I couldn't get through the bathroom door without getting out of the chair...no one was around to help. I also couldn't transfer myself to the toilet. I didn't realize how hard that would be...
Other than that, it really wasn't as bad as I thought navigating with the wheelchair. Doorways were the hardest part of this whole project, and the hill was hard as well except for the fact that I had a girl offer to push me which was LOVELY!
I think that hardest part for me was the fact that I felt very exposed, almost as if everyone was looking at me. The wheelchair is big and bulky and makes noises and people have to move around me and there is a lot that I had a hard time doing by myself. So the hardest part was more of a sense of, "I feel like I can't do anything, and I feel like everyone is staring at me and judging me." Now I don't know if people actually were staring at me or if it was just me being paranoid, but it was really hard for me in this aspect. It made me wonder what I do and think around people who can't walk. I mean, I don't say anything mean just like no one said anything mean to me. But how do I look at them? How do I treat them in my thoughts? Do I think of them any differently just because they are wheelchair bound? Because I shouldn't. No one should. I am a normal person with normal thoughts and so are those actually in wheelchairs. They shouldn't be treated any differently.
I also have MAD respect for those in wheelchairs now. They have to have some CRAZY arm strength! I knew they did, but I didn't know how MUCH strength they had to have. I mean, I started up the hill on my own and it wasn't even the hard part of the hill yet and I was thinking, "WHAT? This is crazy!" But then a nice person offered to help. :)
They also have to have great emotional strength and patience to be able to deal with doing things slower or in a different way. They become pros at navigating doors and bathrooms etc, but they still have to deal with it. They still have to find a way to get from point A to point B in an effective way, and I lost my patience. I lost my patience when I couldn't get through the door without the button, and I lost my patience when I couldn't transfer myself to the toilet. I guess I didn't realize that not only is it the fact that they have to get places in a wheelchair but just doing normal things is different. I have so much more respect now.
Wheelchair #1. March 11, 2015 When I used the first wheelchair, I wheeled to my tutoring appointment in the Hinckley building. I couldn't stand up to open the door to let myself into a classroom. I didn't cross my legs while I was in the wheelchair. I kept my feet on the foot pedals during the whole time. I found that while I could still get around in a wheelchair by myself, I was moving slower than if I had been walking. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to move my upper body very much so I asked my boyfriend to help me hang my coat and backpack on the back of the wheelchair for me. I think that the weight of the backpack helped slow me down when I was in the wheelchair. My movement depended on how fast my arms could move the wheels. I didn't know if I was allowed to be pushed in the wheelchair or if I was allowed to ask someone to push me. He helped push me away from wheeling into a wall and from wheeling against the door entry edges.
Wheelchair#2. March 13, 2015 When I used the second wheelchair, I felt like I learned more about the disadvantages of not being able to move my legs. I wheeled from the third floor of the Hinckley building to the Math Center at the library. It was kind of scary to wheel downhill because the brakes didn't work so well. I struggled to keep the wheels from moving too fast. There were a few times when I accidentally wheeled onto the grass. I felt my arms get tired from trying to keep the wheels from moving too fast. I was out of breath by the time that I got to flat ground. A nice guy named Nick came up to me and offered to push me to where I needed to go. When we were on the skybridge, one of my friends from my mission came up to us. It was so good to see her and I wished that I could stand up to hug her. Instead, I hugged her while I stayed seated in the wheelchair. Neither of us knew how where to take an elevator to the second floor in the library. When we got to the library, the librarian told us where it was. The elevator is like hidden in the back of the library. Nick wheeled me to the Math Center, even though I said that I could get myself there the rest of the way when we got off the elevator. When I finished my homework there, I realized that I was parked in kind of a tight spot to back up and wheel out. I managed to stay seated while I backed up, packed up my backpack, and wheeled out of the Math Center. While I wheeled through the library and the MC building, I felt my arms get sore. I knew that getting back to the Hinckley building was going to be a struggle because it was uphill from where I was. Thankfully, another nice guy named Sean came up to me and offered to help push me there. When we got to the Hinckley building, he dropped me off in front and I wheeled myself in. I wheeled to the elevator to the third floor by myself. I never asked anyone to push me while I was in the wheelchair. Doing this assignment, helped me feel more grateful for any help that I can get. I also feel very grateful to be able to walk and get around by myself. I never knew how much arm exercise there was involved in being in a wheelchair. I definitely want to try to help someone in a wheelchair by pushing them to where they need to go. I used to think that people in wheelchairs were okay and that they could get to where they were going by themselves. But everyone needs help sometimes.
