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Special Needs, Mobility and Disabled Use Information and discussion for those with special needs interested in the Segway.

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Old 07-01-2003, 04:28 AM   #11
mzokc
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My Segway would drift to the right during the first month. It was caused by putting more weight on the right foot. Now that I am more balanced, there is no more drift and my balance in all activities is better.

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Old 07-01-2003, 04:49 AM   #12
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My take on "Invisable Disabled" is a positive thought.
This has come from challenged people that I have given demos. They have made this whole thing so rewarding.

Unlike when in a wheelchair, walker, or even a cane,and would stand out.... a challenged person appears to be like everyone else when on a HT.




"Life's a wheelie when you're on a Segway"
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Old 07-01-2003, 05:13 AM   #13
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Hi Jill! My legs are about 62 years old. I could walk forever in my teens and twenties. In the last 5 or ten years I never believed I needed any help going short distances. My knees and legs hurt sometimes and I didn't want to go roaming much any more. But I was fine. Now - I hate it when I have to leave home without my Segway. I have my 20 year old legs back again. Wheee! I'm giddy again!!! Lincoln

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Old 07-01-2003, 03:15 PM   #14
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My wife has severe Scoliosis which limits her ability to walk more than a few blocks without experiencing fatigue and pain. This was the reason for our purchasing the Segway and so far it has been a big success. I am currently researching getting a new car with a cargo area and an electric hoist so that Emily can use the Segway wherever she needs to go without my help loading & unloading the Segway.
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Old 07-02-2003, 12:01 PM   #15
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I have a prostetic left leg above the knee. I think the Segway could impove my mobility alot but I want to try one out first before I buy. The only thing I question; my left leg is stiff unless I release the knee and bend it. If the left wheel went up on something and I did not notice it was coming, my leg would be straight and it could throw me to the right and maybe off the Segway. If I knew the wheel would be going up over a bump I could release the knee and bend it and that would solve the problem. I would have to try something like this to see if it would be a problem. When you have a physical limitation you consider all things, what ever you do.
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Old 07-02-2003, 01:19 PM   #16
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Scotty, I would always suggest a demo ride. The other thing I would suggest is that if you get an HT, that you stay very attuned to the area that you're gliding over. Although the glide is very intuitive, you still are more of an active participant in it than you are, even, in a car.
Check the search feature and see if there's anyone near you in Ohio. Maybe you could email them and work out a demo ride. Or... go to the Segway page http://www.segway.com/connect/locator/
and look up the name of the dealer in OH. I don't know if they're anywhere near you, but you're one of the few states with a dealer.
Good luck!
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Old 07-02-2003, 05:41 PM   #17
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Scotty
If and when you do get to glide don't go beyond the yellow key. The slower speeds will be less jarring and will help anticipate bumps. The higher turning speeds need a little bending of the knees.
If you get Segway, wear a helmet, if you get tossed you won't have to add a head injury to your health issues.

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Old 07-03-2003, 11:48 PM   #18
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Hi ...greet thread and apologies to JillMac for starting another similiar one.

The reason for Segway benefits mostly seems to be
1) added mileage without fatigue!

This is great..(also I guess obvious)
I'm fascinated by comments about balance. "herpos" can stand for 90 mins on a HT but could previosly only sytand for 10????

If this balance capability for people is improved this is a HUGE +ve issue.

Great tosee and hear the comments and keep themcoming.

As stated we are trying to set to set up a trial center so that people with any mobility issue could come and try the Segway with some professional assitance, safety harness, whatever was required.. (all as a not for profit try before you buy!)
http://www.monash.edu.au/rehabtech/pub/tlink/jun03.pdf

Keep the comments coming and I'll tyry and post back feedback!

