Not So Bad

[Ed Hurst]

Maybe I'm just the kind of guy who sees a silver lining everywhere, but using a wheelchair isn't that bad. It's not like my legs don't work, so I'm not confined. But they hurt when I use them more than just a little, so I use the wheelchair for things like shopping or any other time I travel more than 100 yards or so without a bike or car. Yes, I can still ride my bike some.

But I spent several years using a wheelchair back in the 1990s and over into the early 2000s. I'm quite used to it. I had forgotten that it feels a little bit like a workout. Just chasing my wife around Walmart got me a little sweaty. And yet it was comfortable for me, as my muscles remembered how to do it with finesse. I can go at least as fast as I used to walk.

My wheelchair is by no means as classy and comfortable as the Quickie athlete's rig I had back then, but it's good enough for now. It fits easily into the trunk of either car and really cuts down on the wear and tear on my knees. It's not a bad accommodation until I can get the VA to fix the degradation of my left knee. It's also a lot better than the soreness in my arms from using a cane.

[IainH]

Maybe I'm just the kind of guy who sees a silver lining everywhere, but using a wheelchair isn't that bad. It's not like my legs don't work, so I'm not confined. But they hurt when I use them more than just a little, so I use the wheelchair for things like shopping or any other time I travel more than 100 yards or so without a bike or car. Yes, I can still ride my bike some.

But I spent several years using a wheelchair back in the 1990s and over into the early 2000s. I'm quite used to it. I had forgotten that it feels a little bit like a workout. Just chasing my wife around Walmart got me a little sweaty. And yet it was comfortable for me, as my muscles remembered how to do it with finesse. I can go at least as fast as I used to walk.

My wheelchair is by no means as classy and comfortable as the Quickie athlete's rig I had back then, but it's good enough for now. It fits easily into the trunk of either car and really cuts down on the wear and tear on my knees. It's not a bad accommodation until I can get the VA to fix the degradation of my left knee. It's also a lot better than the soreness in my arms from using a cane.

  Practicing what you preach. Keep on truckin'!

[Ed Hurst]

When I go in for Physical Therapy, it's like play time for me. I like the challenge; I like to feel the muscle burn. It's just new games to add to my repertoire. My attitude amuses the therapists, and also because they often have to use the maximum weight/resistance settings for me. Consider that the vast majority of their clients are weak as kittens, so I guess I'm entertaining. It's good to be a blessing like that.

[jaybreak]

When I go in for Physical Therapy, it's like play time for me. I like the challenge; I like to feel the muscle burn. It's just new games to add to my repertoire. My attitude amuses the therapists, and also because they often have to use the maximum weight/resistance settings for me. Consider that the vast majority of their clients are weak as kittens, so I guess I'm entertaining. It's good to be a blessing like that.

You and I are in the same boat with PT. I take it seriously at home, but I am naturally carefree about it during sessions. 

Is your therapist a woman? I've found they make better PTs than men, but that's just my experience; I've had both. It's more the attitude the therapist has than their chromosomes. Women tend to have a less businesslike mind about it, and take more of a personal/intuitive approach. A man could have the same attitude as well but it seems like women gravitate towards that more easily.

[Ed Hurst]

I've had a rotation of therapists. The first was a female, the second a male. To be honest, the guy was more playful. Maybe I'll have a different one the next time; the VA staff in that department is rather large.

[Ed Hurst]

    This is the new rig. I found the chair on Craigslist and the leg extensions on eBay. The latter required a little adjustment to make them lock on the frame properly, but it's ready to go. I don't use it all the time, only when I have to go somewhere I would normally do a lot of walking. This thing sleeps in the trunk of my car. Sometimes we shift it to my wife's car for shopping trips and such. It's not as fancy as the Quickie chair I had 30 years ago. Those things cost as much as my bike for pretty much the same reason. Still, this will do for now.

[jaybreak]

This is the new rig. I found the chair on Craigslist and the leg extensions on eBay. The latter required a little adjustment to make them lock on the frame properly, but it's ready to go. I don't use it all the time, only when I have to go somewhere I would normally do a lot of walking. This thing sleeps in the trunk of my car. Sometimes we shift it to my wife's car for shopping trips and such. It's not as fancy as the Quickie chair I had 30 years ago. Those things cost as much as my bike for pretty much the same reason. Still, this will do for now.

What was the Quickie chair for, 30 years ago? Another surgery?

[Ed Hurst]

The Quickie was prior to any of my knee surgeries on the right leg. At that time the left knee was also pre-arthritic, in that it was already giving me some trouble from carrying too much burden for the right. So while I was in the Quickie, Orthopedics finally got around to doing the initial surgery to fix the right knee. Once it got healed and I recovered the strength in the leg, I gave the Quickie back to the VA because it was so expensive they wanted to recycle it to someone else.