I love to cook and bake with my clients. A therapy session that ends with something delicious? Perfect!
A session that ends in hand pain or major spills?
Not part of MY plan!
Almost all of my clients find opening containers challenging. Cans and jars are big problems for them. Fortunately, there are 2 “hands-free” tools that can help them. I recommend them all the time. I have them in my own kitchen. They require minimal vision, grasp, strength, and safety awareness. They can be used with one hand, in a seated position, and without electricity. Few kitchen tools are that versatile and dependable.
Do YOU need these tools?
Do you, or does your child, experience any of the following hand issues:
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Pain?
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Weakness?
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Struggling to coordinate both hands?
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Difficulty using the correct amount of force?
If you had even one “YES”, then you could benefit from these simple kitchen tools.
First, a word about accepting adaptations. Adaptations are often hard to accept at any age. We all want to do things the way that everyone else does. The way we have always done them. When pain or fatigue is the cost of avoiding adaptation, you are paying too high a price. Using a tool that makes life easier is not failure; it is using your head! The people who insist on harming themselves or making something more difficult than needed are those that deserve our sympathy. Too many of my clients had decided that they cannot make the foods they love without a struggle. This is because they are unaware of what is available to help them thrive!
#1: The Robo Twist Jar Opener.
There are many versions of this simple device. Place the device directly over the jar lid. Press the button and release. The rest us up to the Robo Twist. It opens the jar and leaves the lid for you to lift. Battery-operated, it does all the work for you. The machine does make a sound that has initially spooked my ASD clients. They need to see it being used a few times to feel comfortable with it. Then they cannot wait to activate it! Robo Twist Jar Opener
#2: The Kitchen Mama 2.0 Can Opener.
There are even more varieties of hands-free can openers out there than hands-free jar openers. This one is a bit more nimble than the others. It opens more types of cans than the rest of the field. Works on different can sizes, different metal thicknesses, and different rim designs. It does the job effortlessly and leaves you with a dull-edged metal lid that won’t slice into you on the way to the trash. Kitchen Mama 2.0 Can Opener
