Things they don't tell you about being a first time wheelchair user in highschool
Literally everyone will ask if you broke your leg(s). Everyone. Even people you donât know. Theyll ask a lot and think youâre extremely fragile.
bruises show up within the first day of rolling around, and they can really suck
people will try to grab your chair if they think youâre struggling and it can be hard not to snap at them for it
static electricity is a huge issue. You will probably either continuously shock your leg when youâre rolling around or do what I did today and zap someone so hard as you pass that both of you nearly keel over
people will call you out as a faker if you do anything even remotely fun ever on your wheelchair. Wheelies? Obviously your legs are fine lol not like you have to go down fucking curbs /s
puddles are the worst and if thereâs a curb with a puddle all around and you have some ability to walk its a better idea to just stand up and navigate the chair than to fall backwards into said puddle
weird looks from people are inevitable, especially from people who donât like you
bus drivers will often push your chair and give you advise you donât want to hear, even if you tell them nicely you can push yourself. Its really hard not to get mad at them for it
no wheelies in school. Though if you do it in the elevator when no one else is with you you canât really get caught.
speaking of wheelies, always be ready to throw at least one arm behind you in case you fall. They say tuck your chin in but its easier and more reliable to throw your hands back and keep your neck up so you donât hit the floor. Sore arms are way easier to put up with than head injuries
donât even bother to try and roll back up curbs. You will either be there for an hour or fall backwards. I managed to do both.
90% of classrooms that arenât special ed are not very wheelchair accessible.
people will automatically assume youâre faking something if youâre not considered dumb enough in their standards to fit in with disabled students (aka high class ableism at its finest)
people are going to give you weird looks if you donât suddenly start sitting with the other disabled kids
standard backpacks usually dangle way too much to keep on you easily, so try to pack light
built in storage on wheelchairs cannot sufficiently carry books
donât try to hold an umbrella. Period. Especially not with your teeth. It doesnât work.
donât try to give the bus driver your ticket while youâre stuck on the ramp. And speaking of, its easy to start falling down the bus ramp so be careful, and when in doubt throw on the breaks
and finally if youâre like me pray to god you donât go nonverbal when someone is trying to push you and you donât want them to because it is hard to get them to stop if you canât speak
able-bodied people can and should 1000% reblog this, some of these things Iâve seen on tips about using a wheelchair but a lot of these werenât things Iâve seen
