Testimonial Kirsty and Xander - Vicair Active O2 & Vicair AllRounder O2

Hi there, we are Xander and Kirsty! We met at Loughborough University in the United Kingdom whilst trying out for the university wheelchair basketball team! Fast forward and we are now engaged and travelling the world together, documenting how we adapt to the inaccessible world around us on our Instagram: @ourchaoticadventure

In 2018, whilst in his first year studying to be a Doctor at Bristol University, Xander fell from a tree and fractured his T12 vertebra. This left him paralysed from his waist down and dependent on a wheelchair for mobility. After five and a half years, he has since completed his final medical exams and is due to start work as a junior doctor later this year. He is also training with the British Canoeing Paracanoe academy programme with the hopes of competing in the Paralympics.

Kirsty, on the other hand, was born with Talipes Equinovarus (“Club foot”) in her right leg. After many surgeries and progressively worsening pain, Kirsty had to start using her wheelchair full-time. In November 2022 Kirsty had her leg amputated below the knee, and now walks using a prosthetic leg alongside using her wheelchair. Kirsty plays for Loughborough Lightning in the UK’s Women’s Premier Wheelchair Basketball League and represented Wales in the ISA para surfing world championships.

Whilst still in Rehab, Xander picked up a prototype Vicair AllRounder O2 cushion from one of his occupational therapists. For the first few years it just sat in a corner, picking up dust. However, when we went to Australia, we packed it in the bag as a nice-to-have item that Xander might use to help him do a few activities out of the wheelchair.

However, it completely opened a world of new opportunities for us both. We were able to do so much more without fear of causing any problems with skin issues. We used the AllRounder O2 to:

• Move around our camper van whilst travelling the Australian East Coast
• Climb the flight of stairs to our bedroom every day for 6 weeks
• Scoot up 600 steps to go on all the rides at Wet n’ Wild water park
• Go kayaking with dolphins and humpback whales in Noosa

We have now returned home, and the AllRounder O2 cushion is used there frequently as well. It is great for getting on the floor for cleaning hard-to-reach places, wheelchair maintenance and sitting in the bleachers when supporting Kirsty at her basketball games! It allows Xander to be much more mobile out of his chair and he no longer worries about how long he is sitting on a hard floor.

We really believe that Vicair makes products that can improve the lives of disabled people everywhere. So we contacted them with regards to promoting their product on our Instagram page and they were kind enough to send us some Active O2 wheelchair cushions to try out… and again they did not disappoint! Their Active O2 cushion is the lightest and comfiest wheelchair cushion that either of us have ever tried. Not only was it about a quarter of the weight of Xander’s previous cushion, it also really helped with his stability in his wheelchair.