Buttoning:
Try to button and unbutton shirts, start off with something
that has large buttons and work your way down to small ones, then onto
using only your affected hand.
Separating Pennies from Beans:
Fill a bowl 3/4th full with dry beans and
drop in about 25-40 pennies, (dimes as you get better) Practice picking
out just the pennies, with out sliding them up the side of the bowl. You
want to use the "pincher" motion.
Buckling a Belt:
Try running a belt through the loops of a pair of pants
and buckling the belt. Remember to try and only use you affected hand and
only stabilize with the other.
Paper Clips or Coffee Stirrers:
Scatter paper clips on a table and pick them up one at
a time and place them into a container. (An old grated cheese container
is good for this you can start off by putting them in the large opening
and then try putting them through one of the three holes!)
The container should be placed to your opposite side so you are reaching across your body to place them in the container. (Coffee Stirrers can be found at most local fast food restaurants, buy a cup of coffee and swipe just a few at a time and they will never notice!)
Scooping Beans:
Place a bowl with beans in front of you. Place an empty
bowl a foot to 18" to the side of which hand you are using. (Left side
of the bowl if your left hand is affected, if it is your right, then place
the bowl to the right.) Using a spoon scoop up as many beans as you can
and place them in empty bowl. Think about control and not spilling any
beans. As this gets easier you can move the target bowl further away, or
move it so you have to reach across your body to drop off the beans.
Clothes Pins:
Stretch a clothesline out high enough where you have
to reach up to touch it, weather you are standing or in a sitting position.
Place clothespins beside you and one at a time clip them onto the line.
As this becomes easier you can mark points on the line and work on exact
placement.
Forearm Twist, Pronation / Supination of the Wrist:
Sit in a chair with your back straight. Keeping your
elbow close to your body lay your hand flat on a table palm down. Flip
your hand WITHOUT moving your elbow so you hand is palm up and your thumb
can hit the table. Repeat this slowly over and over! As this become easier
you can add weights, don’t try and do to much weight to soon, starting
with a 16oz can of soup is good!
Finger Twist:
You can go out and buy a variety of Nuts and Bolts or
you can sit and unscrew soda bottles. The results are the same. With the
following therapy tool it is easier to assure you only use ONE hand. Get
a block of wood and drill holes in it where the bolts barely fit through,
pore glue around the bolt and let it dry. You will have a perfect therapy
tool for twisting nuts onto the bolts.