some questions

[lolathechecker]

ive heard everyone talking about things, and they are mostly milestones my kid hasnt hit yet, but i dont know what you guys mean. like finding an appropriate bathroom. what does that mean? theres more, and i cant remember it all right now, but ill ask as i think of it.

[Dodger67]

"Finding an appropriate bathroom" - for me is a place that one can get into with a wheelchair and is clean! A UTI picked up during a roadside pee can really spoil a vacation trip.
I carry a small bottle of hypochlorite disinfectant on long trips or visits to unknown places - just in case the bathroom (and particularly the handbasin where I rinse my catheter) is less than sparkling.

The developmental milestones for babies I can't comment on, sorry.

[technovicki]

'an appropriate bathroom' - CLEAN bathroom with soap (although I usually have my own) when out in public, which is pretty much anywhere that is not my own or my parents bathroom.

[Barb]

Big enough too. For us both C and I need to be able to manuever in it. A trash can in the stall is very important as well.

[lolathechecker]

thanks, also, i have heard you talk about some inconveniences like finding good shoes, do alot of people with sb have smaller feet? and what is a cecostomy?:sign0009:

[angel]

I know a lot of people with SB do have small feet. I am 31 years old and i wear a size 1 in childrens. So for me searching through the sea of dora the explorer and barbie shoes is a little dishartning at times. THANK GOD FOR MARY KATE AND ASHLEY. Without them i would be doomed to having bows and sparkles on all my shoes!!!!!

Angel

[Justy Me]

In terms of public bathrooms--- is it just me, or....do girls just seem to go in the accessible stalls to put their jackets up, or so that they can "fix" their clothing or lil things like that.....it irritates me to no end. I sometimes end up having to wait for the ONE stall I can get into to become unoccupied, and when the person comes out they never look me in the eye. It is almost as if they know they did something wrong. Able-bodied people have four or five stalls to choose from and yet they pick ours. WHY?????? I just had to get that off my chest

[Barb]

thanks, also, i have heard you talk about some inconveniences like finding good shoes, do alot of people with sb have smaller feet? and what is a cecostomy?:sign0009:
http://www.cecostomy.com/Introduction/cecostomy.htm

C has small feet too :)

[Dodger67]

Its just the same in the Men's!

What bugs me is when the accessable stalls are "underequipped" or even badly designed, as if the architects couldn't be bothered to simply look up how much floor space a wheelchair needs to turn around.

I've just recently been to a brand new shopping mall - the liquid soap was empty and it had a paper hand towel dispenser with inferior flimsy rubbish paper - the others had hot air hand dryers.
But thats not the worst - I've been to places where the "disabled toilet" was full of buckets and mops - like a janitor's storeroom.:scream:

[ZoesMom]

I know i'm guilty for going into the handicap stall :sign0007: but thats only because i now have a two and a half year old and a rear facing car seat with me and all of us can't fit into the regular stalls unless i want to leave Zoe outside the stall(which is NOT happening). And even most of the time now I get to wait for the big stall or i just have to use the little stall and leave the door open with Zoe's car seat just outside the door. Thank Goodness I haven't had to go to the bathroom when I was in that perdicament just my 2 yo.

[angel]

I just recently started using my chair in public about 2 years ago. I never used a big stall before that unless there was no way i could wait for someone to get out of a small one. As we all know whith a neurogenic bladder sometimes waiting is not an option!!!! I like the smaller size stalls better when i am on my crutches. The reason for that is trying to pull up one's pants when you have bad balance can be difficult. With a smaller stall i can kind of bounce off the wall if i need to (to keep myself balanced enough to get my pants up). Now as for the big stalls when using my chair i had a horrible experience last year. I was in one that was way to small for anyone with a wheelchair. My wheelchair is child sized i am only 4 feet tall and weigh 90 lbs so i have a small chair. I was trying to get back in my chair and my jeans caught the toilet paper holder and ripped!!! I mean they didn't rip a little my ass was showing. Thank god i was in my chair so i could sit down and fix my pants and my shirt to where you couldn't tell!!!!