(Wish I could link topic
http://www.segwaychat.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=4154

also
http://www.segwaychat.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=871
http://www.segwaychat.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=4122
(Gliding with Parkinsons)
http://www.segwaychat.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=3306
(getting Segway onto planes for people with mobility issues
..to this one)



Bill Contoyannis
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Centre for Biomedical Engineering - Monash University
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Old 07-04-2003, 09:45 AM   #19
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Bill - No apologies needed - you can start a thread on anything you like - I just wanted to point you in this direction so you could check out some of the existing posts.

The balance thing seems very curious to me. Just general balance issues are more obvious - you are holding onto handlebars which steady you - same as a walker, similar to a cane (but a cane is obviously less stable). So this steadies you.

When walking with a cane I am constantly scanning the path ahead watching for small rocks, depressions etc. and also tend to have a side to side 'roll' with my gait. Falls are too frequent and this body, as it ages, does not recover from falls quite the way it did in years gone by.

I often 'wander' through lack of coordination and bump into walls, counters etc. when my balance decides to take me in another direction to the one my brain intended. Because at most times I look pretty good healthwise this can lead people to thinking I am drunk or just a little strange. Even when I have less use for it and am doing well I tend to keep my cane with me to "explain" for a sudden 'wander' into something!

Another type of balance problem for me is true vertigo. Not just a level of dizziness, or not being sure-footed, but the full throttle, room spinning nightmare of vertigo. This is a fairly common symptom of MS and can be absolutely disabling for some.

Mine is easily triggered by such things as scanning shelves in grocery stores looking for a product, waiting to cross a street with cars flashing by, strobe lights and more often than not, for no obvious reason at all. Fortunately for me sitting or standing with my eyes closed for a while will often result in things slowing down and the room returning to an even keel.

I had tremendous misgivings regarding the Segway before it arrived at my door. I believed that the balance issue would be somewhat of a problem, but was hoping it wouldn't make the Segway totally unusable.

Amazingly, in the months that I have been using it I have never once had a balance issue with it either from just straighforward dizziness, or from vertigo. I am astounded! Lazarus (from this forum) also has MS and has balance and vertigo problems. Previously she had used a wheelchair or scooter, but now zips around on her Segway and agrees, no problems with balance or vertigo. We are both curious as the the medical reasons for this.

Incidently, I pass several senior living buildings in my area and regularly get stopped by someone using a walker to get around. They are always full of questions and I am sure a lot of these folks could be helped by the use of the Segway.

Jill

Nothing is inexplicable, merely unexplained..... Dr. Who
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Old 07-04-2003, 01:12 PM   #20
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Hi, y'all! First post here from me (although I'm known to Jillmac--hi, Jill!).

I have MS, and like several people here, I am able to walk with a cane, and I take wheelchairs and carts in large stores. I have major spasticity, a too-mobile pelvis, a dropped foot that is beginning to club, and almost no ability to bend my right knee. Walking is no longer a pleasant experience for me.

I have long dreamt of owning a Segway, and I just had a friend send me, out of the clear blue sky, the money to buy one! I have yet to decide whether I am capable of accepting such a generous gift, but I am considering it. So I'm glad to be here and see how it has helped other disabled people, especially those with balance issues. I've worried a bit about that. I'm not vertiginous--just lose balance because of using my strong side so much and likewise destabilizing my hip from two years of walking and standing with my weight shifted heavily to the left.

I am buying a house soon, and I have yet to decide whether the Seg would be good for the neighborhood I'm leaning toward. I also am interested in reading many other considerations about the Seg before buying one, but that it would be helpful for someone with ambulatory problems such as mine is without question!! To be able to move along, standing up, with no pain and at the same height as my companions--what a marvelous thing! (Hey! Dean Kamen! Want a girlfriend? Hee hee. Bless yer sweet heart, wherever you are.)

Looking forward to reading and writing here. (Oh, and Jill, if you know what has happened to our "other forum,"--if it is actually gone or what--please drop me a line. This loss of it has been driving me crazy! So good to see a familiar face again, so to speak.)

Best regards,

Bou





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