A paraplegic is a person who has severely injured his or her spinal cord and as a result has become physically disabled. Most of the paraplegics have to remain in bed for the rest of their lives or in a wheelchair. Paraplegics who can still use a wheelchair are much luckier as they can be mobile and today, there are several options for mobility.

A paraplegic is also a person who is paralyzed from waist to their feet. Some of them have no feeling in this part of the body while others may have a sensation but no motion. Such people can actually use wheelchairs to move around the house. Assistive devices that are available today are much more advanced than the normal wheelchair. A person like a paraplegic can actually hope to live a normal life with the help of such devices.

Manual wheelchairs require a person to manually control and steer the vehicle which will require quite some physical strength. It is almost equal to rowing a boat in a pond. While a person with normal strength might find it easy, it is definitely not an easy task for a paraplegic. The automated wheelchairs are battery powered and can actually move with a press of a button. Also, the steering is much easier with powered equipment with dynamic and hydraulic functions. However there are several of them available in the assistive devices market and choosing the right one is very important.

Different people have different seating needs and one should always give the first preference to their needs.

By: Pauline Go

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