Help please: tips for looking after a child if you can't lift them (back hernia)

[Eleonorex]

I need some advice for my very dear friend. She has a 1 year old baby and injured her back last month, she has a small hernia and she is lots of pain. She is doing Physio but cannot lift anything in the meantime a d probably for a long time (certainly not a baby). She has some help with the baby from her mum and husband, but not for long (her husband need to go back to work and her mum has other commitments). She is very worried about how to look after her baby when her mum won't be there anymore. Do you have any advice / practical example you could give? What can she do? She cannot afford to pay for someone to help.
If you have any idea that can help, please let me know.
Thank you all!!
Elli

I don’t know if this will work for a hernia but when I had a section I couldn’t lift my one year old for 6 weeks so I had an ikea stool in each room so I could sit and pull her onto my lap without lifting

oh, thanks. Sorry, just to understand better how you did it: you were sitting on a short stool and your baby was already walking? Sorry I am a little confused how you did it, but it seems brilliant. How did you do with the bath?

@Eixample oh, thanks. Sorry, just to understand better how you did it: you were sitting on a short stool and your baby was already walking? Sorry I am a little confused how you did it, but it seems brilliant. How did you do with the bath?

Yes, she was walking. With the stools and all the other seats in the house basically there was always somewhere close where I could sit and then pull/let her climb into my lap. I changed her nappies on the floor. (You’re allowed to lift the newborn so I could just pick him up, it was the toddler I couldn’t lift.)

Her husband needs to help her get set up for each day with everything within reach from a sitting position.

Stool is a very good idea. Is baby mobile?

How do they sleep? To avoid any lifting I would ask husband to take side off cot/create a family floored so baby can just crawl or be pushed up into bed?

As far as bathtime goes, husband would need to do it, or baby is given a strip wash with a flannel and a small bowl of warm water

thank you @Fufumcgoo very good advice. The baby is not walking indipendently yet

This actually might makes things a little easier. If baby isn't mobile at all yet then she really can set up for the day with everything withing reach for the most part.

She could also look into a hernia support band (not to circumvent the dr/physios advice) but to make other situations easier/offer some reassurance of support.

Make a room or area safe so if baby rolls or crawls it limits he area she needs to be retrieved from to effectively she okay wherever she gets to. Use a sleep mat on floor of that room for nap times. Have everything you need set up for the day easily to hand. Change mat on the floor. Use top and tail method instead of daily bath and only bath when dad is about to do lifting.