Cushion for balcony chair

Has anyone brought their own cushion for a balcony chair? One member of our group will be recovering from a total hip replacement and we want to make it as comfortable for her as possible. She may end up spending most of her time on the ship if the excursions are too hard for her. She loves to read and loves solitude so I think she'll be okay.

We're sailing on Adventure of the Seas and the ship is sold out. They are looking into the possibility of moving her to a handicap assessable cabin but that may not be possible. She's on deck 8. Does anyone know if all the bathrooms have grab bars? We asked for a toilet seat riser and shower chair. Is it reasonable to think those things will be provided or should we bring our own?

This is all new to us so we appreciate all suggestions.

Re cushions: lots of different cushions are available for different purposes, I imagine she will have her own preferences. Memory foam is good for travel as it can be compressed, I am now travelling with a back cushion and a pillow, both memory foam, they are pretty easy to pack.

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Has she had the hip replacement yet? Recovery is quite rapid...My 75 y/o sister had one in March and never needed a toilet seat riser (we have comfort height toilets in three bathrooms). She only used a walker for about a week. Probably would have needed it less if she had walked as much as she should have. I think she stayed in the guest room downstairs about 8 days before she moved upstairs to her own room. We got her a shower stool for the tub until she was allowed to get the incision wet. EM

Has anyone brought their own cushion for a balcony chair? One member of our group will be recovering from a total hip replacement and we want to make it as comfortable for her as possible. She may end up spending most of her time on the ship if the excursions are too hard for her. She loves to read and loves solitude so I think she'll be okay.

 

We're sailing on Adventure of the Seas and the ship is sold out. They are looking into the possibility of moving her to a handicap assessable cabin but that may not be possible. She's on deck 8. Does anyone know if all the bathrooms have grab bars? We asked for a toilet seat riser and shower chair. Is it reasonable to think those things will be provided or should we bring our own?

 

This is all new to us so we appreciate all suggestions.

what surgery protocols is she still under? only HA cabins have the grab bars in the bathrooms and all non HA cabins have a step up into the bathroom. I was 4 months post op when I went on a cruise. I went for an Owners Suite on Liberty( large walk in shower) and the balcony loungers had cushions that were fine( although I still had a slight issue standing up from them as they were lower to the ground) the regular chairs on the balcony were perfectly fine as far as height and cushioning.

that being said, if she just wants to sit upright, she may find it better to bring her own cushion that she can carry with her.. again, the loungers in the Solarium/pool deck are quite low and if she is not supposed to be sitting with her knees above her waist still, getting up will be..well.. ungainly at best. most of the chairs out and about the public areas will be soft and squishy and again, too low to keep the surgeon happy. I definitely preferred hard chars/cushions during my recovery. one of those 3 inch thick foam jobbies would be perfect.

they do provide both bathroom items although its on a first come first served basis and they may not be in the cabin when you board. I use a raised seat at home still ( no grab bars) and I do prefer it to my MiL's one that is the handled type( I found it too wobbly) I was already past needing a shower chair by the time the cruise came.

All I brought was my cane. I was fine most of the time but there were a couple of days where I would have felt more stable with the walker. she will almost certainly want to do Muster in the Theater or wherever its held for special needs.

Has she had the hip replacement yet? Recovery is quite rapid...My 75 y/o sister had one in March and never needed a toilet seat riser (we have comfort height toilets in three bathrooms). She only used a walker for about a week. Probably would have needed it less if she had walked as much as she should have. I think she stayed in the guest room downstairs about 8 days before she moved upstairs to her own room. We got her a shower stool for the tub until she was allowed to get the incision wet. EM

I was lucky.. I was able to take showers before being discharged( internal sutures are awesome) I used the walker outside of the house for about 3 weeks but was always 'forgetting' it inside the house within a few days.

She's a tough cookie. She just turned 70 - surgery is today and we leave on July 27th. I was thinking about getting a cushion like you would use on a patio chair - something like this. http://www.xuuby.com/cute-cushioned-patio-chairs/patio-chair-cushions-x-home-citizen-cushions-for-patio-chairs-from-walmart-replacement-cushions-patio-chairs/ They can't more her to an accessible cabin - they're all booked with a wait list. The travel agent put a request in for a high toilet seat, shower chair and grab bar. Hopefully it all works. We have a wheelchair she could use but she probably won't want to. She's already saying she isn't going to rehab. She'll get herself up and moving - that will absolutely happen - she's a stubborn, awesome woman.

My sister's doc didn't send her to rehab, said the best rehab was walking. Unfortunately, we had to drag my sister to walk, she is very sedentary unless we are out shopping or cruising. Her main problem was she had nerve damage of the S1, causing numbness to the outside of her right leg and foot. That caused balance problems planting that foot. She did finally ask for rehab which helped by strengthening muscles in the leg and foot - which she could have done herself if she had walked as directed. Her incision is on the outside of the right hip/thigh, only 3" long...EM

She's a tough cookie. She just turned 70 - surgery is today and we leave on July 27th. I was thinking about getting a cushion like you would use on a patio chair - something like this. http://www.xuuby.com/cute-cushioned-patio-chairs/patio-chair-cushions-x-home-citizen-cushions-for-patio-chairs-from-walmart-replacement-cushions-patio-chairs/ They can't more her to an accessible cabin - they're all booked with a wait list. The travel agent put a request in for a high toilet seat, shower chair and grab bar. Hopefully it all works. We have a wheelchair she could use but she probably won't want to. She's already saying she isn't going to rehab. She'll get herself up and moving - that will absolutely happen - she's a stubborn, awesome woman.

I'm gonna be honest: that's not enough padding if her protocols will be the same as mine. she will need something thicker. so that when she sits, her knees will be no higher than her waist. I only had in home PT twice a week for 3 weeks. she will have zero pain, but the muscles will be seriously peeved at the violation they receive and will not be able to do the normal easy standing up without sufficient lift and a decent set of arm rests to push off from.

my surgeon would no way have given me permission to sail 3 weeks after surgery. 6 weeks was his absolute minimum to start doing anything more exciting than walking in the grocery store

my surgeon would no way have given me permission to sail 3 weeks after surgery. 6 weeks was his absolute minimum to start doing anything more exciting than walking in the grocery store

Agreed. No way could I have cruised 3 weeks after surgery. Hopefully, it won't include air travel as well. I was about 67 at the time of surgery and in pretty good physical shape (regular gym goer).

On the other hand, if walking is the best rehab, you can do an awful lot of walking on a cruise ship. Nine years ago, I was on a cruise with a tablemate who had had her second knee replacement a few weeks before. She was in a nursing home for rehab and desperately wanted to go home. Her doctor said okay, if she had someone to cook for her, wash and make her bed...and a place to walk. She told him she knew exactly where she could get that, and booked three B2B cruises (on different ships). So, cruising should be the carrot to get her to do her rehab! EM

I love that - rehab on a cruise. What a smart woman.

Thanks for the suggestions about a cushion - I found a much better option on Amazon. I ran it by my PT friend and she liked it too.

On July 2, 2018 at 10:54 AM, ozscotart said:

Re cushions: lots of different cushions are available for different purposes, I imagine she will have her own preferences. Memory foam is good for travel as it can be compressed, I am now travelling with a back cushion and a pillow, both memory foam, they are pretty easy to pack.

 

 

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I will be taking my cushion on future cruises.