Travelling with a wheelchair
There’s a reason I’m particularly excited about our Permobil giveaway. Not only are we happy to have the opportunity to give away around $17,000 worth of equipment to our lovely readers but I’m happy to share the story of the company, Permobil. Permobil is celebrating its 50th anniversary and they have good reason to celebrate. Their products have changed, and continue to change, the lives
Recently I put a call out on our Facebook page asking our community to share a piece of equipment which they felt had transformed or improved their life. I didn’t mind whether it was a small utensil or a large piece of equipment, I was just keen to share ideas. We’ve seen in the past that sharing disability equipment solutions can solve a problem for others which is
There are many challenges when it comes to juggling the needs of a family when one child has additional needs or a disability. One I can relate to is the juggle of having one child in a wheelchair, who is unable to self-propel, and a little one in a pram. With a 7-year age difference between BJ and AJ I used to find this a
We’ve just been introduced to the Loop Lock and it’s something we won’t be travelling without it in future. The strange thing is, I’d have never thought to go out and buy one and yet it makes total sense for us. Sometimes when we travel we’ve been so keen for BJ to access experiences that we’ve taken risks. Ordinarily we are cautious with security but
Sponsored Fighting to keep mobility is something I believe in wholeheartedly; however, I think there needs to be balance in this process. Sometimes resisting using equipment is counterproductive. Although we’ve continued to keep working on BJ’s mobility, we know it takes enormous effort for him to walk, even with assistance. It’s therefore not a practical way for him to get around all the time. I
We’ve always been lucky in having my handy Dad living next door. He built much of BJ’s therapy equipment for us which meant no waiting lists and saved us a fortune. Hubby’s also pretty clever and the two of them have skills that compliment each other, solving many small equipment issues. Despite not using the services of Technical Aid to the Disabled, we’ve always been aware of the great
Sponsored I’ve shared many stories about the fun our family have had since BJ got his own beach wheelchair last year (Here’s one to get you started.) Many of you have expressed a desire to buy one but told me that your budget won’t stretch that far. I’m hoping that the NDIS might make this liberating piece of equipment available to more people but even
We had quite a bit of interest in the way Hubby made games wheelchair accessible for BJ’s party so I thought I’d do a how to blog post so you can make a ramp yourself. This would be great addition for home, for respite houses, day programs, schools and more. It’s a way of making sure games are inclusive and accessible for everyone. Although BJ has recently learnt
In the last 21 years there have been many changes in the area of disability. I’m sure most of you would argue that we need to see greater change and faster but when I thought back over the changes we’ve seen I was impressed. When things aren’t good it is easy to forget how far we have come in recent years. I look forward to
Travelling with off-road wheelchair tyres made a huge difference to our trip to the Northern Territory. They were certainly a good talking point with people admiring the places we could go with the new wheels. The wide tyres coped well on sand, rocky surfaces and gave BJ a smoother ride. Initially I was concerned that the tyres would be hard on house or apartment floors and walls but
Travel often has an unexpected benefit of opening my eyes to ideas for adapted equipment. I’m always on the look out and get excited to see basic toys which can be transformed into accessible play for children with additional needs. So I’ve decided to put together a post on travel inspired adapted games which I thought some of our clever readers could make at home. I
Last weekend I attended the Spinal Cord Injuries Australia Independence Expo so today I’m sharing my equipment review. Although I see lots of the same stands at the different expos I attend, this expo stood out for the positive message it sent. It really gave me a feeling that just about anything is possible as far as access and recreation. I will admit that many
BJ’s just got a new set of off-road wheelchair wheels and we hope this will help make travel easier, particularly for our trip to the Northern Territory. I’m not good at accepting we can’t do something when we travel. If we ask about access and someone says, “Oh no, that isn’t wheelchair accessible” I tend to quiz them for a good while to see if we
Travelling with a wheelchair definitely comes with its challenges. We have flown both domestically and internationally with BJ’s manual wheelchair and on a whole we have had good experiences. We are often asked how to travel with a wheelchair and what airlines require passengers to do prior to check in. People have anxiety (justifiably so) around their wheelchair being damaged and what happens if it is.
We are often asked about BJ’s iPad and mounting system for his wheelchair. I thought it was time to share our experience and iPad access tips for people with additional needs. Two years ago BJ received an iPad and accessories and joined the world of swiping. We got off to a rocky start because his cerebral palsy means he has restricted hand function and uncontrolled
Don't miss out on news and special offers with our newsletter!
