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Mobility Scooter
A mobility scooter becomes necessary when you can no longer walk long distances with another mobility aide like a cane or walker. You may still be able to walk short distances, but long trips, like those long grocery store aisles or mall shopping trips, may be a bit too much.
A scooter can help you keep your independence. Allowing you to continue doing your own shopping and running your own errands. It's especially good for places within your neighborhood. If you live near stores where you normally do your shopping, this is a perfect option for you.
It can also help you to conserve your energy. If you know about the spoons, then conserving enough of them to make it to the end of the day is a plus. And a scooter will make that possible to do when you use it to get around town instead of a manual wheelchair, rollator, walker, or cane.
They're especially useful when you live near a grocery store or shopping mall. Even if you live near a convenient store, this little mobility aide will make it that much easier for you to pop out for a quick trip when you only need a few things. And if you have a dog (or dogs), you can walk (or roll) them yourself!
There are so many things you can do with a mobility scooter. Check out this article from the National MS Society. (Link will open in a new window)
Transporting your scooter
There are several types of mobility scooters. If you intend to transport it to other places in your car or van, then it will either need to be one that can easily be taken apart. If not this, than lightweight enough for you and possibly someone else to lift into your vehicle.
Another method of getting a scooter into your car or van, is with a ramp fitted to your vehicle. There are also pull-down ramps that can be permanently attached to the back of your car with a hitch. It is let down and your scooter is driven onto it and strapped down. A mini version of a trailer, you could call it. If you live in areas with bad weather, you'll need to also have a cover when necessary.
If you are lucky enough to have a mobility van fitted with a lift, then your problem is solved. You simply ride your scooter onto the lift and press a button to lift it up to the level of the van. When it stops you can then ride it into the vehicle and tie it down. When you get to your destination, you have a way of getting around, especially when there are no more department store carts available. (We've had to leave the store and come back later a few times when that has happened.)
Which mobility scooter do you recommend?
Well, that's a good question. At this point we can only go by what Cir has used and what he would like to have in a scooter. The scooter he has now, he has had for many years. In that sense, we would definitely recommend it, because it has been very reliable. We have only had to get the battery replaced two, maybe three times over a period of about 8-10 years.
The one time we thought it was on it's last leg, the battery inside the scooter (or more accurately – under the housing), had become disconnected. After charging it for several days, we tried turning it on, but it just wouldn't work. When the repair guy arrived, he looked under the housing and low and behold, all he did was reconnect the battery cable and Voila! It worked.
It's a little battered and scuffed, but it's also very durable. It's been out and about our neighborhood several times. It even flipped over once, (with Cir in it – he wasn't hurt, thank goodness), and he was still able to make it home with no problem. When the battery begins losing it's charge too quickly, then a battery replacement is necessary. We had to push/pull it home a couple times when this happened.
We are also still able to lift it into the back of our station wagon when we need to, although it is getting more difficult. First we remove the seat by way of a small latch release on the left side. I do this by straddling the middle of the scooter facing the seat and with my back to the handle bar. I release the latch and lift the seat straight up and place it in the car. It is rather heavy, but when I do it this way, it's manageable.
Since that mobility scooter, Cir has had another one, and now he has a pretty souped up powerchair which he loves. For getting around, though, he has a lightweight wheelchair. It's not a scooter, but just as good at getting him from point a to point b and a little easier to transport if I have to compare the older ones to the one he has now.
Want to read the rest of the story? Go here to read part 2 of mobility scooter.
Go from Mobility Scooter back to Living with MS - Mobility Issues
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