Chronic Illness Life Hacks for Daily Tasks

If you live with a chronic illness like chronic hives, you know that some day-to-day tasks and chores can be challenging. I want to share some of my favorite "life hacks" for getting some of those chores done and making life a little bit easier. You've probably come across some of these before, but hopefully, you'll find a gem or 2 to adopt in your life.

Utilizing delivery services

Grocery delivery

Going through the pandemic, I assume you're well aware of all of the delivery services that suddenly popped up for anything and everything. I still take full advantage of those services.

At-home grocery deliveries are still one of my favorite services. For me, it's incredibly time-consuming and energy-consuming to shop for groceries. Given my compromised immune system, it also lessens exposure to bacteria and viruses. I doubt I will ever go back to shopping for groceries in the store.

I may pop into a store here and there to pick a few things up, but the trade-off is significant for me. While the delivery service costs added fees, it's worth the benefit to my health.

Pharmacy delivery

My next favorite delivery service comes courtesy of my pharmacy! Not only does my pharmacy deliver all of my medications to my front door, but they also offer to sort all my pills for me.

Each month, I get a blister pack filled with my pills for each day, and they are even sorted by morning, noon, and evening medications. Having my pharmacy do this extra work for me has been such a relief, and I don't dread weekly pill sorting.

Laundry services

Another service I take advantage of is a laundry service. I started looking into a laundry service a few years ago when I moved into an apartment that didn't have a washer and dryer.

It's a bummer not to have free access to do my own laundry. But frankly, I consider going to a laundromat dangerous. Having mobility issues makes it hard to get up and down the stairs of my apartment on a good day, but carrying heavy laundry up and down the stairs can spell disaster for me.

And then, if you consider that my hives are sometimes set off by heat, sitting in a hot laundromat for hours is just a hive flare waiting to happen.

The only tip I have for using a laundry service is to make sure that they know about any allergies or skin sensitivity. I always supply my own gentle detergent, and I use a service that has a separate washing machine for people who have sensitive skin.

Set up a smart home system

My next hack is setting up a smart home. I have gadgets like wireless light bulbs, a thermostat, and door locks. I've set up certain automations to help with the little things like turning on and off the lights or setting the temperature of the thermostat with just my voice. I also have HEPA air filters connected to my smart home system to change the settings effortlessly.

My smart lock knows when I arrive home and unlocks the door automatically. This makes it easy to get in if my arms are full. I can even unlock the door when I receive deliveries if I'm not home to bring them inside. I'm still learning how to use my smart home to its fullest capacity, but I enjoy the challenge!

What are your life hacks?

Do you have any life hacks for living with chronic hives? Let us know in the comments!