My Journey with Walkers and Braces

Some women collect shoes. Some collect handbags. Apparently, I collect medical equipment.

At last count, I had four leg braces and four walkers. Eight pieces of equipment—all designed to help one pair of legs cooperate.

You might wonder why anyone needs four walkers. Believe me, so do I.

There is the everyday walker, the backup walker, the walker that folds more easily, and the walker that seemed like a good idea at the time. Each one has its own personality, strengths, and special way of running into the furniture.

Then there are the leg braces. One is more comfortable, one is more supportive, one works better with certain shoes, and one appears to exist solely to remind me how much money medical equipment costs.

Finding the right mobility equipment is rarely simple. Our bodies change. Our needs change. Something that worked six months ago may no longer provide enough support today. Sometimes we order something with great hope, only to discover that it pinches, rubs, slips, or requires an engineering degree to put on.

So the collection grows.

I used to look at all this equipment and see evidence of everything I had lost. Now I am trying to see it differently. Every brace and walker represents another attempt to remain safe, mobile, and as independent as possible.

They are not signs that I have given up. They are proof that I keep adapting.

Still, four braces and four walkers seem a little excessive. Perhaps I should arrange them by season. I could have a lightweight spring walker, a sporty summer model, something cozy for fall, and a heavy-duty winter edition.

Maybe I don’t have a medical-equipment collection.

Maybe I simply have options.

After everything my body and I have been through, I have earned the right to accessorize.

Reflection

How often have you struggled with having to use mobility equipment?

What has made it easier for you to utilize your medical equipment?

I believe we all have a visual to some degree of how we imagined our lives would look right now, sans the medical equipment.

I would love to hear from you, to see how you are dealing with life’s challenges.

Healing in progress—and apparently, building a walker wardrobe on my journey home

Julie Payne