I need to make a hot pack out of household materials to wrap around my injured wrist!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

I should have a hot pad, but noooo......

I sprained my wrist a few weeks back, and today I saw my occupational therapist. I have exercises to do at home, but first I need heat.


Any and all help will be greatly appreciated!

[NYC_SKP]

1. Rice in a sock, or other grains.

[Arkansas Granny]

3. The rice is a good choice. You can warm it in the microwave and it holds heat for a long time.

[NYC_SKP]

6. Also, rock salt, regular salt, or any grain.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

4. Oh, thank you!

I know about this from my Red Cross days. We would use cloth bags full of raw rice, heated in the microwave, and placed over the donor's arm to make the veins pop out!

[bluesbassman]

2. OK, first get your hands on some bleach, some hydrogen peroxide and a shitload of lime...

Wait, did you say you injured your wrist? Nevermind.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

5. My dear bluesbassman!

Um, what?

[bluesbassman]

9. Just misread your post...

Thought you had an "accident" that needed some specialized attention.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

10. OK........sure you did!

[kentauros]

11. That sounds like something MacGuyver would say

[grasswire]

7. a wet hand towel, microwaved, will make a hot compress too...

....just be careful not to burn yourself.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

8. That was my first thought...

I need it hot for 10 minutes...

I wonder if it will work that long.



Not to worry! I won't let it burn me.

Thanks for your good thoughts!

[RebelOne]

22. I have used that method before. It definitely will stay hot longer than 10 minutes. n/t

[kentauros]

12. The other ideas sound great,

so I don't have anything to offer for use right now.

However, in the future, here are two sources of help, one online and one an excellent book to keep handy, whether the latest edition or an older one (like I've still got):

Earth Clinic - Folk Remedies and Holistic Cures

Prescription for Nutritional Healing (book) by Phyllis A. Balch CNC

You might consider looking at either of these anyway for additional healing, beyond whatever your doctor recommends

[CaliforniaPeggy]

13. Thank you so much, my dear kentauros!

Those look great, full of good ideas.

Believe me, at my age, you need all the help you can get!

[kentauros]

14. You're welcome CP!

My copy of PfNH is well-worn and was a hand-me-down from some former neighbors, so it gets plenty of use. Earth Clinic does, too, though you'll just have to use your best judgment on which remedies to try. Not all of them work for everybody.

I hope you heal fast!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

15. Just one session with my OT, and already my wrist feels better!

I'm getting ready to sew up a dishcloth bag full of rice to heat for my wrist...

[kentauros]

17. Maybe just use a drawstring bag for the rice.

Less work than sewing it

One heat-pad thing I bought some time ago is some type of clay you can heat in the microwave (no more than a couple of minutes! I blew up my first one :laughing It holds the heat for at least half an hour, which is perfect when I have low back pain. It molds to any shape, much like the rice will, and probably much cheaper than this store-bought thingy.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

18. I just finished stitching up the bag!

I used a pretty big dishcloth, and sewed up two sides. Then I poured in the rice, and stitched over the end. Voila!

A heat pack!

[pinboy3niner]

16. At your age, Peg, you just need to wait for the hot flashes :)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

19. My dear pinboy3niner!

Ha! I'm waaaaaaaay beyond having hot flashes, baby!

You're too funny!

[pinboy3niner]

20. Waaaaaaaay beyond? Tell me about it!

At my age, I count my blessings that HopeHoops isn't making posts mocking my 'junk'! Yet.

[HopeHoops]

21. Give me a few minutes. I'm thinking. I'm thinking.

[Baitball Blogger]

23. Not hot. Always cold.

NICE. It's an acronym for something, but I can't remember what. Twenty minutes on, twenty minutes off.

[MiddleFingerMom]

24. Rather than sew up a dishcloth bag, I woulda used this as an excuse... um, a REASON...

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... to buy a bottle of Crown Royal.
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Just for the cloth drawstring bag, of course.
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And the anti-inflammatory medication that it once contained wouldn'ta been bad, neither!!!
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I'm glad to hear your OT therapist has helped already. Those PT and OT folks have been
some of the most cheerful, optimistic and, most of all... HELPFUL people in my treatment
experiences.
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