Ella Gets a New Wheelchair

A loud horn. Headlights and backlights. Hazard lights. Turn signals. Tilt features. Ella’s new wheelchair has arrived!

We’ve been waiting for her new chair for one to two months now — and it’s finally here. It goes faster than her old chair as it is the latest model. The seat part of it is a little too big, but we’ll get that adjusted soon. When she has to go into the car we have to use tie-downs to secure the chair. We’ve gotten used to having the EZ Lock system, but a minor adjustment on our part and she’s good to go.

Ella is very proud of her new chair, and she’s proud that she learned how to drive it so quickly. It’s a tad bit bigger than her former chair, and she had a steep learning curve to overcome. She did great.

A wheelchair designed for a nonambulatory person is quite a personal thing. Ella is very protective of the chair as it is her only means to get around. She doesn’t want anyone touching the controls or going on the back for a ride. I’m sure that will change soon as she gets used to maneuvering the chair.

Currently, it doesn’t have a spot for the chest strap that she’s to wear while in the car, so we simply tie the straps around the chair and secure it that way. When we talk with the Permobil rep next time, we’ll see if they can fix that aspect of the chair alongside getting a seat that is slightly smaller.

She’s having a blast with the new speed that this chair offers. We just hope our walls can take it!

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