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Hi folks! I'm Julie and I'm fundraising for a wheelchair.
I became a wheelchair user in 2015 after struggling with walking, subluxations, dislocations, chronic pain and passing out when upright since the birth of my second son in 2011. I was diagnosed with Post-Partum Hashimotos Thyroiditis, Ehlers Danlos Type 3 with Marfanoid Habitus and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome by a collection of wonderful specialists in a few NHS clinics in various London hospitals.
After a year of physiotherapy and a 9 month wait following that, my NHS wheelchair arrived and it changed my life! I could leave the house again, I could go for 'walks' with my family, visit accessible shops and feel a part of things once more. I am forever thankful for the NHS care and will fight forever to keep it.
The wheelchair, as much as I love it, has a low capacity for slopes so cannot manage slightly steeper inclines and tips forward with even small declines, unless someone is taking control of the 'chair behind me. It cannot be broken down to fit in an average or even larger car, cab, train or plane. Buses are manageable but again only with someone able to stop me tipping forwards. We managed to find the one car (yes, just one option) on the wonderful motability scheme which fit my NHS wheelchair in it, by taking both arms off, unscrewing and lowering the back and using an electric hoist to lift it in and out each time due to the heaviness and size of it. Despite these issues, we have been plodding along for 4 years now, very grateful to have the gain in some independence for me.
This past year has been extremely hard, with both my wonderful sons Thom and Sullivan (as well as myself too) being diagnosed with a serious and life impacting genetic disorder - Alport Syndrome. This has lead to practically an unmissable hospital appointment every week, sometimes multiple a week, all in central London.
Unfortunately, my NHS wheelchair has broken down twice in the last 6 months, which has lead to some serious re-organising of extremely important appointments and me unable to leave the house or get around until it is fixed by an outsourced company, which can take some time. There have also been numerous times these past 4 years that the lift on our floor in our block of flats has broken down, making it impossible for me to leave the house.
These issues, plus all of the above have led me to looking at alternative wheelchairs to buy privately. I came across my Christmas dream! The Lith-Tech Smart Chair 1XL. https://lith-tech.com/shop/lith-tech-smart-chair-1-xl/ It utilises a new technology allowing the wheelchair to be folded easily to fit into the boot of most cars, even small ones! the frame is super lightweight (55lbs compared to my 300lb chair), it can handle double the incline and decline of my NHS chair, can be taken on planes, trains, cabs, folded and carried down stairs enabling me to be able to leave the house when the lift on our floor isn't working and most importantly would always mean that I have a back up in case my NHS wheelchair breaks again or needs servicing.
As you can imagine, the freedom and peace of mind this wheelchair would give me is immeasurable. Unfortunately, all that cool stuff above comes at a price. It feels unnatural to me to be asking for help instead of fundraising for a charity or someone else but some of my lovely friends have encouraged me to swallow my nerves and guilt and DO IT. So, here it is. If you would like to be a part of helping me gain my Christmas wish I'd be forever grateful.
I became a wheelchair user in 2015 after struggling with walking, subluxations, dislocations, chronic pain and passing out when upright since the birth of my second son in 2011. I was diagnosed with Post-Partum Hashimotos Thyroiditis, Ehlers Danlos Type 3 with Marfanoid Habitus and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome by a collection of wonderful specialists in a few NHS clinics in various London hospitals.
After a year of physiotherapy and a 9 month wait following that, my NHS wheelchair arrived and it changed my life! I could leave the house again, I could go for 'walks' with my family, visit accessible shops and feel a part of things once more. I am forever thankful for the NHS care and will fight forever to keep it.
The wheelchair, as much as I love it, has a low capacity for slopes so cannot manage slightly steeper inclines and tips forward with even small declines, unless someone is taking control of the 'chair behind me. It cannot be broken down to fit in an average or even larger car, cab, train or plane. Buses are manageable but again only with someone able to stop me tipping forwards. We managed to find the one car (yes, just one option) on the wonderful motability scheme which fit my NHS wheelchair in it, by taking both arms off, unscrewing and lowering the back and using an electric hoist to lift it in and out each time due to the heaviness and size of it. Despite these issues, we have been plodding along for 4 years now, very grateful to have the gain in some independence for me.
This past year has been extremely hard, with both my wonderful sons Thom and Sullivan (as well as myself too) being diagnosed with a serious and life impacting genetic disorder - Alport Syndrome. This has lead to practically an unmissable hospital appointment every week, sometimes multiple a week, all in central London.
Unfortunately, my NHS wheelchair has broken down twice in the last 6 months, which has lead to some serious re-organising of extremely important appointments and me unable to leave the house or get around until it is fixed by an outsourced company, which can take some time. There have also been numerous times these past 4 years that the lift on our floor in our block of flats has broken down, making it impossible for me to leave the house.
These issues, plus all of the above have led me to looking at alternative wheelchairs to buy privately. I came across my Christmas dream! The Lith-Tech Smart Chair 1XL. https://lith-tech.com/shop/lith-tech-smart-chair-1-xl/ It utilises a new technology allowing the wheelchair to be folded easily to fit into the boot of most cars, even small ones! the frame is super lightweight (55lbs compared to my 300lb chair), it can handle double the incline and decline of my NHS chair, can be taken on planes, trains, cabs, folded and carried down stairs enabling me to be able to leave the house when the lift on our floor isn't working and most importantly would always mean that I have a back up in case my NHS wheelchair breaks again or needs servicing.
As you can imagine, the freedom and peace of mind this wheelchair would give me is immeasurable. Unfortunately, all that cool stuff above comes at a price. It feels unnatural to me to be asking for help instead of fundraising for a charity or someone else but some of my lovely friends have encouraged me to swallow my nerves and guilt and DO IT. So, here it is. If you would like to be a part of helping me gain my Christmas wish I'd be forever grateful.