Today blogger Lynley (who previously wrote our accessible fashion as a wheelchairuser blog) is back with a reflection on her relationship with her wheelchair. This blog is sponsored by Fenetic Wellbeing; who asked one of our bloggers to share all about life as a wheelchair user. Take it away Lynley…
When asked to write this piece, it all brought back memories of my very first electric wheelchair and the advantages it gave me. But it also brought back the difficulties I had in adapting to using a wheelchair for the first time.
After my spontaneous spinal fracture 4 years ago and the subsequent severe chronic pain condition that followed, I was struggling around on a pair of crutches, refusing to give in to the pain and inability to walk without them. I was convinced I’d ‘get better’ and that any time soon, I’d be back on my own two feet and back to my so-called normal life. I refused to be that person in a wheelchair as I saw it as a sign of incapacity, helplessness and disability.
I’d been persuaded to try using a variety of mobility aids to get around outside; I’d borrowed a self-propelling wheelchair but that just made my pain worse when I tried to push the wheels, I’d hired mobility scooters but I just seemed to crash around the place, running people over and literally crashing into tables and chairs once when trying to get into a restaurant. The humiliation and embarrassment of that occasion put me off using a scooter ever again so I then refused to try anything else for quite a while as I didn’t want to go through that again.
After months of staying at home with no means to get outside, my husband persuaded me to try again. We went to a local stockist and tried a few different powerchairs for size, fit and feel and I was surprised how comfortable I could get in one of them. Once that hurdle had been overcome, we took the chair outside, I had a quick lesson in how to use it and off I went on a ‘test drive’.
And that was it. That’s all it took, a half hour trip and I had regained my freedom! For the first time in years, I could get around outside, and even more importantly, by myself!! All at once, the negative thoughts I had towards wheelchairs, disappeared – why on earth had I been so stubborn for so long? Why had I not taken a chance on this earlier? I don’t know the answer for that but certainly changed my mind, my views and my opinions on that day.
My wheelchair is not a sign of my disability, of my incapacity or of my helplessness
My wheelchair is my independence, my liberation and my freedom. It gives me my ‘legs’ back, it gives me a way of getting out and it gave me my life back.
Three years ago when I bought my first electric powerchair, it wasn’t an easy task for someone who was newly disabled like me. It was a world I had no knowledge of so I was very unsure and apprehensive, the place we went to was purely chosen after an internet search and was close by but the choice was not brilliant and I was lucky to find what I needed. I’m so glad that more and more online stockists who specialise in mobility aids are appearing.
When I looked on the Fenetic Wellbeing site, there was a great deal of choice in many areas; wheelchairs, powerchairs, mobility aids, furniture, and many others and I quickly found the electric wheelchair pages to see what was available. The range was good and prices cheaper than I expected.
Finding the right wheelchair for you is such a difficult task but one that shouldn’t be rushed as it is possibly one of the most expensive purchases you will ever make….
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