The Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide For Your Loved one Suffering from Arthritis or Autoimmune Disease

Almost everyone knows somebody who suffers from arthritis or some chronic illness. So today I am going to put together some gift ideas for individuals suffering from arthritis or autoimmune disease. This of course hits close to home as I suffer from several autoimmune diseases, and have for nearly a decade. Speaking from experience: we do not seek pity, but we do seek out understanding from those we share our lives with. We just want to look, feel, and accomplish things that everyone else can. So these gifts are designed to allow the gift recipient to look, feel, or accomplish things they once were able to do without the assistance of others. Basically you are giving them the gift of self esteem, self reliance, independence, or comfort: which is more important than the gift itself.

The first set of gifts are to help prevent illness. We get sick often, and when we do, it lasts much longer than most people.

It is no secret that many of us have to take several medications each day in order to maintain a stable condition. Missing dosages can really disrupt illnesses. It can take weeks or even months for us to re-establish stability.

This next gift idea is to help remind your loved one to take their medication on schedule.

An alarm or vibration will physically remind the individual to take their medications. There are also more subtle medication organizers to help stay on track for those that have to take them at different times of the day.

This SunFriend Personal UV Monitor helps to monitor sun exposure.  There are some really cool clip on options as well which I really love, but they are more pricey.  The overall goal is to make sure your loved one is not in the sun for too long. Overexposure, especially in the summer months, can have many negative effects. These effect include; skin rashes, burns, and lesions. It can also cause dehydration and fatigue much faster than an otherwise healthy individual.

This next group of potential gifts are to address appearance.

Now just because we are dealing with an illness, doesn’t mean we want to look like we are sick.  Of course we all want to look our best when we leave the house, so these items will allow us to look our best, but they are also easier to use than the standard methods/tools we are accustom to using.

The CharlieCurls On The Go, this One-Piece is the easiest ever no heat hair curler. Using a curling iron is difficult for those of us with joint problems and limited pinch strength. So this makes it so much easier to have a beautifully curled mane without all the work.

We rarely go anywhere all-natural, most of us try to wear makeup to make us look more finished. These Facial Beauty Makeup Brushes are ergonomic and affordable. Making it easier to hold the brushes, and in turn make it more possible to achieve the look you are going for.

Skin care is super important, and this Neutrogena Age Shield Face Lotion Sunscreen SPF 110, is Oil-Free & Non-Comedogenic Prevent Signs of Aging. It May seem like it’s going overboard with the spf 110, but spf 100 is recommended by dermatologists for those of us struggling with autoimmune disease and its affects on our skin. So this is perfect to keep our skin healthy, and helps prevent signs of aging. Along with that, these wool dryer balls will help your clothes stay wrinkle free without having chemicals touching the skin.

The hardest thing to deal with is loss of function. Simple things you could once do you no longer can without assistance. At the beginning of my journey I was told that I needed to come to terms with that fact. And be more open to asking for help. Of course I loved cooking, and doing things in my kitchen, but for a while I had to make sure someone else was around to help me if I needed.

These next products help give back that function, and make it possible to get things done again.

We will start with gifts that will help you open your ingredients without screaming for help. They will make it easier to make delicious meals for your family.

Healthy eating is important. Not just for those of us that have health conditions, but for everyone. The next couple gifts are great for food prep and storage.

This Mandoline Slicer is a Fruit & Vegetable Slicer, that will Julienne slice and grate. It has Stainless Steel Blades & is BPA Free.

These items cut down on food prep time, and make prep super easy for us as compared to manually slicing and cutting. It makes healthier eating more accessible as well. If you designate one or two days a week to food prep, you can easily toss it in a slow cooker in the morning, and not have to worry about it until meal time.

Speaking of slow cookers, if you don’t have one, you really do need one….everyone needs one. The slow cooker and stand mixers are probably the two most used small appliances in my kitchen.  I couldn’t live without them, and if the person you are buying for doesn’t have one, they will be grateful to receive one as a gift.

In order to eat healthy we have to be able to store healthy food, and no one likes to reach into the fridge and grab bad produce.  Well, extend the life of food with these Storage Containers. These Plastic Food Containers with Removable Drain Plate and Lid are Stackable Portable Freezer Storage Containers – Tray to Keep Fruits, Vegetables, Meat and More.

Changing positions is essential when you have joint pain, stiffness, and muscle aches to contend with. This next gift idea allows flexibility to change your position while working or using your laptop.

This Magnetic 3 LED Flash Light 5 Pound Magnet Telescopic Flexible Neck Pick Up Tool. I can’t count the number of times this could have come in handy.  It is the perfect tool for anybody. These gardening tools will help prevent hand fatigue, as well as the electric scissors. Driving can be hard on arthritic hands too, so the steering wheel cover or spinny knob can help you maintain a comfortable grip for your commute.

Now we will move on to comfort gifts.

Winter can be brutal both for arthritis and for Reynauds. Fingers, toes, ears, and nose can all be horribly affected by winter. So these gifts will help keep your loved one warm and cozy.

I hope you have found these gift ideas helpful for your loved one with arthritis or autoimmune disease. For other gift guides and inspiration check out these articles:

50 GIFT IDEAS TO SPARK CREATIVITY IN YOUR ARTIST

50 GIFT IDEAS FOR YOUR SPORTS STAR

THE ULTIMATE COFFEE LOVER GIFT GUIDE

50 GIFTS FOR YOUR LITTLE PRINCESS

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