Angel

[Dodger67]

Did you complain to the owner/manager?
If we don't bitch at them about their mistakes, nobody will, then facilities won't improve.

[angel]

Yeah i was pretty upset i didn't tell them to the extent my pants were ripped because that was embarassing but i did let them know that there was no way anyone could function in such a small space.

Angel

[Justy Me]

Well see, Zoe's Mom, I can understand it if it's a mommy with her young child, such as yourself. Obviously then it makes sense to use the bigger stall if need be. I just HATE it when there are these women who go in there and not only do they not need the extra room to navigate, but they also are not even in there to pee. They just go in there for the luxury of extra space to fasten and refasten their pants etc etc. OH! Dodger-----I am so happy that it is not only the women who are so insensitive!!! (wait, did that come out right??? lol ummm YEAH!!! :-p) And yeah I completely agree with the underequippedness ( is that a word--oh GOD whatever u know what I mean) of some of the stalls. It's like they wanted to do a good job but half-assed it. What is the point? I find that alot of the railing that is supposed to be there for us to use is too far away for me to get a good grip on it. Argh I could go on and on I tells ya!

[Barb]

Personally, I am totally fine with moms with strollers using it too. Been there, done that with a toddler and a baby. There is no other way for a mom to do that. I get really annoyed when it is just someone who doesn't think it is a big deal.

I also get FURIOUS when I see people parking in handicapped spots when they obviously don't need to be. They just someone got their hands on a placard. I just try to calm myself down by thinking that they may be picking up or dropping someone off who needs it. :11a:but it usually doesn't help my mood when I am trying to help C get out of the car and into his chair in a regular space that my huge SUV barely fits into in the first place (and no comments about the SUV please, I am a carpooling soccer mom that has to tote a 100 plus pound service dog and a wheelchair)

[angel]

What about when you go shopping and the scooters are all taken up by people who can walk. Now i take into account that maybe they can't walk that far and it is hard on them.
I am eye level with a shopping cart. I have to put a crutch in the basket and use the other to push me and the cart that is way to tall for me. By the time i have done a minimal amount of shopping i am in pain and am ready to pass out from exhaustion. When a scooter is available i use it. It makes all the difference!!!! My husband gets so PISSED when he sees someone get out of one and walk away with no apparent problem. Espically when there were none available when we got there and after a going around the store i need to sit down really bad. It isn't so bad when he is with me because all i have to do is walk he pushes the cart. That is just one of the things i get peeved about. Just thought i would share.

Angel

[technovicki]

its funny how so many people with disabilities decide to go to the mall during holidays...we must sure like to shop because those parking spaces are always filled...sorry i have to laugh about it even though it frustrates me.

on the other side i had a women drive up to me as my brother and i were getting into my car (me in the driver seat) and rolls down her window and asked me 'are you handicap?'. i said to her, 'sorry?'...and she re-asked the question and said 'why do you ask?' (obviously i knew why she was asking) and she replied in a snippy voice 'well you are parked in a handicap spot' and i look at the sign and turn back to her and say 'i sure am' (and yes i have a placard hanging) and so she says 'so you are handicap?' and i told her that its really none of her business. she then went on and said you should be considerate, etc., etc and i was going to walk away but decided to roll up one of my pant leg (i had been standing this whole time, never saw me walking) and said 'is this disabled enough for you?' and she drove away. i tell ya!

[Barb]

its funny how so many people with disabilities decide to go to the mall during holidays...we must sure like to shop because those parking spaces are always filled...sorry i have to laugh about it even though it frustrates me.
:11a:

I did something BAD yesterday and made me think of this thread. I was in Target (big chain store here in the US) getting C's antibiotics and I had to go to the bathroom (really bad). The "family" bathroom was closest so I ran in there. The whole time I was in there, I was thinking what a terribly inconsiderate thing that was for me to do. :o