Wheelchair Question

[margaretCT]

We are taking my dad (80) to WDW in January. He is pretty mobile (2 hip replacements, bypass) around home but will use wheelchair in WDW. We have done this in the past and it worked out pretty well except when we went in December 2000 and it was cold and he got cold just sitting in the wheelchair. He will occassionally get out of wheelchair and walk while pushing the WC so he won't get stiff and walking will also warm him up some.

Anyway, my question is, how do you stay warm in a WC, especially if it is windy and you are the one in front breaking the wind (so to speak) for those behind you. When we were there in December, we always made sure we stayed in the sun and this helped, but obviously we couldn't do this at nighttime!

Any tips would be appreciated.

Thanks

Margaret in CT

 

[Nanajo1]

I would bring a light weight blanket, an added layer should help. When my hands and head are cold I feel really cold. So gloves and some kind of hat might help.
Have a great trip.

 

[SueM in MN]

i agree with Nanajo. The head is the place where you lose the most heat from your bosy, so keeping your hands and head covered will help a lot. We have a small fleece blanket that we cover DD's legs with when she is waiting for the school bus in winter.
Another possibility is going to a sporting goods store that sells things for hunters. Since most hunters are sitting still for long periods of time, they have come up with quite a few clever things like battery operated warming socks and seat cushions that warm up.

 

[Andrew Bichard]

Margaret,

I was at WDW December 2000 too. It got so cold on NYE after the sun went down, my wife and I were back in bed shivering by 11:30. We couldn'teven manage to stay for the fireworks!!

I had layers, layers and layers - T shirt, sweater, two jackets and a mexican blanket and was still too cold in my chair. I understand It was an all time record cold for Orlando!!.

Here in the UK there are suppliers of special wheelchair clothing. I have a kind of shortened sleeping bag to keep my legs warm, though I never took it to Disney with me. It occurs to me, that a regular sleeping bag with a long zip would be just as good.

And take hats and gloves with you. Other than baby sizes, the only hats we could fing were santa hats with mickey ears, and the only gloves around were short of one finger.

Andrew

 

[margaretCT]

Thanks for the ideas! We have a fleece blanket that should pack up nicely. Good ideas about the hats. My dad usually just wears a baseball cap and I doubt that does much good. My husband has a fur-lined cap with ear flaps that I think will do much better. And we have a medical supply company nearby that I didn't think of checking out. I will visit there and the sporting goods store and see what we can come up with!.

Thanks again.

Margaret in CT

 

[SueM in MN]

Andrew's idea about layers was good too. My older DD and I went to WDW a few years ago over New Years. We packed lots of layers and added and subtracted things as we got too warm or cold. We saw quite a few people who had just brought coats. All they could do was have the coats on, have them zipped or not or have them off. We were much more able to "fine tune" what we had on to adapt to things like being in or our of the sun, wind or going into a building. That's very important because once you get too hot and start sweating, it's very easy to chill. Wet clothes conduct cold into the skin and you will have a much harder time warming up.

 

[scroot]

Don't forget a pair of gloves for the pusher of the chair. If it is chilly constant exposure of the hands can be uncomfortable.

 

[Alaska]

I have seen a website for a company that specializes in wheelchair accessories, such as canopies and gear bags. I seem to recall that they also had specialty wheelchair outerwear, such as rain ponchos and warm coats that wrapped around the lower body like a sleeping bag. I cannot recall the name, but I recall that they advertise in the Exceptional Parent catalogue. I would do a search using the words "wheelchair" and "canopies" and I think you will find it. It might give you some good ideas.