Mobility scooters and related equipment

Due to a rather surprising range of neurological ailments, not to forget the devastating effects of advancing age, I have become sort of less mobile than I used to be. Where I used to be able to briskly walk for hours and hours, I now move slowly at a snails pace, for no more than one hour, supporting myself with either a cane or a crutch – depending on how I happen to feel that day. Yet I won’t complain: there’s nothing I can truly say I lack in this life, and diminished mobility doesn’t usually bother me.

However, for the somewhat longer journeys I nowadays use a mobility scooter, which definitely makes me feel like a prince or even a king! Relaxedly sitting in a cusioned seat, pleasantly but never haughtly greeting the breathless passers-by, I buzz along at either walking pace or double speed. When I feel relaxed I “walk”, when I actually need to be somewhere at a certain time I rev up the little machine.

There are lots of people much worse off than me, when it comes to physical capabilities. I can, albeit with difficulty, still walk – many others can’t. Especially for them the mobility scooter is a great help, enabling them to be free again. There are 3-wheel mobility scooters and 4-wheel mobility scooters, and if you’re seriously considering buying such a machine, I would recommend the 3-wheeled version. They tend to be considerably more manoeuvrable on account of their tighter turning radius, which is a definite advantage in crowded or narrow areas. I also would recommend to go for batteries with a lot of capacity: it’s not only unpleasant but also extremely embarassing to find yourself out of power when far away from home!

Apart from electrical scooters, there are many more things and gadgets that make the life of the disabled much more pleasant. Stairlifts, bed lifts, electrically powered wheelchairs, rollators… they all help to make life much more pleasant for the disabled.