Hypershell Exoskeleton part 2
Apr. 29th, 2026 11:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elizillaThe exoskeleton helps with the weakness, but it does not help with the awkwardness. I am still a huge fall risk. Maybe that will improve a bit, with practice, but for now I need something to steady myself.
I have this red rollator walker I use every day around the house, and for expeditions to places I can’t use a wheelchair. I like it because it is super lightweight and very stable. So I started with that. The problem is, that when the exoskeleton improves my posture, the red rollator is too low. And it is at its highest extension. There is a part that can make it taller, but back when I last tried to order that part, the pandemic supply chain snafus made it impossible to get. I need to try again.
I also have the Up Walker. This is a hand-me-down from a neighbor. It’s a rollator that supports under the elbows, specifically intended to make the user walk upright. It is a good position, but this particular unit feels rickety and unstable. I think it’s because I am at the very tallest adjustment point and this thing is old and beat up and was probably always flimsy. We improved the stability by tying a rope around it to brace it at the top, but it’s still iffy.
So I decided to try some arm crutches. The first pair I tried was awful, I felt like they pitched me forward. I sent them back to Amazon and got a different pair that let me bend my elbows. These felt great but I almost fell. I am going to keep them and try again if I get better at this. And perhaps wear a bicycle helmet.
I am going to go down to the local DME, one day soon, and test drive walkers. Maybe they have a larger and more solid version of the Up Walker.
I am also experimenting with AFOs for my dragging left foot. The best one I have found so far, doesn’t fit in my shoe. I am continuing to try other AFOs, but I also intend to look at some different shoes.
It’s easy to just give up when something fails to be a magic bullet. But adaptive devices are never perfect right out of the box. You have to work on it and figure out how to fix your problems. And I enjoy figuring it out, finding the right combination of things. I used to do this with my motorcycles. This is just a new focus for my urge to tinker with things and try out new gadgets. It is good to have a hobby!
I have this red rollator walker I use every day around the house, and for expeditions to places I can’t use a wheelchair. I like it because it is super lightweight and very stable. So I started with that. The problem is, that when the exoskeleton improves my posture, the red rollator is too low. And it is at its highest extension. There is a part that can make it taller, but back when I last tried to order that part, the pandemic supply chain snafus made it impossible to get. I need to try again.
I also have the Up Walker. This is a hand-me-down from a neighbor. It’s a rollator that supports under the elbows, specifically intended to make the user walk upright. It is a good position, but this particular unit feels rickety and unstable. I think it’s because I am at the very tallest adjustment point and this thing is old and beat up and was probably always flimsy. We improved the stability by tying a rope around it to brace it at the top, but it’s still iffy.
So I decided to try some arm crutches. The first pair I tried was awful, I felt like they pitched me forward. I sent them back to Amazon and got a different pair that let me bend my elbows. These felt great but I almost fell. I am going to keep them and try again if I get better at this. And perhaps wear a bicycle helmet.
I am going to go down to the local DME, one day soon, and test drive walkers. Maybe they have a larger and more solid version of the Up Walker.
I am also experimenting with AFOs for my dragging left foot. The best one I have found so far, doesn’t fit in my shoe. I am continuing to try other AFOs, but I also intend to look at some different shoes.
It’s easy to just give up when something fails to be a magic bullet. But adaptive devices are never perfect right out of the box. You have to work on it and figure out how to fix your problems. And I enjoy figuring it out, finding the right combination of things. I used to do this with my motorcycles. This is just a new focus for my urge to tinker with things and try out new gadgets. It is good to have a hobby!
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