Help- advice on living with crutches.

Ask for a third crutch to leave upstairs. Use one crutch and the stair rail to go up and the 3rd crutch while you are up stairs. Leave one up and just use the stair rail and one crutch to come down. You do need 2 stair rails to be able to do this and personally I found it easier to go up on my bum and to have a stool at the top to heave myself onto before standing up. Coming down I sort of hopped using the crutch and rail to help.
I am amazed that you were not instructed how to manage stairs. However after saying that I did develop my own way of doing it !
Best of luck - it really is one of those 'life is a bugger' times. Don't feel too bad about it being your own fault - I managed to break my leg in 3 places by falling off my bike at a standstill !!

I had a double leg fracture a couple of years ago and was on crutches for weeks inc over Christmas with family and grandchildren here! My dh had to retire from his job to care for me as I was completely incapacitated - even needing help to go to the loo.

Your physio should have checked you can manage stairs safely before going home. That's v naughty of them not to have done that. Do check out helpful ideas on the Internet as there are lots of videos on how to achieve such things.

A back pack is useful for taking around your bits & bobs. Use one of those lidded cups that people use for drinking on the go for your cup of tea.

Online shopping saved my bacon regarding food. Menu planning was a great help. Get your dh to leave your lunch and any snacks ready in the fridge or if you've an insulated bag, keep them in there until you want to eat them.

Blow the housework for now. The dust will still be there when you're recovered!

Get well soon, it's a misery being hors de combat!

The physios wouldn't let me leave hospital after my hip replacement until I had mastered the art of going up and down stairs with crutches. Trust Youtube to have some advice!

www.youtube.com/results?search_query=using+crutches+on+stairs

If you need more instruction re stairs, ring physio at your local hospital asap to make an appointment for Monday and ask them to order transport for you as DH is working. State that you cannot get into the rear of a car, you will have to sit in the front seat.

Do you have a computer chair or do you use a laptop? If the former you could use that in the kitchen to whiz you from sink to fridge or cooker.

The last time I used crutches my seat was average height but I still could not see into saucepans and I had problems getting around the kitchen.

Are you non weight bearing because that makes a difference and I have always found that very difficult.

Do not forget to elevate your leg when resting. Put a pillow or cushion on top of the chair/stool and do not forget to exercise your toes and bed your knee.

Good luck

I found making a cup of tea difficult, how can you carry a cup with crutches ?
My answer was a shoulder bag and a flask, make tea, put in flask and use bag to carry it to my chair, same with anything else I needed to carry around (like the phone)

Ooooh, nasty!

Solve the hoovering by getting a robot vacuum. Get DH to clear bits and pieces from the floor so that it can get all round the ground floor without going round shoes or catching rug fringes (that will make it easier for you to get around the place too). If DH carries it upstairs it can then go round the upstairs. DH can do the stairs.

Get Dh to make the bed and leave upstairs tidy and help you downstairs, then avoid going up there again until he can help. Is there a loo downstairs?

Hang a shoulder bag diagonally across your body to keep essentials like your phone in, and to carry stuff from room to room (won't work with cups of tea, you'll have to drink them in the kitchen - or fill a flask and keep it beside your chair)

Get your shopping online and have it delivered.

Leave the ironing. Life is too short.

Let DH put the bin out in future!