I couldn't get through the bathroom door without getting out of the chair...no one was around to help. I also couldn't transfer myself to the toilet. I didn't realize how hard that would be...
ReplyDeleteOther than that, it really wasn't as bad as I thought navigating with the wheelchair. Doorways were the hardest part of this whole project, and the hill was hard as well except for the fact that I had a girl offer to push me which was LOVELY!
I think that hardest part for me was the fact that I felt very exposed, almost as if everyone was looking at me. The wheelchair is big and bulky and makes noises and people have to move around me and there is a lot that I had a hard time doing by myself. So the hardest part was more of a sense of, "I feel like I can't do anything, and I feel like everyone is staring at me and judging me." Now I don't know if people actually were staring at me or if it was just me being paranoid, but it was really hard for me in this aspect. It made me wonder what I do and think around people who can't walk. I mean, I don't say anything mean just like no one said anything mean to me. But how do I look at them? How do I treat them in my thoughts? Do I think of them any differently just because they are wheelchair bound? Because I shouldn't. No one should. I am a normal person with normal thoughts and so are those actually in wheelchairs. They shouldn't be treated any differently.
I also have MAD respect for those in wheelchairs now. They have to have some CRAZY arm strength! I knew they did, but I didn't know how MUCH strength they had to have. I mean, I started up the hill on my own and it wasn't even the hard part of the hill yet and I was thinking, "WHAT? This is crazy!" But then a nice person offered to help. :)
They also have to have great emotional strength and patience to be able to deal with doing things slower or in a different way. They become pros at navigating doors and bathrooms etc, but they still have to deal with it. They still have to find a way to get from point A to point B in an effective way, and I lost my patience. I lost my patience when I couldn't get through the door without the button, and I lost my patience when I couldn't transfer myself to the toilet. I guess I didn't realize that not only is it the fact that they have to get places in a wheelchair but just doing normal things is different. I have so much more respect now.
Wheelchair #1. March 11, 2015
ReplyDeleteWhen I used the first wheelchair, I wheeled to my tutoring appointment in the Hinckley building. I couldn't stand up to open the door to let myself into a classroom. I didn't cross my legs while I was in the wheelchair. I kept my feet on the foot pedals during the whole time. I found that while I could still get around in a wheelchair by myself, I was moving slower than if I had been walking. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to move my upper body very much so I asked my boyfriend to help me hang my coat and backpack on the back of the wheelchair for me. I think that the weight of the backpack helped slow me down when I was in the wheelchair. My movement depended on how fast my arms could move the wheels. I didn't know if I was allowed to be pushed in the wheelchair or if I was allowed to ask someone to push me. He helped push me away from wheeling into a wall and from wheeling against the door entry edges.
Wheelchair#2. March 13, 2015
ReplyDeleteWhen I used the second wheelchair, I felt like I learned more about the disadvantages of not being able to move my legs. I wheeled from the third floor of the Hinckley building to the Math Center at the library. It was kind of scary to wheel downhill because the brakes didn't work so well. I struggled to keep the wheels from moving too fast. There were a few times when I accidentally wheeled onto the grass. I felt my arms get tired from trying to keep the wheels from moving too fast. I was out of breath by the time that I got to flat ground. A nice guy named Nick came up to me and offered to push me to where I needed to go. When we were on the skybridge, one of my friends from my mission came up to us. It was so good to see her and I wished that I could stand up to hug her. Instead, I hugged her while I stayed seated in the wheelchair. Neither of us knew how where to take an elevator to the second floor in the library. When we got to the library, the librarian told us where it was. The elevator is like hidden in the back of the library. Nick wheeled me to the Math Center, even though I said that I could get myself there the rest of the way when we got off the elevator. When I finished my homework there, I realized that I was parked in kind of a tight spot to back up and wheel out. I managed to stay seated while I backed up, packed up my backpack, and wheeled out of the Math Center. While I wheeled through the library and the MC building, I felt my arms get sore. I knew that getting back to the Hinckley building was going to be a struggle because it was uphill from where I was. Thankfully, another nice guy named Sean came up to me and offered to help push me there. When we got to the Hinckley building, he dropped me off in front and I wheeled myself in. I wheeled to the elevator to the third floor by myself. I never asked anyone to push me while I was in the wheelchair. Doing this assignment, helped me feel more grateful for any help that I can get. I also feel very grateful to be able to walk and get around by myself. I never knew how much arm exercise there was involved in being in a wheelchair. I definitely want to try to help someone in a wheelchair by pushing them to where they need to go. I used to think that people in wheelchairs were okay and that they could get to where they were going by themselves. But everyone needs help sometimes.