Writings From the Wheelchair

2012-11-01T10:56:00.000-04:00

Wheelcair Bound

In this modern day and age that we live in it really blows my mind to see written or here spoken the phrase wheelchair-bound. Saying that someone is bound to a wheelchair implies the person is tied chained or somehow fastened to the wheelchair. The correct phrase would be that someone uses a wheelchair. In all actuality a wheelchair is a vessel of technology that allows a disabled person to get around and be more independent. One day I asked my doctor to write me a disability letter he actually referred to me as a wheelchair-bound man. It astounds me that professional individuals such as doctors, lawyers and journalists still use this phrase.

One day while I was in physical therapy I heard a physical therapist say that electric wheelchairs made people lazy. This could not be further from the truth electric wheelchairs allow an individual the versatility to perform a lot more physical tasks, than your manual wheelchair. This statement was obviously made from someone who never had to use a wheelchair. As a wheelchair user I can honestly say that I have accomplished many goals while using an electric wheelchair.

I sure hope in the future I do not continue to hear or see outdated terminology such as a wheelchair-bound person. As far as an electric wheelchair being the cause of someone being lazy, I would have to hear that statement come from someone using a wheelchair for it to have any weight. People in the medical profession should be held to a higher standard and should be more aware of the things they say and write.

John's Life

2012-05-09T14:17:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone, did you miss me? I've been on a little bit of vacation from writing. Once again I find myself in the search of a way to make more money. So I started a fantasy stock trading account to see if I could maybe make some money in the stock market. I figured it would be better to start trading in the fantasy world to see if I could make any money. I figured out with me and my wife as a team we could make some money in the stock market. They say do not play the stock market with money you cannot afford to lose. I need all my money right now so I guess the stock market will have to wait. I will not even write about some of the other ways. I have come up with to earn money. Now that I think about it not having money makes you come up with crazy ideas on how to get money.

Since I last wrote I have come up with the idea that the reason I can't walk is because I have not tried hard enough. So I figured if I get an exercise bike and bike a zillion miles sooner or later I'll be able to walk at the least, I'll get some exercise and drop a few pounds. So that sounds like a win-win situation to me seems to me that not being able to walk makes you think crazy things too.

I have an inside electric wheelchair and an outside electric wheelchair this way you don't track mud inside the house. The chair I use outside the house has bit the big one. So now I am down to one electric wheelchair which I have to use in the house and can't take it outside in the dirt. I have a friend who knows someone who was giving away an electric wheelchair, but I was a day late on that one.

I should have kept writing my articles and on my blog instead of trying to find a way to make more money maybe things would be different. Then again, if I wouldn't have gone to the store four years ago and I didn't swerve to miss a kid crossing the street on a four wheeler things could be different than they are now.

Therapy

2012-03-15T17:15:00.000-04:00

Writings from the wheelchair, subject of the day is therapy. Whether you are recovering from an illness or a traumatic injury, the start of your road to recovery will begin with therapy. Whether you are expected to make a full recovery or are going to be left with some limitations therapy will have a direct impact on the end results. Keep in mind the individuals that you will be working with in speech, occupational, or physical therapy have been to school for lengthy periods of time and have had much training in their specialty. Personal experience has shown me they have your best interest and recovery in their hearts and on their mind.

In the beginning of the recovery from my automobile injuries I had lots of questions. I began my road to recovery doing therapy on an inpatient basis. I started off the beginning of every therapy session ahead of my therapist. My physical therapist was trying to get me to learn how to walk with a walker and I was asking when we could try walking with a cane. My speech therapist was having me do vocal exercises and eating ice chips I said just give me a glass of water and I will drink small amounts at a time. When the occupational therapist had me putting pegs into holes I was asking for the pencil so I could write. Now don't get me wrong, I was not just being hardheaded, I was recovering from a traumatic brain injury and was not living in reality.

The long and short of it is in the unlikely event you find yourself having to go to therapy. Do yourself a favor, listen to you therapist and follow the directions. The therapist has the education, training and experience to help you get the most out of the recovery.

2012-03-11T11:12:00.002-04:00

Common Sense

I was online reading as usual and I stumbled across an article about a man in a wheelchair being hit by a car in Sacramento County in California. The article said the man was outside the marked cross walk in the wheelchair that had no reflectors and could not be seen by the driver. Being the inquisitive person that I am I typed in my search engine man in wheelchair hit by car, you would not believe the amount of results that turned up. In St. Petersburg, a man in a wheelchair was hit and killed by an on-duty police officer. It mentioned in the article that the man was wearing dark clothing and could be seen by the police officer. The police officer was riding in the southbound lane and the man in the wheelchair was on the shoulder of the road going in the same direction.

I use a wheelchair and in the beginning stages of the recovery from my TBI I used to ride my wheelchair in the dark on the road. At that time I did not have any reflectors on my wheelchair. It is a miracle that I was never run over. As time has gone on my recovery has progressed, I have gained common sense that for so long eluded me. I sport reflectors on my electric wheelchair now and stay off the road when it is dark.

People who use wheelchairs should not expect preferential treatment on or off the road. If you're going to ride your wheelchair on the road you should obey all the rules and laws that a pedestrian must abide. Whether you are walking, riding a bicycle or using a wheelchair a little common sense could save you from a serious injury, the loss of your life or being the cause of a debilitating or fatal accident for another person.