hootOS

HOOT_OS - V.30

Stryxnine Amity Pulsatrix
(30/🇨🇦/Saskatchewan)
NACRS Organizer
esports broadcast producer
plural, autistic, adhd
disability & queer activist
hobbyist archival researcher
bylines in Traxion.gg
loves @kadybat and @traumagotchi and @kaceydotme

57RYX9 DESIGN - Visual FX and Graphic Design North American Cohost Racing Series organizer & founder
Big Muddy Archive News


MSN Escargot
hootwheelz@escargot.chat

artemis
@artemis

i bought a cane last year. in retrospect i wish i had had a cane around when i was 15 years old. hear me out. there are many reasons to love cane. Here's some times canes help me. maybe u want one too! (pls be careful tho if u get one u gotta learn how to use it right so u dont hurt yrself with it)

  • ever pull a muscle or stub your toe real bad and now putting weight on that foot hurts? you'll be very happy that you already have a cane to help take some of the weight off.

  • filled with dread any time you need to lean/squat down to clean items up off the floor? cane makes this way easier, because now your arm muscles can help lower you down and push you back up. this is why i vacuum with any regularity instead of declaring floor bankruptcy.

  • frequently feel the need to sit down while standing in line? cane makes it easier to stand longer without feeling this, also makes it easier to sit down and get back up if you need to.

  • seriously, sitting down and getting up from sitting is so much easier with a cane

  • have trouble climbing stairs? cane in one hand, railing in the other hand, now you are dual-wielding climbing assistance

  • getting in/out of cars a struggle? cane helped me.

  • good for climbing hills

  • good for descending hills

  • scared of falling down on an escalator? cane helps.

  • have trouble getting on and off a bus when its high up from the ground? cane can help you gradually lower yourself to reduce the work your knees put in. same thing for curbs without curb cuts

  • if u need it, now u can sit in the front of the bus without people looking at u funny because lmao it turns out that visually indicating a disability is way more effective than telling people that many disabilities are invisible unfortunately.

  • do u lose your balance a lot? cane is very good for regaining balance, or not losing it in the first places. good for progesterone dizzy spells!

  • its a stim toy tbh

  • u can put stickers on your cane like putting stickers on a laptop

if yr worried about social impact, my experience has been that people i already knew asked me "what happened" when i first got it and i just said i got it to help me get around and then they didnt care. i have never had a stranger ask me why i have a cane. most people dont rly seem to notice or care.

fyi the most natural way to walk with a cane tends to be to move it forward with the arm opposite the leg you're moving forward. so if its in your right hand, you move your right hand and your left leg together. then you move your right leg on its own. you can switch hands! i do this constantly. it takes practice. practice with yr cane.

u also gotta dial the height of the cane in properly or it can mess yr posture up. seriously, take some time on that one.

canes are based


hootOS
@hootOS

i can second this. @jkap gave me a good folding cane recommendation so it feels cool to take the plastic bracket off and whip the cane out to watch it basically assemble itself like a transformer. it also fits in my battle jacket pocket when it's folded so i can keep it stowed if i need to, and bring it out when i need to. it's a pretty sturdy folding cane too, feels just like any other cane. the only thing im not a fan of is that the pole is just a smidge too wide where it meets the handle so i can't comfortably grip it with a closed fist, but you don't have to use a whiteknuckle grip on a cane anyways.

it's especially helpful for road trips. long periods of sitting makes moving around really painful and difficult, and if i crouch down to get a snack off the bottom shelf in a gas station i cant get back up without help. on the way back from winnipeg i crouched down to look at some nostalgic little candies i used to love as a kid, but i didnt have my cane with me and i couldnt get back up. if i didnt have my brother next to me looking at the same candies, i wouldn't have been able to get back up without either touching the floor or grabbing the shelf, and after working in retail i know those shelves are sketchy to use as standing aids. i would have had to ask somebody for help.


canes do also help me stand and walk for longer. the past couple times i went grocery shopping with my dad but without my cane, i genuinely felt awful afterwards. lots of pain and exhaustion. but whenever i bring a cane with me the pain and exhaustion is a LOT more bearable.

one last awesome benefit is at a concert. might be wise to go with a friend so they can hold your cane while you jump into the moshpit and dont get anyone hurt (including yourself) but people will move out of the way to let you walk around with your cane easier. the first show i went to in Saskatoon, people were even complimenting my cane as if it were an accessory, which it kind of is! and it made me feel kinda cute to be honest! plus, i could walk on the left side of the staircase up to the balcony, opposite the flow of foot traffic, and people would move to the other side of the staircase to give me room. it was really nice. it also helped me get around just by the nature of having something to help keep my balance in tight spaces (like flowing around crowds) but that goes without saying.

like, honestly. if you've ever thought "hmm. my legs kinda suck these days." then you should just grab a cane. better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.


You must log in to comment.

in reply to @artemis's post:

The "visual indicator" thing is so true! I have serious hip instability, so standing in one place for a long time is very difficult/painful. When I go to stores, people wouldn't understand if the 20-something person asks to go to the front of the line, but if I just bring my cane, that lets them make the first move and offer to let me go first.

I still do minimize using it at work because it's annoying to get questions. They're not the end of the world but it certainly can feel isolating when you realize that nobody around you knows what it's like to have a disability at a young age nor do they know sensitive ways to talk to us. If someone says to get well soon one more time I'll ask them to give me new genes lmao

Have never once heard someone say "getting myself a cane made my life worse." It's always "Oh heck, why didn't I do this sooner! This is hecking awesome!"

Canes are just good. ❤️