Taking charge of your life

Power wheelchair user Ray has previously had wheelchairs that weren’t suited to his needs, which he says slowed him down and didn’t allow him to be in charge. He says the process for finding and buying the right wheelchair is a learning curve.

Ray has a progressive disorder, and says he has always been independent, but wasn’t necessarily able because he had the wrong wheelchair.

“Some people talk about freedom. I don’t think of a wheelchair in terms of giving freedom, but being enabled,” Ray says. “It’s about enabling, and forgetting you are in a wheelchair.

“Having the right wheelchair lets you get on with life!” 

Ray describes being in the wrong wheelchair as feeling stuck, and unable to participate. He says there are two key steps to finding the right assistive technology.

“First, it’s about educating yourself. You are your best advocate. Do some research, and understand what’s available, what might work for you, and what it might cost.”

Ray researched his wheelchair online, looking at videos and reading about different chairs and their capabilities.

He says the second step is finding the right team of professionals. For Ray, this team included a doctor, Occupational Therapist and physiotherapist.

“You’re the leader of your team, you make the final decision. But your team can provide you with some really great advice.”

Ray looked for a powerchair that would enable him to be a normal member of society, keep him comfortable, adjust to his needs, and that he could travel with.

From Ray’s perspective, a high-end wheelchair made good investment sense because it would adapt to his changing needs over the short and long-term.

“I consider a wheelchair an investment in someone’s ability to increase their independence. If they can do things for themselves, they’re reducing their reliance on medical services, government assistance, home care and so on.”

After two manual wheelchairs he moved to a power wheelchair, which didn’t adequately suit his needs. He did some more research, and looked for a new power wheelchair that would offer a more complex mobility solution.

He chose a Magic Mobility Frontier V6 Compact 73 powerchair, which he describes as a revelation in comparison to his previous power and manual wheelchairs.

“I can be sitting in a wheelchair for 16 hours a day, so I need something that will keep me comfortable.”

Ray chose his seating system for comfort, with a cushioned seat and backrest. He also has the power tilt function, which allows him to shift his weight and stay comfortable for longer.

“I use a wheelchair because otherwise I would be stuck in bed all day. The right wheelchair enables me to be in charge of my life.”

Are you interested in finding the right powerchair that will enable you? Contact us today to find a power wheelchair that will meet your needs.