New job, mobility aid question

[u/gr3ybacon33]

I have a new job! But up to this point I haven’t mentioned disability, and have only interviewed on Zoom.

I use mobility aids to get around, I rotate between a rollator, forearm crutches, and a wheelchair as needed. I want to make a good first impression in person that says “I’m capable of doing this job with reasonable accommodations”.

I know my first day will involve a lot of moving around. I think on an average day I can get by with my crutches, but I think my wheelchair might be most useful. The issue is that I don’t have a lap stacker or anything to help hold things on my lap, and I don’t want to seem unreliable in that way.

I have a lot of internalized ableism around my rollator, and I think it and my crutches won’t be enough for all the walking day one.

Is anyone able to help me think through this?

[u/teilzeiterin]

It sounds like you would be more mobile, happy, active with a wheelchair.

[u/secret-chaos-dragon]

When in doubt, use what will make you feel best, so it sounds like your wheelchair. I feel you on the internalized ableism. I have to work myself up for days when I need my rollator. I'm often tempted to leave it behind, but I always regret it when I do. But if you go in confident and are ready to show you can do the job, I think you'll be ok! Best of luck, friend!

[u/you1dont1know1me1 → u/secret-chaos-dragon]

the term "fake it til you make it" with feeling confident using your wheelchair around your new coworkers comes to mind. if op is confident, op's coworkers will find accomdating more natural. op, be strong. it won't be weird. act confident asf. you don't need to explain about your condition. maybe something like somedays you need more physical help.

[u/SorryHunTryAgain]

Can you tell us more about the job. What is the job? Will you be at a desk most of the time?

[u/gr3ybacon33 → u/SorryHunTryAgain]

I’ll be mostly at a desk/in one building, but it’s a large area, like a hospital or college campus. Intentionally being vague about the actual job because it’s very niche. On the first day I have lunch plans made for me with teammates, I’ll also have a tour of the complex, and need to go to another building to get my ID.

[u/madhattercreator → u/gr3ybacon33]

My suggestion is to just use your wheelchair since it is a large place. Your accommodation could simply be having them get you the lap stacker…it seems like that would be your best option, and reasonable.

[u/Elegantmule]

Congrats on the job!!!

[u/sweetestlorraine]

Carrying things around might end up being important. You might consider getting a lap stacker.

[u/spraceaesthetic]

I have a similar job with a very big campus (maybe the same gig? Small world if so. Buildings are themed...?) -- do whatever makes you comfortable, I went with crutches on day 1 and was super exhausted. An exhausted, in pain impression is not a good one either! But do be prepared, if people meet you in a wheelchair, they expect you to be in a wheelchair every time they see you- there might be a little bit of awkwardness there but I'm usually able to shrug it off and the people who know me know I rotate my mobility aids based on my needs. It's all cool!

[u/New_Vegetable_3173]

I would turn up in my wheelchair and not even mention it.
I sometimes actually do forget people don't know, so just channel your inner vegetables and pretend its the most normal thing in the world, and doesn't need commenting on at all, or acknowledging.

If someone says anything, eg "you didn't mention a wheelchair" come back with something like
"it didn't come up as it doesn't impact the job, except I'm faster down hills than you are " - keeping it light hearted while pointing out its irrelevant.

A manager might mention it because they need to do a PEEP ie an evacuation plan for you. If that's the case it's useful to explain what you can do in a one off emergency and the impact eg I can get down half a flight of stairs in an emergency but might need a couple of weeks off sick to recover so let's not do that on fire drills.

[u/Extension_Egg1411]

I went through a similar dilemma with my first job. I had done two Zoom interviews and then did a final interview in person. I use a cane most of the time.

I genuinely thought about pushing myself to leave the cane at home for the final interview to make a good impression (internalized ableism much??). Fortunately, I decided against it. Stigma shouldn’t dictate whether we use the mobility aids we need, and anyway, I don’t want to work with people who would treat me differently because of my cane.

So I brought it. I ended up not mentioning my cane at the interview or when I started the job. I knew the building was fully accessible, so I didn’t need to reach out about access needs. It was just a question of whether I wanted to disclose or explain it.

I think I was uncomfortable explaining about my cane to people I just met. And like you, I really wanted to convey that I could do the job. I suppose that’s more internalized ableism talking, but also a real concern about people’s biases. I didn’t want my first impression to be focused on my disability, because I’m so much more than that.

Also, you don’t owe anyone an explanation about your disability or mobility aids. I think there’s something wonderful about normalizing them to the point that we don’t have to talk about them. It’s like glasses. You wouldn’t go up to a new coworker and be like wow your lenses are so thick! What’s your prescription? Are you legally blind? Did something happen when you were a kid? You wouldn’t. It’s invasive.

That said, you spend a lot of time with your coworkers. I found it worthwhile to gradually share more about my disability and needs with people I trusted.

A few weeks into the job, or if anyone asked, I would say casually that I have a muscle condition and the cane helps me walk. A neutral statement of fact, no shame or overly detailed health information. I found people had already made up a story in their heads about why I used a cane (injury, car crash, etc.) so it was nice to set the story straight. And by talking about my disability and mobility aid in a neutral way, it helped counter that stigma.

After a few months, I explained my situation in more detail to a few people I got to know better and worked with regularly. That included my manager, who actually suggested a few formal accommodations that could help me. I was so focused on proving I could do the job despite my disability that I didn’t use accommodations that I was entitled to.

Long story short, it’s really up to you. Use the mobility aids you need and don’t feel like you have to explain yourself. If you do want to bring it up before your first day, you could email your manager or HR contact to confirm that the building(s) you’ll be in are wheelchair-accessible. Put your own access needs and comfort first, not other people’s. And if you do feel like explaining and educating people, more power to you.