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The very first chair that I got back in 1980 was an E & J. (Everest and Jennings) with a low, slingback back on it that came about to my shoulder blades.
In 1984 or 1985 I was looking into getting another power chair. At that time I found and decided upon one called a "Fortress Scientific" that was made in Canada. The chair I was expecting had two options... the slingback design or the bucket seat design. The latter looked much more comfortable and that is what I wanted.
When it arrived it came with the slingback and was not comfortable whatsoever. It was also a "high" slingback. In any case, I wanted the bucket seat with the plush feeling it gave my body on the back and on the cushion.
That chair had a recline feature and I used it often. I had that share for 12 years.
In January of 1999 it was definitely time to look for a new chair. I ended up choosing the Permobile chairman which also had the bucket seat style. I knew that I did not want to go back to the low, slingback style seating at that point.
The seat part of it also gave my legs a correct sitting position. In all of the years in my Fortress Scientific... my thighs were always on a downhill slope. It was difficult to even use a lap tray, carry books or papers, etc. etc. etc.
Anyway, what I am saying is ... I am interested in knowing is whether you guys are preferring chairs with a high back (that is usually the bucket seat style) or the style whereby the back of the chair is quite low and goes to the shoulder blade area.
I do not remember NOT liking my Everest and Jennings wheelchair in the 1980s but I remember that my posture was quite poor because of the low backing.
That brings me to my further thoughts... especially for women I have noticed that a lot of them who use or have the low back wheelchairs are sometimes "humped over" a little bit but noticeably so. This can not be good for the spine long-term or in the long run.
Just last week when I was in Wal-Mart I saw a young lady who looked to be in her 30s or early 40s and she had a low back power wheelchair. She also had that humped-over look.
Essentially, I have noticed that the higher back chairs are much better for posture. I look at pictures of myself from the front or from the side and it looks like I am sitting up nice and straight. I remember this was quite difficult to do using my old Everest and Jennings wheelchair. In fact, I remember asking my grandmother or grandfather [whom I lived with] to frequently stand behind me and pull my shoulders back because it felt so good to sit up straight without killing myself to do it using my neck muscles.
Women are more prone to osteoporosis and I would hate to see it worsened by long-term use of low back chairs just because they have not had the opportunity to try out the other chairs that offer much better posture.
Sometimes people do not even realize it if they have a low back share that gives them poor posture. A common sign that it is uncomfortable is to lean forward every once in awhile to offset an uncomfortableness that they can't quite pinpoint.
Any thoughts?
Lori
C4/5 complete quad, almost 27 years post
Tucson, Arizona | 
