Best Highchair for Mum in wheelchair with limited strength in arms

[Mumonwheels]

Hi

I am paraplegic and also have problems with pain and instability in my joints due to having (Ehlers Danlos Syndrome) which makes my joints hypermobile.

I use a wheelchair fulltime and have had to be creative so that I can care for my baby as independently as possible. Up until now I have used a lightweight chair (Cushi Tush) on a table to feed my baby (now 13 months old). It works well but I feel less and less happy about the chair not being able to be secured to anything. It is too low for me to feed her in it on the floor and I need to find a better solution.

Has anyone got any experience or suggestions on the best highchairs / booster type seats to feed a baby in if you are in a wheelchair? It also needs to have an easy to manage harness and tray mechanism as my hand joints are not very good or strong. I find fixed seats like the Ikea Antilop to be very difficult to lift my baby in and out of. The raised pummel section in a lot of the highchairs also makes it harder. I know Ricability did a guide but that is no 10 years out of date.

Any thoughts or ideas welcomed!

Many thanks in advance, Fi

Could you go to a shop and try them all out? I have a muscle wasting disease but I'm not in a wheelchair. I spent ages choosing a high chair. I ended up getting a chicco which is very heavy, but my little girl has been able to climb in and out independently from a young age which helped me a lot. It might be a booster seat suits you better or you could try one of the material harnesses that straps them to a normal chair? Good luck. It's such a mission choosing the right equipment isn't it :) xxxx

Booster seat might be a good option ( though depends on how 'sensible' your dd is!)

My friend is in a slightly similar position, and uses a Baby Bjorn highchair. The tray folds down out of the way so it is easier to slide her son in straight in front of her from her lap, rather than lift him in our out from above (he is very good though, and doesn't wriggle while she is doing it) then you lift the tray back up to secure the baby in. The button to release the tray can be operated with one hand (friend has one "good" hand). You would need to try it out, of course, but worth a look, maybe.

The tripp trapp is designed so children can get in and out themselves, the foot rest is a kind of step up and you could add a bottom step somehow while she's little? Depends how much she likes climbing though. Mine has just turned 12 months and I think will be ok to climb in very soon if the love of stairs is anything to go by.
They are mega expensive though.

There are other similar(+cheaper) versions of the tripp trapp chair, but i would have a look at the First Years booster seat type, the are often for sale in Asda. straps on a standard dining chair, no pommel and single buckle on harness. Harness could be adapted if buckle too difficult to manipulate. Tray is then clipped on afterwards and depending on what your hand function is like, is fairly easy to do. I would imagine it would be fairly easy for a child to be shuffled over from your lap into the chair, and when they are a bit older they could use a step (or the wooden two-step from ikea) to climb up themselves. You might need to position the chair by a wall to reduce the chance of chair tipping. I've had hypermobility issues so have encouraged my children to be fairly independent and safe climbing in and out of things. We have a number of steps around the house, a box and strap in the car to help them climb up into the car seat etc.

Hi

Thank you for all your suggestions. They have been really helpful. As suggested I have been trying different high chairs out. I like the idea of the booster seats but they are a bit low on a normal chair and probably not safe on a bar type stool! The high chairs without a pommel are easiest to slide my baby onto but these tend to have two handed heavy trays with pommel built into the tray. So far the best option seems to be the Cosatto Noodle as I can get my wheelchair really close and although it has a pommel it can be unscrewed! There is still a really good harness and the clips don't seem too difficult. I have yet to try the Baby Bjorn highchair. I will let you know how I get on when I finally make the decision!

Sounds like you're making good progress. If you don't find a solution I would highly reccomend contacting the charity remap. They were very helpful to me, so might be able to make some adaptations or change the height of things x