Outdoor standing wheelchair

Hi,

I'm Chloe (Cat) I'm 20 years old. I have cerebral palsy which affects my whole body. I am unable to stand (or sit) by myself. I rely on good seating positions to help keep my body as straight and healthy as possible.  I love standing and use an indoor standing chair at home which my parents raised money for back in 2013. It still going strong today. As well as attending Huddersfield new college, I also have a part time job. The previous indoor standing chair my parents raised money for I still use to this day, for the same reasons and more. The chair had and still does have a big impact on my day-to-day life. However, the chair I have cannot be used outside and therefore is purely for indoor purposes and can only be used at home. This is not practical anymore as I spend on average 11 hours per day in my outdoor wheelchair 6 days a week, only get out to visit the bathroom! Nice guidelines state that all wheelchair users should get out of their wheelchairs at least once every 4hrs, unfortunately not all us wheelchair users don’t become non-disabled even for short periods of time! Thus making this an impossibility for me.

When I go to college, work or just out and about I’m obviously always in my chair. This gets uncomfortable after a while. Depending on where I am & who is with me will depend how long it’ll be before I can readjust myself in my wheelchair.

This new wheelchair, I'm in the demo one in the photo & standing will give me much more freedom. As I will be able stand and talk to others meaning that hopefully I won’t be ignored as much as I am now as well as being able to reach things that are higher. People tend to look down on those in wheelchairs and talk about us, rather than to us whilst we are sat there. As this chair will let me change my position from sitting to laying and to standing plus anything in between, it will be better for my whole body overall both mentally and physically whilst helping strengthen my legs. I will greatly benefit from this from both a physical and social point. This chair will also mean that I won’t have to look at people’s bottoms!

 

Thank you for taking the time to read my page