How to Upgrade Your Walker, Wheelchair, or Scooter

If you have mobility difficulties and use a wheelchair, scooter, or walker, you are well aware that these assistive devices don't exactly come with a lot of bells and whistles. You are provided with the bare minimum needed to get around--and sometimes not even the bare minimum! Inventors have been working overtime lately to come up with improvements to make using your walker, wheelchair, or scooter more enjoyable and convenient.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Walker Lights, Grips, Bags, and other accessories
• Wheelchair pads and cushions
• Scooter Bags and Organizers
• A Willingness to try new things !

1. Look into all the new products designed to make using your walker easier, safer, and more convenient. Walkers are difficult enough to use during daylight hours, much less at night. That's why any walker user who ever stays out past dark with friends, relatives, or out to the library or meetings, will enjoy a set of super-bright LED lights for the walker, along with soft hand grips for safety and any number of carry-all pouches that neatly attach to the walker. Library and bookstore carpeting is not conducive to walker movement: those rubber tips tend to catch on carpeting and cause users to stumble. Upgrade to a set of walker glides or "skis" that easily pop on and allow you to slide the walker along.
2. Upgrade your scooter to better suit your lifestyle. You like to get out, and your scooter is just the thing for that. But it's not made for long, extended trips. One great way to lengthen your days out is to add a bright, visible folding flag for safety when crossing streets, a deluxe cupholder for those mid-afternoon coffee breaks, and a cane or crutch carrier so that you can get out and walk. We have all experienced it. We go into the grocery store for one or two special items, and come out with five full grocery bags!! When you are shopping, you need a nifty bag to hold your purchases as you zip from one isle to the next. There are many new bags designed just for the scooter user who desires to make shopping easier.
3. Make your wheelchair as comfortable as it can possibly be. The person who designed the wheelchair must have been thinking more about practicality than comfort. Raise your level of comfort by upgrading with an extra-soft synthetic fur seat, along with leg and foot huggers to keep limbs comfortably on the chair, and wing backs to position your torso securely and firmly on the chair.

Tips & Warnings

• Always continue to look for ways to make your scooter or wheelchair more comfortable.
• Talk with other folks with mobility issues to find what products have worked well for them.
• Discuss your comfort and safety concerns with your doctor or physical therapist.