I am reliant on a lot of technology to live my life. One of the most important pieces of technology and reliant on is my wheelchair, but this can break like any other piece of technology can. At the minute I am dealing with a few different wheelchair related problems including footplates that are the wrong height, alongside cushions that are no longer functional and batteries that do not work properly.

When I went to have a the cushion looked at recently I was told that not only do I need a new cushion but my foot plates were the wrong height. If I’m honest, I was confused by that because I’ve had a foot plates at this height for many years. But although I use these chairs, I don’t know a lot about sitting in them correctly so I believe the professional who saw me at my appointment and allow them to fix what they saw as the issue. They were hired but now my feet no longer stay on the foot plates.

While waiting for the cushions to be replaced, I found it was causing too much of a problem for me that my feet would not stay on the foot plate anymore, so I contacted them for a solution. But as if that wasn’t enough of a problem while waiting for solution to these two issues, I developed a problem with my batteries.

Again in trying to be helpful, I did something I’ve done many times before, I picked up some prescriptions for others and took it to them. By the time I got to the house, which isn’t all that far from mine, I had very little battery left in my wheelchair. I had to get someone to walk me home to make sure I got there okay without my chair stopping like it often does when the batteries are really dead. The only way to tell when the batteries is on my wheelchair are going is when they no longer last the distance that they previously did. There’s no indicator on the chair, or any way to really predict the batteries going before they start to go.

This means I had to call the wheelchair services that provide maintenance to my chair and book an appointment for them to replace my batteries as soon as possible. This was something they were able to do quicker than the other repairs I am waiting on, both because batteries are obviously more important but also because they are standard and more easily replaceable than other parts of the chair. But it means I have to put my life on hold to some extent until the batteries are replaced. I have plans tomorrow for example, but I may not be able to follow through on them depending how well my battery wants to work between now and when it will be changed on Monday.

While some people might understand a little bit about what it is like to be reliant on technology in modern society, as tech technology needed a lot. You can’t really understand what it is like to need technology like those with disabilities often do unless you’re in that situation. Technology doesn’t just make things easier, when you’re disabled, it makes things possible.

It can make life difficult, as I promise you it will usually brake at the most inappropriate time for it to brake. But in reality, there’s no good time for something that you need so much to brake. You just have to learn to get by as best you can, and wait for it to be repaired. But I really wish I didn’t have to rely on technology sometimes, especially when it doesn’t work properly.

Hopefully I’ll get my batteries changed on Monday, and the other problems fixed as soon as possible. Then nothing will go wrong with my chair, and I can get on with my life without having to stop it for broken vital technology, for a good while.