09/07/2026
I want to talk about using mobility aids when you look able bodied...
Yesterday I went to the PNE fair, something I do every summer with my children and we thoroughly enjoy. We do everything, every exhibit, show and market. You can accumulate many steps even when taking your time looking around and the hours slip by without you even realizing.
I have t1 diabetes and with it, I also have neuropathy and autonomic nerve damage. As with many T1s I have also collected other autoimmune diagnoses over the years, one of them being rheumatoid arthritis.
Walking around the fair yesterday I quickly realized that I was going to suffer for it for days afterwards. I started to limp quite early on, the pain started in my feet, then my knees, hips, elbows, shoulder and even my finger joints all started to swell and throb with pain. It wasnāt just the joint pain, it was nerve pain too. The thing is, I was at the fair as a mom and my children wanted to see everything. Half way around I was reaching the point of pain where I was quietly calculating how much more I could tolerate before having to surrender, pick a place to sit and have to wait alone while they finished the rest without me. Then I turned past another row of market vendors and I saw itā¦ a mobility scooter rental booth.
I paused. Embarrassed if Iām honest, that I was even considering renting one. Yes I was limping but I probably look fine, would they judge me for asking for one? I really got in to my own head and my own embarrassment but then I gave myself a moment to acknowledge how much pain I was actually in. So I walked over and asked if I could take one for an hour.
Did I feel embarrassed using a scooterā¦ yes! Was it worth itā¦ also 100% yes! So this is just a little reminder to my other chronic spooniesā¦ take the aids when you can! If I had let my own insecurities win yesterday, I would have missed out on summer moments with my children. The mobility aid gave me some much needed relief from pain but more than that, it gave me what is most important to me, the mom moments!
