Challenges of navigating behind a walker.
A word about walkers ...
By that I mean the assistive devices, with or without wheels (two or four), a seat or not, storage or not. I resisted using one for quite awhile after being advised to get one — until I was discharged from the hospital with one ordered and found it on my front porch when I got home. It was colorful with a festive front, which creates conversation quite often when I use it (mostly asking me where I bought it and admiring the colors).
At the time I got it, I was not yet on Medicare, so am guessing that the frumpier ones are courtesy of that insurer (yay to my private insurer).
I find myself more and more reliant on the walker. It holds me up, helps me up, and even trips me at some entrances — which is the point of all this. Following are some pet peeves to ponder as well as some observations.
If you are not disabled, why use the public-bathroom stall labeled for those who are? More often than not, I have observed that when that particular stall is occupied, it is by staff of that particular business. If only the culprit realized how difficult it can be for someone with mobility issues to stand in line or use a toilet without handrails in a small stall where the door opens in, perhaps that person would pause before using that stall. Perhaps giving some thought to the rigors of what someone with mobility issues has to deal with would prevent this particular abuse.
Most disabled parking spaces have the ramp on the driver’s side without giving any thought that the person needing the ramp might actually be a passenger. I am grateful that I do not have to drive myself (I’m thankful for my devoted husband), and I would appreciate having the ramp on the passenger side of the car, as it can be difficult to step up with my walker, or even walk all around the car to use the ramp.
Pushing a walker takes some strength. Trying to navigate pavers and hazards takes concentration as well as strength; trying to navigate unfriendly rugs placed at most business entrances is downright dangerous for rolling walkers. For me, unless I notice the rug’s specific characteristics, the wheels of my walker can actually not only get entangled around the rug but keep turning and pitching forward, potentially throwing me (or anyone else with a rolling walker) onto the ground. I have been rescued by total strangers who have noticed me falling forward before I was aware of it. I’m thankful for the kindness of strangers.
These are points worth pondering, I hope.
Trying to navigate pavers and hazards takes concentration as well as strength.