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wheelchair opinion

ToastieSimonsToastieSimons member
in Special Needs

at what age would introduce a wheelchair for your child's means of transportation over a stroller?

DS will require a wheelchair.  Even if he learns to walk (he has severe hypertonia/spasticity, and associated movement) he's not going to have the endurance to do it full time.

DH and I were discussing when we should introduce a wheelchair?

I was thinking around 3/4 when his peers would never be caught riding in a stroller.

But then again is in more noticeable that he would be riding in a wheelchair instead of a stroller?

Obviously we've got time to prepare but I'm just wondering what your thoughts are.

To my boys:  I will love you for you Not for what you have done or what you will become I will love you for you I will give you the love The love that you never knew
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Re: wheelchair opinion

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    adge1119adge1119

    we have the Otto Bock Kimba which is a "mobility system" so i'm not sure if it is classified as a wheelchair or not.  it stays at my son's daycare so for all other modes of transport we still use a stroller.  there are lots of different kinds of wheelchairs, pushchairs, and strollers out there. you should try to attend a disabilities expo if there's one near you.  it really makes a difference in choice. if we had i think we would have gone with something other than the kimba--although it is great, don't get me wrong.  but while it maneuvers great, it's bulky and does not fold down easily.  newer models seem to be much more friendly when it comes to this.

    consider looking at the special tomato EIO.  i've heard lots of good things about that for all types of needs.  plus it has inserts that help with positioning and such. 

    check out www.adaptivemall.com if you've never looked.  we met the company president (his father invented tumbleforms) at an expo...SUPER nice people. 

    we will eventually have a wheelchair but i'm thinking once he's older or unless his needs outgrow the other systems.  the kimba goes up to 5 years old.

    personally, i like the kimba for school/daycare but for family outings and such i am really partial to a good stroller for as long as we can use one.

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    kar5162kar5162 member

    I've seen some nice looking ones at adaptive mall and the parent-2-farent forums.  I am hopeful we won't need one, but we'll see.  I'm not planning to deal with it until #2 is close to being out of the stroller...figure we can hopefully just keep using the double until then.  We'll see though.

    I've seen a nice small wheelchair that looked like a good inbetween stroller/wheelchair that might work if his body support needs aren't too high. I will probably look to something like that if needed.

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    thefuturemrskudlathefuturemrskudla member
    My friend has a 2 year old (26 months, 26 pounds, 30 inches daughter with severe CP, and the ortho has suggested a wheelchair because the way she's positioned in the stroller is leading to muscular scoliosis. 
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    MummyGruetzieMummyGruetzie member

    This is something I've been wondering about. DD is 3. I hope she'll be able to walk short distances some day, but she needs a major hip surgery that none of us know if we should go through with and that will always make walking very painful. Aside from the work it will take with her balance issues on top of her physical delays.

    I'm having trouble finding the right one for DD. I'd love electronic, but know it'd be heavy and we don't have an accessible car. But we can't picture her maneuvering a wheel on her own and I really want her to have some choice in her mobility. Right now I just pick her up and carry her everywhere or have her ride in the umbrella stroller with extra blankets for support. When I carry her, I'm sure that people think she's a baby (somebody asked me how old she was the other day and replied "3 months?" when I'd mentioned her age). I don't love this. But it works for right now and really we can't go out a ton anyways.

    I'm shooting to have something in place by 4 or 5 for her own self-esteem. Hopefully I'll have found something that works by then!

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    chelsealushchelsealush member
    We will be ordering my daughters wheelchair when she is 15 months old. I was told by her PT that it will take about 6 months until she gets it. We are looking into the Tsunami Little Wave. The way I look at it is Zoe, who has Brittle Bone Disease, will not be able to walk (very curved and fragile bones that break with pressure) and I do not want to withhold her independence when I know that other chidren without her DX would be walking at that age. She is one year old and also does not crawl and is just starting to roll.
    mom to baby Zoe, DX Osteogenesis Imperfecta type 3, over 50 fractures since birth, 4 surgeries, uses a wheelchair, severe sleep apnea, mild hydrocephalus, beautiful blue eyes.
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