. Many of them are designed to accommodate the physical limitations of the elderly and disabled. Professional cleaners know the risk factors associated with dusting and scrubbing. Awkward postures, bent wrists, repetitive motion, grip force, pushing and pulling, and shoving can really do a number on you. Long handled tools with adjustable handle lengths and pivoting heads, squeegees, and battery operated scrubbers can alleviate much of that strain. New lines of ergonomic rakes, shovels, gardening tools, kitchen tools, office and cleaning supplies are available from companies specializing in universal design. Try some of them and you may find that spring cleaning really can be a piece of cake.
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