Reinventing Yourself


When our staff was thinking about themes for this year’s consumer guide, two ideas kept finding their way back into the discussion: reinventing yourself and getting out of a rut. The two seemed to go hand-in-hand and are a perfect fit for our final issue of 2020.

After a year that has often felt like a never-ending rut, we’re all ready to dig our way back to some sense of normalcy. It turns out that nine months of off-and-on quarantines, political unrest and natural disasters can wear you down. Who knew?

It’s funny to think back on the early days of the pandemic when lots of people — myself included — tried to find a silver lining in the increased time for self-improvement. Little could we have known that between balancing personal care, mental health and all the unpredictable necessities of day-to-day life, finding time for anything but survival would feel like an accomplishment.

Nine months later, I have cleaned every cabinet and every corner of my home, cooked all the recipes that had been gathering dust in the “try some day” file and gone through more kitschy Zoom backgrounds than anyone should in a lifetime. And that’s not even touching on how much I would love to go to a live concert or get together with all my friends. Hell, I’d give anything to watch a cheesy summer movie in a packed theater.

Every new year promises a clean slate, but on the heels of what we’ve been through, 2021 feels especially opportune for fresh starts. Until a vaccine arrives, our hands are somewhat tied. But if you feel like you’re finally ready for something new after nine months of monotony, we’ve got you covered.

To inspire you and to personalize our consumer guide, we broke down our annual product listings into seven categories and asked a peer from our community to helm each section. Some of these experts are familiar NEW MOBILITY contributors, others have established their expertise elsewhere, and a few are writing for the first time. Think of them as guides to the Consumer Guide.

What unites these guides — and what I think makes this issue stand out from previous consumer guides — is their ability to tap in to their lived experiences and draw out insights that we can apply to improve our lives. One of the guiding tenets of NEW MOBILITY is that nobody knows mobility disability better than the people who live it, and I believe this new format embodies that approach.

None of our guides are trying to sell you anything, or convince you to buy a specific product. They’re simply trying to share products and ideas that have worked for them in the hope that they might inspire or make a difference for you.

I can’t imagine where I’d be today if not for the countless ideas and suggestions I’ve received from fellow wheelchair users. I’ve heard the same from enough of my friends in the community to know that our collective knowledge is one of our greatest strengths.

I’m equally certain that after 2020’s relentless barrage, we can use all the strength available to us. I hope something in this issue — be it a product or a piece of advice — inspires you to do that thing you’ve been putting off or make the upgrade you’ve been debating.


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Alan Duboyce
Alan Duboyce
3 years ago

I am 59 years old t-3 para now for 36 plus years and have put on a few pounds and My transfers have been getting junky and don’t always make a clean transfer. I was wondering if I should try to go back to aPT to get some confidence back in My transfers. I had a few bad falls a couple years back and find myself getting anxiety when getting ready to transfer and that can sometimes make Me overthink My transfers and mess them up. Any advice would be Great.