BedGate 2012 – Update on My Situation

I am so frustrated I could scream. I managed to get up long enough to wash my hair, and wheel around a little bit, but the loaner chair is only going to work in one or two hour increments. I contacted the company that took my wheelchair and they claim they aren’t having any problems with it. Though they haven’t flat out said it, they implied that I am making up all of this, perhaps because I want that new chair. I am sorry, but I’ve been an emotional wreck since I was stuck in Kettering and my tilt stopped working. My guess is that the problem starts after a few hours of usage or something like that. They now claim the accuator is no longer bad (which I was told by Chris the repair guy last time he came). They also claim Chris never yelled at Ashtyn. She is livid. We are looking for a new wheelchair repair company.

ATG Rehab has made it clear they won’t be pursuing a new wheelchair until I am due for one in August. They also said I have to get a new evaluation and the wheelchair clinic isn’t taking people until October. I’m so depressed right now, it isn’t even funny. I’m trapped in bed. I had to cancel work. We bought tickets for Wicked and had to push the date back until Sunday, but who knows if I will even be able to go because I may not even have my old, broken chair. It’s been a roller coaster ride, and I have had to cancel my pre-admissions testing for my surgery next week, as well as going into work. If I had different bosses I would be fired by now. I am not going to be getting paid very much because I cannot go into work, so all hope of saving up for a new wheelchair are lost. Of course, I’d be saving for a really long time, since chairs are so damn expensive.

How can companies get away with this? I told them I need my chair today, but they have to find out if they can find someone to pick up my chair. I may be stuck in bed until Monday, and yes, I will have to cancel work for that day. I have surgery next week, on Thursday, so that is another day of work I miss. Next week, I am two for two. I just think that what ATG Rehab is doing is unfair. To make matters worse they say I am blaming them. I am treating them like they are not doing anything. I am not lying about this chair not working and that is what I feel like they are saying I am doing. Yes, I am in desperate need of a new chair, but I would NEVER compromise myself, my job, etc. by making up lies about the chair not working. I have no idea why it is working now. If the controls are faulty, that may explain why they are going in and out.

The loaner chair came with no seatbelt (I can’t function without one). The controller has no knob on it and I cannot reach it, because my arms are not long enough, so when I get up in that, Ash has to help me drive. I have to have about 50 pillows around me to make sure I do not fall out of the chair. It’s okay around the house, for an hour or two (then I get pain in my back and hip) but then I have to go back to bed. Also, someone has to constantly help me tilt and adjust so they have to be at my beck and call every second while in the chair.

Further, Medicare is making it impossible for me to get anything reliable. I have had this chair in and out of repair every month for the past year. They want to keep fixing it, and wasting money. It’s a broken down heap, so a new chair purchase would be logical as it would save them money in the long run. New chair means (most likely) no repairs for a while. My first chair I only ever had in the shop when I needed new batteries and wheels (which is typical of chairs once a year). I want something reliable like that. I have a life to live and my life is being put on hold. I cannot even get to auditions for the films I am shooting this summer. This has turned into one big mess and all I want to do is to be able to get around, on my own. Is that too much to ask?