Spinal Injury Wheelchair Skills Training Day
- The Painless Artist
- Apr 4
- 2 min read
Updated: Apr 7
I'm grateful to the team at the Cauda Equina Champions Charity who kindly supported me in funding a peer-led spinal injury wheelchair training day with Stuart from Freedom Wheelchair Skills.
Stuart kindly travelled to see me and my daily surroundings and what daily challenges I face, as I transition into using the wheelchair in my daily life and a few phone discussions prior to training day.
It's been a daunting journey from having reduced mobility through having cauda equina syndrome twice, and the level of pain which I tried to push through and soldier on, so to speak. The charity knows first-hand the impact of CES, and Stuart bridged that gap.
Stuart kindly went through the safety and how to correctly use the wheelchair, he has a few funny stories to share whilst having a breather and a good sense of humour. We worked on going up and down kerbs and the best way to approach them, it worked so really pleased.
We negotiated a mix of road and pavement surfaces and how to confidently use fixed furniture to make life easier, which worked.
We visited the local high street and the correct way to open doors when using a wheelchair without needing others to assist. More importantly, a coffee refreshment and a toilet pitstop, without realising it, I was using the training straightaway...and I remembered the infamous RADAR key!
Back to the training, and we worked on skills in the 1st session, and put them into practice negotiating the route back. We used the grass to work on finding my centre of balance, in order to lift the front wheel castors. It took a while, but I got there. 😀
The training has really helped me to become more confident as a new wheelchair user. I'm practising the skills as shown and it's becoming second nature, the more I'm using it. This has helped me to be more confident and independent as a person with multiple disabilities, and I'm looking to explore the wider world in my wheelchair.
Many thanks to Stuart from Freedom Wheelchair Skills and The Cauda Equina Champions Charity for their help and support in making lives and families living with CES better.
Thank you for reading!
For more information on wheelchair training and the services the charity can offer:
Helpline: 03335 777113 - FREE Helpline is open Monday to Friday 9.00 am to 4.00 pm
Email: info@championscharity.org.uk
Call: 07973 283376
