ALSCaregiver.com

It’s hard to describe the processes, thoughts and problems that can go on when someone finds herself in a motorized wheelchair.  It’s hard because we don’t go through it – the patient does.  While I can’t tell anyone that “things happen for a reason,” I do know that those happenings can be useful in the end when they happen to a caregiver.

A couple weeks ago, I got nailed with plantar fascitis in both of my feet, with some Achilles tendonitis thrown in on the right leg.  Mom had left her motorized wheelchair at the house while she went on a cruise, using one that was rented at her vacation spot instead.  So I got to spend a week using it and let me tell you, it was an experience.

For one thing, it was hard for me to be able to transfer myself to the shower chair, and I had full use of my arms.  My mother doesn’t.  It tired me, so I have a much better idea of how much it must exhaust her.  It’s hard to turn around in the hall, and sometimes not possible at all.  I’ve had to back up through the house a time or two, beeping the horn and hoping the cats had the sense to get out of the way.  Things I was used to getting for myself were out of reach and I had no clue how to get them.

When mom came back, I started using her manual wheelchair.  Turning around in the hall just doesn’t work at all in that thing.  Sometimes it gets stuck on a pebble.  Unless it’s small, I can’t hold anything and get around on my own.

All of this has given me a much larger perspective on what mom has to go through.  I found myself understanding a lot of things a lot better, which I think will make me an even better caregiver in the end.

It wasn’t all annoyance and heartache though.  I did manage to take the trash out by myself with the motorized wheelchair, and I’ve pretty much mastered everything I can do with the manual.  My arms are looking good and my neck is actually benefiting from the extra exercise.  There’s very little I can’t do now, even if it takes a lot of effort.  By trying to do as much for myself as possible, I’ve noticed that mom doesn’t have to worry about me as much, and she’s seen some changes in my general attitude.  It’s obvious I’ve learned a lot about her life, which makes this injury very worthwhile indeed.

I’d recommend any caregiver try to spend a week or two in a manual wheelchair, acting like your legs are totally useless.  The amount of things you’ll discover will be a lot more intense and useful than anything I could write in a blog.  At the very least I hope these words will make caregivers think about it a little more than they might.  Here I thought I understood it myself until I realized how much I just didn’t know.