My hot sock
@GardenGerty (157675)
United States
January 11, 2018 6:14pm CST
I have a hot sock. Actually it is an old tube sock I stole from my husband's stash.
You may ask why is it a hot sock?
I gladly will tell you. I nabbed this spare sock then I filled it with cheap white rice, and sewed shut the end. I put it in the microwave tor two minutes--Voila! a hot sock.
Right now it is spread across my sore knees. They are sore from the fall I took yesterday.
What I like is that this is cheap. I also do not plug it in. There is no danger of it shocking me, or getting too hot in one spot. It gradually cools down.
The first time I saw something similar, my younger sister had purchased it for over $25. That was more than twenty years ago. The only real difference between mine and the department store version was that it was a new sock, and there were rope handles stitched into both ends.
When my first husband was ill and in a nursing home, they would allow me to put one on each of his arms to soothe the muscle spasms. You are not allowed electric heating pads in nursing homes.
Over fifty years ago my parents would take a white cotton handkerchief and fill it with salt. They tied the corners all together into a central knot. They put it in a low oven to get warm and gave it to my little brother to put on his ear ache. It seemed to give good relief.
So, here I sit with my hot sock. Visiting mylot and doing continuing education. One more video to watch.
13 people like this
13 responses
@dgobucks226 (34434)
•
12 Jan 18
Heather, you may do better to ice your knees if you have any swelling first. Then after 48 hours try the terrific sock invention you created alternating ice and heat. I have a hot sock too but it was given to me as a Christmas present. It is soothing!
2 people like this
@Marilynda1225 (79991)
• United States
12 Jan 18
You are right about using ice for swelling.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
12 Jan 18
Nope, no swelling. I have a nice icy, drafty house to help if need be. I have muscle spasms in both of my knees today, though. Those are made worse by the cold. Where my knees hit the ground does not hurt, and does not look bruised. Thankfully. The first year my daughter was married she used washcloths and made hot knee packs for her new inlaws for Christmas.
1 person likes this
@dgobucks226 (34434)
•
13 Jan 18
@GardenGerty Glad you were not hurt too badly. Stay safe..
1 person likes this
@shaggin (71671)
• United States
12 Jan 18
That is interesting your parents would use salt and a hankie to make a heat compress for your brother. The chiropractor I used to go to gave me a bag she had made. It was orange fleece and filled with beans I think and aromatherapy oils. It might have been rice instead of beans but I can't remember exactly. I just remember it was soft, smelled wonderful and worked great on achy muscles.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
12 Jan 18
Some people do use beans instead of rice. I have put oils in my rice as well. I have read kind of recently about several of the things my parents used to do, or grandparents. Onion cough syrup, too. (yuck)
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
13 Jan 18
@shaggin My mom got a lot of baby care advice from an Army manual. Her first husband was in the army. She sterilized all bottles, caps and nipples and made a formula with brown Karo syrup and canned milk among other things. Possibly a pinch of salt.
1 person likes this
@shaggin (71671)
• United States
12 Jan 18
@GardenGerty oh gosh onion couch syrup sounds terrible. When I moved in this house there was an old medicine cabinet on the wall in the kitchen. Inside it was a recipe for the infant formula. I don't recall much of it other then Karo syrup.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
12 Jan 18
I am not sure, but I believe these can be put in a crock pot and kept hot, or warmed up in a roaster in the oven. Before I had a microwave, or had heard of this, I lived in a house that was poorly heated. There was a gas freestanding heat stove. I stacked bricks on it and at bed time wrapped one in a towel for each bed. My car did not have a garage, so in the morning in winter I would put a hot brick under the hood and it would start a lot easier.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
13 Jan 18
@rebelann I have lived on mobile homes, they get hot in the summer as well as cold in the winter.
1 person likes this
@rebelann (111284)
• El Paso, Texas
14 Jan 18
Yeah, they do get hot @GardenGerty if it goes over 110 this spring and summer I might end up living under a tree for a while.
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
13 Jan 18
Flax seeds are a bit pricey here. I can see why they would work, though.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (459514)
• Switzerland
14 Jan 18
@GardenGerty I had a couple of bags that were aging, so I decided to use them to make heating pads.
@Marilynda1225 (79991)
• United States
12 Jan 18
Your not sick is a threat idea. I'm going to keep it in mind next time my knees hurt.
Hope your hot sock does the trick and your knees feel better
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
12 Jan 18
It helps a lot. The nice thing about a long sock or a long tube of fabric is you can wrap it around sore shoulders as well.
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
13 Jan 18
The hot sock is helpful and warm. The fronts of my knees do not seem to have a problem, and that is what I landed on. It is more like the tendons in the back of my knees are hurting. I have the hot sock all heated and rolled up at the back of my right knee right now. I worked all day today.
@Hannihar (129576)
• Israel
14 Jan 18
@GardenGerty
Heather, do you need physical therapy for the tendon problems?
@KrauseHome (36448)
• United States
17 Jan 18
Yes, have done both kinds when it comes to storing something. The main issue is keeping them in an area where they do not get too damp, etc and start smelling bad, etc.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
19 Jan 18
I use them often enough they do not get damp. In fact I have my hot sock behind my back right now.
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
12 Jan 18
Too much of a danger of malfunction or burning tender skin. Now they have gel packs that you heat like the hot socks for a comfortable and safe heat source.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
13 Jan 18
Useful and inexpensive as well. I just borrowed the idea from others.
1 person likes this
@marguicha (215918)
• Chile
12 Jan 18
I have one such thing with rice that I put in the microwave. But I didn´t think that you could make one. I bought one 20 years ago. I´ll make another one with things at the house. Thanks for the idea.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
12 Jan 18
Very simple to do. Just rice either in a tube sock or in a tube sewn of fabric. My daughter sewed two washcloths together and made square ones.
@Srbageldog (7716)
• United States
12 Jan 18
I do this too! I just tie a knot at the end of the sock instead of sewing it shut.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
13 Jan 18
Yes, that does work too. It is nice to have around.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (18993)
• United States
12 Jan 18
I have something similar. It's not a sock, but a bag where I can either warm it in the microwave or put it in the freezer.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
13 Jan 18
Yes, these can be chilled as well. I imagine dry beans would be excellent for chill packs.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (157675)
• United States
13 Jan 18
I was shocked at how much my sister paid for one. I knew one lady whose mom did home health and she made really long ones, and sewed hands of felt or old gloves on the end and then she would tell people they were a warm hug.
1 person likes this
