Becky is excited about the mobility scooter she is getting. A lot of thought and planning has gone into deciding on the right one for her to suit her disability and give her more independence. She talks about how access to the park from where she lives is not possible for wheelchair and mobility scooter users due to the barriers to keep off road bikes out and explains how she has to risk access every time she just goes across the road to the shops due to her disabilities.

We were talking about your. New adventure with your. My mobility scoops, yeah, well, for years since since Terry had the car taken, um. I've been really restricted on what I can and can't do because of my physical disabilities, but also some of the psychological, but mostly physical, um, and that what that is

Um, I have non-epileptic fits. I've got fibromyalgia. Um, I have um flashbacks and panic attacks, which are something else

um I've got permanent brain damage from um a coma I was in, and then a lot of head trauma through an ex-partner. Um, But um, Yeah, and memory and memory, um, problems um due to that. So it can be quite nerve-wracking going out and about and for ages I've been wanting to go down the vale and to do things just to, you know, to be independent

And I was thinking about getting one of these kids scooters, but I ended up killing myself on it or freezing to death on it, so that would just be, it just wouldn't work. So I took the leap and I thought, right, I'm struggling to carry the stuff I need to carry because of like my bowel operations and stuff, but also making sure I'm physically able to get on and off buses and being able to have the energy to get back. Um, and You know, but also to to be able to, and that's in the daytime, but also to get to and participate in the in my NA meetings

Um, so I have to, I, I have to be really limited on what I do in the daytime, because otherwise I can't get to the meetings, which is so important for my continued stability. Um. So I, I got um my um I checked with um and and thought right, I'm gonna get a mobility scooter, but um

Because of my problems, I can't have one with the rain flaps from my ability, cause I'm entitled to that. So I've had to go down the finance route and there's one which is lockable, because I can move about, but, you know, it, it does make things hard work and I'm struggling to carry my bag and my water bottle. And then there's all these me fits, and, you know

Trying to find somewhere to lie down and then recovering from it, when I, when I realised one's coming on, but also um. You know, the fear of people nicking my bag or, you know, robbing me or taking advantage of me when I'm in that kind of state. So this is, um, it's a, it's a cabin car

You show me a picture and it looks amazing. Yeah, well, it's, it's enclosed. um, so I won't get a draught because I with the others, I did try them, um, to test them, and I was like, if I'm going to a meeting at night

And there's a wind coming, if I get caught in the wind, I'm gonna, I'm gonna get to the meeting, I won't be able to get in because I won't be able to move and I'll be in so much pain. So this one, it's got an, an internal heater and it's got doors. Um, I've got a little windscreen wipers

It's got really good, um, lights, so I can get to my meetings. And it's got a lot of storage space as well, and a little boot pack that you can attach. So I can, and it's lockable

So I can just, I can go for the coffees in Stockport, and I can go to Edgeley to do the knitting, the sewing group and You know, um, I can tootle down to like Vernon Park and just sit and do my step work in there, you know, and I can, if I'm feel like I'm, I'm gonna have a fit, I can just hop in it and I'm safe, you know, and I can just sort of get myself together in that, you know, and not be worried about someone snapp having my handbag off, you know, cause it's, you know, or lying in. You know, muck, cos I don't like to show me vulnerabilities and I've always worn a mask because. In my experience, if you show your vulnerabilities, people will target you and that's why

It shocked a lot of people, me getting one. And I didn't want to get one because it shows my v vulnerabilities, but. You know, the, the, the positives outweigh the negatives

It's just, I've been looking on routes to go cause I'd love to go start going down the vale again, cause I love the Vale, I love the nature. It is really, really close, but if I can't go down on my own and my partner isn't very good either, health wise, so he'd struggle. Um, So You know, I, I've, I've sort of, um, realised now, um, that even though I've got the cabin car and I can get to like some of the mainstream parks, um, going down the vale on the TransPennine Way, or going to the Reddish veil, um, ponds, um, I can't do that because they're all locked off

