Imagine having to sit in a chair day after day. Some of you may think it would be great to be able to sit all day long, but I can tell you that some of the people I work with would wish it upon no one to be in their position.
Sitting in a wheelchair for 12 to 16 hours a day is no fun.
I have sat in many wheelchairs for a few minutes here and there, and some of them feel quite comfortable. But I can imagine that after sitting all day, it isn't quite as comfortable.
Pain doesn't come just from sitting, either. The pain comes from deep inside. It comes from the frustration of knowing that everything seems twice as hard to do, including seemingly simple things others take for granted.
Consider an apartment or house made to be accessible to people with handicaps. But most are not 100 percent accessible. I've been in a few that really are for someone who's there to assist those who are handicapped.
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Sure, there is nothing but pipes under the sink so a wheelchair could fit under the sink to wash the dishes. But what dishes --the dishes in the cabinets above the counters that can't be reached from a sitting position?
Have you ever tried to open an oven while sitting, even an oven in a building supposedly accessible to people with handicaps? How about opening an oven and pulling something out while sitting? It's next to impossible -- despite claims the building and oven are accessible.
Then there is bed mobility. There really are three ways to get around this. The first is to have enough arm strength and upper body strength, or the ability to partially use your legs, to move in bed and roll. The second is to have someone come over to move you from one side to the other every two hours. The third is to suffer. Many people with handicaps are put into bed on their backs and left there helplessly for eight to
12 hours before someone comes to get them up. This can lead to pressure ulcers, which are sores and open skin areas caused by lying or sitting on the same area of the body day after day or night after night.
Don't get me wrong; just because someone has a handicap doesn't mean they should sit around the house and do nothing but feel sorry for themselves and their situation. I know a few who try to lead as normal a life as possible, including working jobs and training for future jobs they can do while in their wheelchair. They get out and enjoy the weather and take strolls along the streets, just like everyone else.
Have you ever really stopped to think about using the restroom during the day? I would bet you haven't. I would bet you just go to the restroom when you feel the urge. Imagine someone in a wheelchair who can't take himself or herself to the restroom when they need to. They depend on someone else to at least be there to help them transfer from their chair to the toilet.
Anyone who considers, for even a few seconds, what it must be like to have a handicap would have a far better idea of the challenges that exist just to live a normal life -- even in buildings supposedly made accessible. Whether we have a handicap or not, each of us is human and deserves to be treated equally and with respect.
Genevieve Teasley of Duluth works as a certified nursing assistant at Viewcrest Health Center, Duluth, and as a personal care assistant for Heartland PCA, Duluth.
