Help me think of some different chores for my dd (back pain)

[Tap]

DD has had chronic back pain since Oct.  Xray, MRI, CT scan all show that there is no injury other than a slightly bulging disk.  We think that she has a connective tissue disorder and are working on getting her diagnosed.  PT helps but isn't quite cutting it, there is something wrong, but we don't know what.

 

DD gets paid $15 for 1-2 hours of chores each week.  We are having trouble coming up with appropriate chores for her that wont cause her pain. She can't reach, bend, lift, twist, extend her arms much (like vacuuming).   I need some new ideas.  Some weeks I have just given her the money, but she really wants to earn it instead. She is an energetic person and doing chores has always been a part of her life.  We have taught our kids that  part of  being a family, is taking care of your family.  The fact that she can't do her chores is just a reminder that her life maybe forever altered by this back issue.  

 

Examples of what have worked:

 

Wash the dining room table/chairs (She sat on the floor to do this)

Find recipes for dinners (she isn't usually home at the time of day that I cook)

Organize the pantry (sitting on a stool)

Wash windows  that are easy to reach

Dust with a wand

etc..

 

I need some new ideas.

 

Things she cannot do:

Vacuum, sweep, mop

Clean bathrooms (too much bending over)

Dishes (can't load/unload dishwasher)

Clean out/wash the car

Wash walls (too much bending over)

Put things away like her sisters toys (bending over)

Take out garbage (lifting)

Laundry (lifting, bending etc)

Babysit her sister (sister is special needs)

 

 

 

Any suggestions?

 

Edited February 17, 2016 by Tap

[Tsuga]

I am so sorry to hear your daughter is facing that. 

 

I've offered the following chores to my kids when they complained that manual labor was harrrrrrrrd. If she has a laptop so she can lay on the floor, or an ergonomic chair:

 

• Enter receipts into an excel spreadsheet to organize expenses
• Do the grocery shopping online at Amazon Prime, at least fill the basket (you keep final approval)
• Organizing the family's Google calendar once per week, making sure everything is on it so all phones can sync as needed
• Scanning and filing any documents that need scanning and filing
• Pre-writing Christmas and birthday card addresses for holidays and cards (I'd be so jealous for this... people would actually get cards)
• Organizing the family photos and backing up on a hard drive if not stored, provided of course she won't delete "bad" (by her standards) pictures of herself

If she gets enthusiastic, have her read up on evaluating finances and have her make a spreadsheet with graphs of spending areas and all that. Fun, educational, and very useful!

[abba12]

Can she fold laundry for someone else to put away? Iron sitting down? Hand wash dishes sitting down? Wash the walls (at a constant height, so standing and moving along, then kneeling and moving along, then sitting and shuffling along? 

[Lizzie in Ma]

No suggestions but same boat here with youngest.  :grouphug: :grouphug:

[SebastianCat]

What about filing school paperwork? My kids had to do that this weekend and it's a chore they don't enjoy much.

 

Other paper-related chores may be good - digitizing/scanning old photographs, shredding old financial records, etc. I would have loved to have had your DD's help when we cleaned out my IL's house and had to shred financial records going back to the early 1980's. Unfortunately, we couldn't just dump everything in a commercial shredder, because there were pictures, cards with sentimental value, and other things interspersed that we didn't want to get rid of.

[Daria]

Is there something she could do for her sister? I don't know enough to suggest what, but I know for my students I would love to have someone make video models, program the AAC devices, build go talk now libraries . . .

[OnMyOwn]

Meal planning, making up a grocery list, cooking

 

Even if she's not home to cook dinners, maybe there are some recipes thar could be made ahead on the weekend. Or, she could make cookies for the upcoming week.

Edited February 17, 2016 by OnMyOwn

[Annie G]

Since she can wash windows within easy reach and organize the pantry which assumes she's moving things, could she do some of the bathroom tidying like cleaning the sink and washing the mirror? Could she sit on the floor and wipe the floor?  I think she could also fold some of the laundry, such as socks, undies, kitchen towels, and probably the clothes of her sister since they are smaller. 

 

Can she clean the fridge weekly to make sure there aren't leftovers languishing in there?

 

Can she run errands for you like filling the car with gas, running bank errands, etc? 

 

I'd ask the physical therapist for help here- I'm assuming the trick is that she needs to do some stretching in order or improve but not so much that she injures herself further.   I've never had a kid with a back issue but dh and I have had back troubles and it's really hard to know when to push and when not to.  Sorry she's going through this!

[Um_2_4]

Go around the house and clean all those lightswitches/outlets (esp bathroom)?

Organizing dvd or recipe collection? (Maybe make a copy for herself of some recipes in her own recipe book? I had to call my mom after marriage to find some recipes she used to make.)

Organize your home library, maybe with scanning books into an app? (Man do I want to do this!)

Bake ahead and freeze muffins/quick bread/biscuits for the summer months  coming up when you may not want to use the oven as much? (I've been thinking of doing this lately as we are having a heat wave here in the 90s :huh: !)

 

[KungFuPanda]

Can she fold clothes if she's sitting at a table? Out the silverware away of you put the basket on the counter? Do some meal prep for the week like chopping all the veggies you'll need over the next few meals? Be in charge of soups/salads because they can be made ahead? This could be helpful. This is your 17-year-old? Can she take on a more secretarial role? Stay on top of the family calendar and act as a personal assistant/office manager? There's always one person in my family that has to be prodded to put their stuff on the calendar. I'd love to give up that job. Can she pay online bills, plan menus, write shopping lists, help youngest with homework? If she learns to drive she can chauffeur the youngest to activities and maybe even do some grocery shopping if the youngest helps with loading unloading the cart and car.

[Lady Florida.]

Can she fold clothes if she's sitting at a table? Out the silverware away of you put the basket on the counter? Do some meal prep for the week like chopping all the veggies you'll need over the next few meals? .

 

I deal with chronic back pain, and usually fold clothes sitting down. I also chop vegetables while sitting. Some of the other suggestions were good as well - meal planning and helping with paperwork. At her age can she help with lesson planning for the youngers? Print worksheets if you use them? There are probably a number of ways she can help with homeschooling her siblings while not ignoring her own lessons.