Handicap (1) – Hygiene

I’m happy that the strong wind that partially caused my broken arm is the same strong wind that keeps Manila (relatively) cool these days. At least there is no flood of sweat running down the inside of my cast causing the itch everybody has been predicting so far. Keeping the inside of a plaster cast ‘hygienic’ is virtually impossible. Coming to think of it, the cast was molded over the aquatic remains of Lake Taal. We all know what a vivid biotope that lake is. This thought coupled with the information of a knowledgeable website on broken bones, which predicts “pale and scabbing skin” under a cast puts the brakes on my eagerness to have it come off...

But, let’s have a look at the one-arm effect on daily body hygiene. Let’s start with dental hygiene. Brushing your teeth is no problem once you managed to balance your toothbrush between your lips in order to apply toothpaste with the healthy arm. Try flossing and you’ll realize that one arm is simply not enough. If you are a frequent user of mouthwash, make sure you get a flat bottle – one that you can somehow squeeze between your plaster arm and chest to unscrew the top. I highly recommend plastic bottles!

Showering is a no-brainer as long as you either can keep your cast outside the shower curtain or are able to tie a trash bag (unused!) around it. Washing your hair becomes a challenge especially if it is long. I’ve been contemplating for the past week whether or not to shave my head. So far, I could restrain myself from shaving my top hair.

Less of a restrain but more of a handicap is the removal of unfashionable body hair in more delicate locations... It’s like trying to lick your elbow – certain acrobatics are simply impossible given human anatomy. If ever you do manage to bend yourself weirdly, chances are you just broke a bone. And how do you explain this to the ER doctor!? “Well, I tried shaving my armpit?!”

Now, before you think I turned into a smelly and overgrown creature within the past week of being incapacitated let me tell you I’ve two loving helping hands taking good care of me.