Tips & tricks for standing up

A common household material keeps my feet from slipping

 by Bill Maclean, Blue Bell, Pennsylvania

As FSHD progresses, many find that standing up becomes more difficult. As a result, one must find new approaches to accomplishing this feat. In many cases the body simply transitions to an approach that works.  It might require your legs to push a bit harder at an angle. If you are trying to get up on a solid floor material, such as tile, marble, hardwood and other similar flooring materials, your foot may slide. This makes standing up more difficult and unsafe.

There are many different approaches to keeping the foot from slipping, but I have found one trick that works for me in many different situations. This includes getting up in the shower, standing up on a marble floor in the bathroom, and in other areas with similar kinds of flooring. It can even work on some carpets that are tightly woven.

What’s my secret? Believe it or not, it is shelf liner. Shelf liner is designed to ensure glasses and dishes stay in place. It can do the same for your feet. In the shower you cut a piece of shelf liner that accommodates the distance between your two feet when standing. The same applies in other areas.

There are many different kinds of shelf liner, but getting one that is porous seems to work best. Shelf liner that is solid and does not have holes can work, but porous ones seem to be better. You can buy shelf liner that sticks to the floor without adhesive. Because it’s not glued down, the piece of shelf liner can be moved to where you need it. It is very light and is perfect for travel. If you use it in the shower, it will typically dry in 10-15 minutes. Some come in different colors. And it is inexpensive. You can find shelf liner at the big box stores as well as on Amazon.