Barrier Free Living - A Path to Living a More Independent Lifestyle

A motivating and mobilizing presentation was shared on July 15th at Pasadena Village. Our speaker was Janie Heinrich, CEO of Mobility Dog, Pasadena Villager, member of the Village’s Accessibility Task Force, and a member of the Accessibility and Disability Commission of the City of Pasadena. 

Janie was challenged after sustaining a life-changing accident 20 years ago that permanently damaged her spine. She said that medical professionals provided wonderful services overall, but the majority of doctors felt she should adjust to being in a wheelchair. Janie describes herself as stubborn. That stubbornness helped her go from using a wheelchair to walking using supports. She shared how she built a medical support team that worked with her stubbornness. Eventually her walking supports became a Swedish cane and a mobility dog. Her current mobility dog is Beckett who is 9 years old. 

When faced with an injury of this type, Janie shared: “There are a wide variety of tools and supports that one should investigate. Any diagnosis involves choices.” Many times the traditional or basic assistance device is offered up but there may be something that is much better for you and your circumstances. An example is the Swedish walking stick. This is an assistive device to support walking upright. 

Janie shared valuable advice:

• There are always choices;
• It’s important that we keep our voice;
• Isolation is far worse than the diagnosis;
• There are ways for us to figure out anything;
• Keep moving;
• We all get to different places at different times;
• Just because something is gone for a while doesn’t mean it’s gone forever;
• We need to adapt and adjust so we keep living our lives. 

She also shared some practical suggestions:

• Again, keep moving;
• Keep up with exercise to maintain or increase strength;
• Set yourself up for success;
• If you need support or stability check out different types of walking supports, such as the Swedish walking stick, folding canes, light weight walkers with wheels and storage; 
• Consider handrails in bathrooms or other areas of the house. Janie calls them “dignity” bars; 
• Occupational Therapists (OT’s) are good resources for advice on how to customize supports in your home. Supports should be placed and customized to meet your needs. 

In addition to her presentation, Janie also shared two documents:

MobilityDog’s Aging in Place Safety Guidelines which provides safety guidelines to keep your home safe, comfortable, and accessible. It even includes some suggestions for covering costs. 

City of Pasadena’s Guide for Accessible Housing: Building Housing Designed for All.

Jim Hendrick summarized the helpful, positive session, “Janie is a delightful, engaging, uplifting person.”