Hi there,
Not sure where to post this - will soon travel to Russia, thinking of a non-medical gift to a wheelchair user (spinal injury, wheelchair-bound). Could anyone suggest something that would be non-intrusive while thoughtful and hopefully useful? Are there any brands of adaptive clothing/tech aids you would recommend?
Thank you!
I have a grandson with special needs who is bedridden or in his wheelchair, and I would be somewhat surprised if anyone ever tried to give him adaptive clothing. Without knowing his needs or likes, you might (and probably would) get it wrong.
Gifts that my daughter always recommends are things like clothing (but non-adaptive, like a fun US t-shirt), or a nice well-made throw, or maybe books to read. Without knowing more about her or him, it's hard to recommend specifics, so if you could share more details, it would be helpful.
If the person is not using a powered chair, and wheeling themselves, then I'd suggest gloves. Padded cycling gloves or weightlifting (gym) gloves. Fingerless for warm weather.
Thank you both. To be honest, I have no idea what "adaptive clothes" are - I just heard someone from MIUSA mention them and assumed it was something designed for easy unassisted dressing/undressing with limited use of legs or turning around too much.
Afaik, he uses both electric and regular wheelchair, so will check gloves out, thank you!
Is it possible to gift the person cash and let them get something 'special', they might not otherwise buy ?
Of course, that is always an option - but I was just trying to come up with something that might not be readily available in Russia - thinking that with ADA, MIUSA, and a long, proven history of enabling accessibility, the US may have some "game changer" items that others have simply not thought of (one of those thing you do not know you need and can't imagine living without one after you tried it), or something of unusually high quality.
If it were me, I would want to give them something recognizing them as an individual, rather than amplifying the stigma that so often accompanies a disability. So the gift would be age and gender appropriate - if a younger person, maybe something related to American or European popular culture. With the embargo in place targeting Russia, there must be items difficult or impossible to obtain that would be welcomed and enjoyed.
PerilsofP, adaptive clothing is clothing designed to help people with disabilities. For example, my grandson has shoes that look like sneakers that tie, but there is a zipper on top that runs around it, so you just unzip that and slip the shoe on his feet, and zip it up again.
He also has a sort of heavy fleece cloak that I made him for cold weather that is high in the back but long in front so it covers him in his wheelchair but doesn't bunch up in back and made it uncomfortable for him. it also zips up in the front so it's easy to get on. Coats are very difficult in wheelchairs and the cloak is very helpful. But this is for a 13 year old boy who is almost totally immobile and can't really move his limbs. So it might be different for your friend.
Without knowing what he needs, though, I would be hesitant to recommend something like that. Do you know the extent of his disability? I'm assuming he is an adult, since you mentioned he uses an electric wheelchair. Is there anyone near to him (friend, relative) that you could reach out to and ask?
ETA: Here is one website that shows you some different types of adaptive clothing. For example, there are shirts that are easy to take on and off, with a quick release in back. pants with size zippers for easy removal, and the shows I was talking about. It might help to give you some ideas.
Etsy has a lot of these types of shops as well. There are some practical ideas for the chair as well, like hanging bags that hold books, a phone, etc., and so on.