They're either the horse things which I wouldn't be able to go across, but also the bike, um things. Yeah, the barriers, but obviously you can't take a mobility scooter I've never thought of that. Yeah, um

And you can't even take a wheelchair down there, so it's like, and the bikes are all over anyway, they're mostly on the roads. So it's like. The, the, the barriers don't work anyway

Nobody opens the barriers on a regular basis, you know, to get the cars through and stuff, um. And there's no way that anyone would be able to get through the bike barrier things in a wheelchair or mobility scooter, so. Um, that, what's the path like, generally, can you

The paths, yeah, the paths are fantastic. um. The main ones anyway, there are some which used to go around Castle Hill school that used to be brilliant, but they're not very good anymore, they've just been left to to to to back and ruin

Um, But yeah, even the main, the main bride always, you can't, you can't get on it because of all the barriers and stuff. And that's a really good point, you know, because it's, you know, I never thought of that, but it's, it's until you're in the, in the shoes and you know, like you have, have to use a wheelchair or you use a mobility scooter, you don't realise, do you? Yeah, yeah. And

I mean, I've got a friend with one leg, and he'd struggle to walk down there on his sticks. And given he's only got one leg and two arms, he'd really struggle to get through the barriers. You know, so it's basically inaccessible for anyone who's got mobility issues

And yeah, which is such a shame because it's such a fantastic facility and it and it's really good for mental health and. You know, being in the fresh air for me, it, you know, I could quite happily camp in a field, um, which I have done because it's like you can hear the nature sound, you can smell, um, the nature and, you know, in the summer you can smell the wild garlic and stuff. Um

And you know, you could, it would be lovely to be able to walk around the pond and to visit the visitors centre, um. But you can't because you can't get in, you know, it's, that's a really good point and I definitely will highlight that sort of on, on the clip as well in, in writing and mention it parks. It's just, I mean, people with disabilities and everything tend to be so much more isolated anyway, especially if they've got physical problems

And You know, even people with COPD, you know, getting out in the fresh air would be great, but, you know, walking down there and you just wouldn't be able to do it, but they might be able to walk a little bit, do you know what I mean? But of course you can't get down there to do the walk or to sit on a bench to watch the nature, the birds and you know, the ducks and the geese and stuff, um, or even participating in like. Um, fishing, you know, um, or guided, guided walks, you know, um, I mean, it's a shame because down south, they do mobility scooter, um. Um, walks and they, they actually have like

Loads of off-road mobility scooters and you can book and and they go out um once a week and they do the trails because they've been made disability, um, yeah, yeah. So people who would be cooped up in a home, you know, unable to move or whatnot, um, they can, they can, even if they don't have one of those off-road mobility scooters, they can go to these places and they can lend one so they can do things together. That's great

Will it, will it boost confidence as well, because Some people would be too nervous about going down there on their own. So I mean, when I get mine. I'm gonna, I've already got a couple of people who are gonna come out on my first run with me and

Yeah, yeah, um, my maiden voyage. We haven't got a date yet. It's, it's just getting

We've upgraded the batteries and the guys at at at the place are awesome. They ring me all the time, um, Jane, hopefully when it gets back from the, from the sprayers and it's all checked and sorted, I'll be able to have it late next week. I'm hoping to

Oh, that's amazing. It's gonna be my life so much more um better because I'm not gonna have to worry. Am I doing too much in the day, even the walk from the bus stop kills me off and with the weather, it's just awful, so

Yeah, it sort of strikes me that there is so much planning ahead, you have to do. Oh yeah, I have to do a safety plan every day, even if it's just going to the shop because sometimes I have to get Terry to come with me, cause I wanna go to the shop on my own, to have a look at what's what's what's there and have a bit of a browse. But like, even though it's only over the road from me, um, I can't always do that safely on my own

You know, getting across the road and then being OK, you know, cause I don't want something to happen. You know, so I I I've taking up a lot of your time. Thank you so much

Thank you..

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