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Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Enlarging Handle for person with Spasiticity



I recently adapted this cup holder for an elderly lady with spasticity. She was unable to open her hand enough to grasp the cup and was gripping it by the rim instead.  So I am sharing a simple adaptation that involves attaching a handle cut from a detergent bottle to a  cup-like plastic container that the drinking cup is inserted inside. The client drinks out of the regular red drinking cup. The white cup that holds it is a bottle used for contact lens solution. I have no idea whether that white plastic container is safe for consumable liquids but the white cup holder never touches her lips.

I also show a sponge holder that I made years ago so that people with spasticity can grasp the handle to paint.

I cut into the green handle to make the cup holder- in the same way I cut the tab shown in the yellow handle below. I cut a notch into the white bottle (holding the red cup) and pushed the green tab through it and secured with the gray duct tape. It works quite nicely and nothing wiggles while she drinks.


The tab of the sponge holder is pushed through 2 notches in the sponge.

The last picture shows another way to attach a handle to a plastic container like the green coffee one. I cut long notches to insert the handle flaps into and secure inside with tape. I use these in a variety of ways for insertion tasks with very young children and all ages of adults with developmental disabilities.
I use a variety of lids with different types of openings to create shape sorters.













Source: How to Make an Adapted Handle for Sponge Painting by RecyclingOT on Rumble

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