[Blind-rollers] New Member

Mon Jun 15 22:56:55 UTC 2009

Hi Beccky and Tygh!!

My name is Diane and I have a daughter,Dani---she is 24 years old with spina bifida and totally blind.  She just went blind about 2 years ago......so she has alot of catch-up learning braille and JAWS!  Now her shoulders are having problems.  She has always been in a manual wheelchair   but now we are trying to get her into a power chair........she has great cane skills, but Fl State medicaid willl not approve one for her...I am SO frustrated!!  

I have contacted blind serv ices, advocasy groups and everyone thinks it is impossible for her to handle a power chair!!  We sent a video of her using one all round her own apartment and the rehab center and they thought it was "fixed"!!   She has very good "awareness".  We are hoping to get her a service dog as well========and they require a power chair !!!

If you don"t mind, would you please send a letter of support.  Thanks so much.......

Diane Sapiro
 -------------- Original message from TYGH HALES <mrwheelz63 at msn.com>: --------------

> 
> Welcome back, Holly! 
> 
>  
> My name is Becky, and my husband Tygh (pronouced Ty) is a legally blind electric wheelchair user. He has used an electric wheelchair for a good 15 years now, since high school, and he's 35 now. He has had a variety of different electric wheelchairs, and not only one to get to high school, but has also used them on oh, about 6 different college campuses, and travelling to conventions & whatnot, as well as getting around whatever towns we have lived in. Trust me, he wears 
> his chairs out! lol. 
> In all his 15+ years of using an electric scooter or wheelchair, he has only tipped his chair twice, I believe. The first time was as a freshman college student, he was driving down a sidewalk in a couple inches of freshly fallen snow and wasn't able to tell that he was going off the sidewalk. The second time, he was going down a street and was too far over and on a steep grade. Both times, the chair just tipped on its side. Yes, he was stuck there until someone 
> came to help him, but neither time was he injured. 
>  
> > From: mommaholly at gmail.com
> > To: blind-rollers at nfbnet.org
> > Date: Sun, 14 Jun 2009 00:06:23 -0400
> > Subject: [Blind-rollers] New Member
> > 
> > Hello everyone. I was on this list once before, but got off of it for
> > whatever reason. Now I am back with more questions and needing support.
> > 
> > I am totally blind and while I was pregnant with my son 2 years ago I
> > started losing my hearing. Now I have lost one hear completely and the
> > other ear mostly. Since the tuor that I have is an acoustic neuroma on
> > the 8th nerve which controls not only hearing, but also balance, well
> > I'm vertually drunk all day every day. 
> > 
> > With each day that passes my balance get worse and worse. I have fallen
> > countless times. I am afraid that oone of these day I'm going to fall
> > and break my nec or something very very dangerous. Right now I live in
> > Asheville, NC which is in the mountains. That is like even worse with
> > the balance. Right now I use a walker, but it still can't make me catch
> > myself whenever I'm already falling. My vistibular system is wack.
> > 
> > So I'm leaning more to a power chair. I have tumors in my spine and
> > don't think I would be strong enough to push myself, especially up all
> > these sloping sidewalks, driveways, etc of the mountains of Asheville.
> > I am going to be moving back to Arkansas, flat land, soon though just
> > because these mountains are killing me. I'm afraid to go out of my
> > house alone afraid of falling. I always feel like crying when I go out.
> > It's so hard and I have to concentrate so intently not to lose my
> > balance and thinking about it only make the balance worse and I have to
> > go sooooo slow.
> > 
> > So I think really a chair would be best for me. I just am suck because
> > balance is terrible now, but being in a chair, will that make it worse?
> > My right leg is already weak. The quads are basically non existant and
> > PT never could get it back. There's nerve damage and really not way to
> > get it back. I have nothing to lock my knees so it can buckle very
> > easily. And since that leg is not strong I have trouble keepingthe
> > balance, then throw in all the other vistibular problems.
> > 
> > How does mobility in a chair work? Is it hard? One thing I was
> > thinkingabout, I know I'm paranoid. I know there are seat belts, but
> > what if the chair tips overand you're strapped in then that heavy chairs
> > falls on you. What would you do? How likely is it to tip? Have any of
> > you tipped it?
> > 
> > Also what would be the best type of chair to get considering I'm blind
> > and don't have my own car to adapt and also won't have public
> > transportation in Arkansas to call a Van and make surethey have a lift
> > and those little wheel locks like paratranset. Would a folding
> > powerchair be good? Do any of you have one of those?
> > 
> > Help, I'm full of question. Smiles.
> > 
> > Holly
> > 
> > 
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