Sometimes people forget that everyone is different; people don't know how to react when they see something out of the norm, especially when it comes to kids. When kids see other kids with different colored skin, kids who speak a different language or kids in wheelchairs it can confuse them.
Unfortunately kids and adults can be afraid of something that confuses them or if they don't know how to react and they forget that each of those children is just that, a child. Kids in wheelchairs like to be treated like any other kid; they like to play sports, tell jokes, go to school, and do everything else regular' kids do.
Because kids in wheelchairs know they are different they can be intimidated by new situations and places. By treating them the same as any other child will help them to feel at ease.
Reasons Kids Need Wheelchairs - Temporary vs. Permanent
Kids need wheelchairs for many reasons; sometimes it's just temporary and sometimes they could need a wheelchair for the rest of their lives. A kid in a wheelchair temporarily may have broken their leg or had a surgery which prevents him from walking easily. A kid in a wheelchair permanently may have a disease without a cure or an irreparable injury.
Kids in wheelchairs permanently are strong individuals who need to cope on a daily basis with the reality of living their lives from a wheelchair. Technology and medicine alike make this prospect more positive; technology is making wheelchairs easier for people of all ages to operate and medicine may find cures for diseases and conditions thought incurable. The latest models of wheelchairs allow kids to operate them in many different ways. Electric wheelchairs for example can be operated by buttons, a joystick, or even with a straw!
Scientists are getting closer and closer to discovering cures for many diseases which permanently damage people's bodies. The polio vaccination is a good example of this, thousands of people died from this disease before a vaccination was found; today the disease is nonexistent in America. All children love to laugh, play, and make friends; kids in wheelchairs are no exception. The best way any person can react to a kid in a wheelchair is to treat them as they would any other child, they don't need a lot of help or special treatment. How a kid in a wheelchair gets around is the only real difference between them and any other child.
