A quick update on my ability to walk

When it comes to walking in recent years it has come with an increased risk of falling. A real wake up call came two years ago when a small pebble caused me to fall scraping my knee and elbow pretty badly. It actually took two men to assist me in being able to get back up. Then on a walk with my wife a year later I suffered another nasty fall after coming across some uneven pavement. At that point I decided I had to stop going on walks with my wife. Now the last wake up call came after a long day of walking resulted in me experiencing debilitating hip pain for two weeks. I knew at that moment it was time to start using a mobility scooter.

See these days if I push myself too far now I pay for it dearly, even a visit to my local Costco can be physically overwhelming. Over the last few years I’ve even started using the shopping cart like a walker as it keeps me from falling if and when one of my legs starts giving out. I simply have to spend so much energy focusing on not falling, I often get to the point that my legs start getting weak making me feel like I should be sitting down. This has often led to moments of near panic and me wanting to rush out of the store immediately.

Now whenever I am having a tough day which I often refer to as a “Weak Day” having the ability to take my mobility scooter would be essential in me avoiding the fatigue & exhaustion that comes from me walking too much. So yes I can still walk but have to be very careful now, as a simple fall could result in me never walking again. One last example I will use is whenever I am visiting a doctor's office I now have to remain standing because if I sit down it is near impossible for me to get back up.   

So I now find myself in that in-between stage of still being able to walk but needing to listen to my body and the difficulties my leg muscles can face in just keeping me up. As you can see avoiding injury from a fall is the most important thing for me, this is the reality for many of us as we age with Muscular Dystrophy. So I truly look forward to being able to use my mobility scooter out in my community whenever I need while enjoying the new found freedom and safety it brings.