Why I use a wheelchair, Why do you ask?

Why I use a wheelchair? 

Many reasons. 

This is what I usually tell anyone who asks why I'm in a wheelchair. A perfect answer is also "I don't want to talk about it" or just a simple "none of your business". They are all valid. 

I use a wheelchair because of my Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, hypermobility type. 

I dislocate daily, I'm in chronic pain, my muscles are weak, I have foot drop, I have chroci fatigue, issues with balance, seizures, POTS so I can pass out, get dizzy and much more. 

It's not a simple answer and for most wheelchair users it's never a simple answer. Most except you to say you are paralysed or you cannot walk at all. Many wheelchair user can walk. Many wheelchair user don't use their wheelchair all the time. Ambulatory wheelchair users are more common than fully paralysed wheelchair users. We are all valid. We all matter and none of us need to answe why we are in a wheelchair. 

Drs are usually the wost I've found. They see it as giving up especially if they don't understand why you use it. My wheelchair gives me freedom. Without my wheelchair I can't walk more than a few steps. It means I can get to appointments and believe me life would be easier without checking if I can get in somewhere but it makes me life liveable and therefore more independent. 

Having a wheelchair is NEVER giving up. Never. It gives us a new independence in life. It means we can do so much more and live. 

I use an electric wheelchair as my shoulder dislocate and I have a lot of weakness. It was suggested by my EDS specialist. Now not everyone with EDS needs a wheelchair. Many get on find without a wheelchair. But for those like me a wheelchair gives us back some of our lives. 

My EDS specialist has told me my joints will continue to deteriorate, that's me. I can't do physio as even tiny amounts damages my joints more so my life is full of mobility aids and adaptations but it means I can live life more. 

If someone asks you why are you in a wheelchair, always remember you can tell them that your medical history is just that... Yours! 

Lady Red