YouTube video showing how I get in and out of the car from the wheelchair! Please watch the video and see how I get in and out the car. Because of the work and energy that goes into getting out of car, I have a 30 minute rule of time I need to be out and about. So a quick in and out doesn't work very well for me.

Yoga

I attend a chair yoga class once a week in town. The instructors are physical therapist, whom have taken classes to learn chair yoga. The entire session is done sitting in a chair (wheelchair) using yoga movements. Breathing exercises is a big part of yoga and I have had huge benefits from learning how to breath correctly. Usually for me and many others the breathing is very short and quick, not filling up the lungs and breathing out the bad stuff. Lakshmi Voelker is the woman that created the yoga stretches and you can check out her dvd yourself.  http://www.amazon.com/Lakshmi-Voelker-Chair-Yoga-Single/dp/B001403RR8/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1317153033&sr=1-1 Namaste

My Arms

Lately when I see photos of me in short sleeves, my arms look so huge! I really hate looking at these photos because it makes me look so big overall. But, the other day when I was at Target, by myself, as I threw my wheelchair out of car I realized that I should love my arms. I needed to appreciate what my arms are able to do for me, they make me independent. So, they may not look really slim and beautiful, but they are so beautiful in a functional matter. Hating or disliking parts of our bodies are so unneeded!

The Reality!

The reality of sitting in a wheelchair is realizing it is a chair which you sit on. The chair doesn't define who you are and who you will become. The chair just travels with you. True, the arms get tired of making every push to move the body around. But, for now and who knows maybe forever, the chair is only a chair with big wheels.