My husband uses a catheter only on road trips, not at home. It is generally continent, generally. I keep my ear open to your call and look forward to taking you where you need to be to answer the call of nature.
* A urinal is kept next to the bed on your nightstand for overnight use. Sometimes it feels safe enough to use the urinal without waking me up. It’s okay when it works. He’s been using the urinal lately, putting it back on his nightstand without my help, and then a couple of hours later trying to use it again when there’s still urine from the previous use. You can guess what happens … I started placing reusable bed pads on the floor against the bed and draped them to the side of the bed to catch accidental spills. You can never have too many bed pads.
* I have considered using an external catheter at bedtime. I know of a family where the husband uses a Texas catheter at night. That man is apparently not as restless as my husband. I’m afraid the way my husband goes around and around as part of Parkinson’s disease, I would wrap him in the tube and the collection bag would be useless. So the urinal is our only option for now. And a pair of reusable bed pads on the bed. You may be lucky with the catheter or absorbent underwear. My husband will not wear the underwear at all.
* There is a urinal in the bathroom for when you cannot stand in the bathroom. One in the basement for when you’re working in the shop, one near the kitchen table for sudden urges that don’t make it to the bathroom. A urinal is stored in your scooter’s basket, stored indoors in a discreet cloth bag. With a box of packed tissues next to it.
* There are pop-up tissue boxes everywhere for urinal use or nose wiping.
* A box of disposable latex gloves is kept in the bathroom for use as needed.
* Tailoring clothing helps with dressing and going to the bathroom. Try to keep the male patient in pants that are baggy around the waist and hips and have a long zipper. Try to remove the underwear. I’ve changed the zipper on his pants to make it longer, extending to the crotch seam. Zippers can be added to the legs to overcome the straps. Zippers can open a narrow neckline. Velcro can be used instead of zippers. A seamstress can arrange / tailor clothing to make dressing and functioning easier. My experience is with a male patient. I can’t imagine how a woman copes comfortably with incontinence.
* Small absorbent pads such as a miniature bed pad can be used to protect the wheelchair seat from accidents due to getting wet. Without the special pads, a layer of folded hand towels will help.
* A reusable waterproof pad and pad with handles can be helpful in protecting bedding from bedwetting accidents and in moving the patient around the bed. If the bed pad has handles, it is easier to grasp the handles than to grasp a cloth-filled fist to reposition the patient. A bed pad with handles can also be used to protect a recliner and aid in patient positioning.
* If you use a bed pad to reposition the patient, to pull him toward the head of the bed, remember that when you pull the bed pad up, the bedding is now exposed without protection. You will need to place a second absorbent pad under the pad that will be used for repositioning so that when pulled towards the head of the bed, there is still protection under the patient. I use a total of 5 bed pads in various positions on the bed, including the one with handles. Besides the one that I lay on the ground.
* My husband uses a male-oriented split front toilet seat. Helps you position yourself so you can use the bathroom properly. When he sits for a period of time, I put a pillow or two behind him, as this type of seat has no lid for reclining. I make sure the pillows are “old” in case they get dirty or fall down the toilet.
* There are grab bars around the perimeter of the bathroom. When I take his wheelchair to the bathroom, he can hold onto the bars along the wall to help him get up and onto the toilet. I stand behind and help him up by holding him under the arms until he is standing, or as close to standing as he can. Then I stand off to the side and pull the wheelchair out of the bathroom so that he is behind me and then, getting behind him again, I can help him onto the toilet or stand up if he’s willing to try. On days when he is not as strong, he will use the urinal while sitting in the wheelchair, or I will use a seat belt to carry him to the bathroom.
* Heavy duty grab bars were installed on each side of the toilet for him to grip when standing on the toilet or when getting off and on the toilet. They work very well. We had them professionally installed during some other modification work. They are almost 2 “in diameter, sticking out of the wall on either side of the toilet, and moving up when not needed. VERY useful for when I have to go around it to get into the bathroom, such as for your morning wash. I take it in first. the wheel and then I have to move to face him. I have to get between the sink and his wheelchair. To do this, the grab bars must be up to allow me. Once I get closer to the wheelchair, yes he decides to use the bathroom, I move away as best I can and under the bars. My husband says our bathroom is the size of a postage stamp. It’s a little bigger than that, but not much – 6ft X 8ft. the bathroom door frame will be enlarged, so that your wheelchair will fit through the opening.