Doing housework with Fibro

By Lindsey Middlemiss

One topic that seems to come up a lot when people with Fibro get together is "how do you cope with the housework?". If you have Fibromyalgia Syndrome (Fibro) and are working or looking after young children, often you may not have the energy to do housework as well and if your Fibro is more disabling and you are at home all the time, you may feel that you should do the housework, even if you are too ill to work.

It is pretty normal to find a clean, tidy house more relaxing and being able to relax is important when you have a long term health condition like Fibro. So finding ways of coping with the chores can be important for many people.

Here are some tips on how to cope better.

Professional cleaning services. If you can afford a regular cleaner, then this has got to be one of the best options. A professional cleaner will know how to clean thoroughly and quickly - and they will have a lot more energy than you! Often you don't need someone to come in very often to make a huge difference: having someone come in once a fortnight or even once a month to clean the whole house really makes a difference. Some companies send two or three people and in a few hours, your entire house can get cleaned. Getting professional cleaners in is not that expensive: often hourly rates are around £9-12/hour. Even if you can't afford this regularly, why not consider it on an occasional basis for a "spring-clean"?

Social services help. Social services do not provide a cleaning and housework service automatically as they are concerned about maintaining your safety, not making sure you live in a beautifully tidy and clean house. However, if your disability means that you cannot keep the house at all hygienic (which is a long way beyond clean and tidy), then this may be considered. If housework is providing a significant stress to your primary carer, then this is also sometimes considered. If you haven't had a social services assessment, then you can self-refer for one - contact the Adult Physical Disabilities team at your local council.

Pacing. Pacing is an important skill to learn with Fibro: it isn't always easy but it can help avoid a boom-then-bust cycle of energy and pain. If you can work out how to do some housework without causing a major flare in symptoms, then you're going to be able to do it more often. Taking it slowly, taking plenty of rest and stretching breaks, spreading out tasks over multiple days or weeks and trying to do little and often are all things that can help with this.

FlyLady. The FlyLady system is used by countless people around the world with long-term health conditions, as well as many people without any health conditions. FlyLady is a free motivational online service to help people organise and manage a home and their lives better, using a website and daily email reminders. The FlyLady system is based on the concept of daily routines and a focus on small, time- and space-limited tasks so it is often suitable for people with long-term health conditions like Fibro. For more information, see FlyLady.net.

Having the right tools makes all the difference in doing housework with Fibro.

Vacuum cleaners can often be heavy and cumbersome. If you're buying a new one, make sure you try lifting and carrying them in a store before buying. A lightweight vacuum cleaner can be very helpful, especially if you have steps in your house. If you live in a multi-storey building, consider getting a vacuum cleaner for upstairs and one for downstairs so you never have to carry it on the stairs and can just wheel it out.

Electric sweepers are not as powerful as vacuum cleaners, but they tend to be very lightweight and can be ideal for a quick whip round or for keeping things under control between cleaner visits.

Long-handled dustpans can make a surprising difference, enabling you to sweep hard floors without bending or kneeling.

Reacher Grabbers - similar to what litter wardens use - can make it easier to tidy up if bending is a real issue.

Roomba/Scooba. If you can afford them (and it's worth considering if you have to replace your vacuum cleaner) then a Roomba or Scooba is a futuristic way of saving energy. The robotic vacuum cleaners (the Roomba) and floor washers (the Scooba) can be set to automatically vacuum or clean your floors. Click here for more information on these.

Long-handled sponges can be useful for cleaning the bathroom if bending is an issue. They are often available from online disability aids shops.

Cleaning wipes are now available for almost any housework task and they can be very useful in saving time and energy. As well as general cleaning wipes, you can now get kitchen wipes, bathroom wipes (which are often great at lifting limescale), window/mirror wipes, wood polish wipes and leather cleaning wipes. Having a pack for every task and having them available in every room where you regularly need them, such as the kitchen, bathroom and loo, is a good plan. If you can get into the habit of having a wipe round on a regular basis, then heavier cleaning won't be needed nearly as much.

Task specific cleaning products. There is now a huge range of cleaning products to make specific tasks easier, from leave-on limescale preventing sprays for the bathroom to vacuum off carpet-cleaning foam for heavy use areas. If you have chemical sensitivities as part of your Fibro, then check out the eco ranges available in most supermarkets which have fewer chemicals and more natural scents.

Tub trugs. are very useful around the house and their soft, flexible design that allows them to be carried with one hand (and means they don't hurt so much if you knock yourself on them!) makes a real difference. Using them to transport laundry or carry toys means that you can have one hand free for the banisters. And as they come in a multitude of colours, you can even buy Tub trugs to match your colour schemes and use them to throw things into to tidy up.

Storage baskets and boxes. Having plenty of storage items makes tidying up so much easier. Everything from potatoes to remote controls can have a basket or box and hiding things away like this makes your house look tidier straight away.

Some of the items mentioned here available in the FibroAction a-store. This store is powered by Amazon and all products are sold by Amazon or their partners, so you can get the same great prices and offers available on Amazon. However, FibroAction get a referral fee whenever a sale is made through this store, so you can support the charity whilst shopping.