Kilt Freedom For Men In Wheelchairs

**cessna152towser** · 24th December 08, 02:14 PM

One place where I regularly see men in kilts is around our nearest general hospital, and often these gents are being pushed in a wheelchair. I've just assumed they were patients who wore the kilt around the ward for comfort and had just been taken outside briefly in the grounds by their visitors. Kilts can be very practicable for people with impaired mobility, indeed for me it was torn ligaments and being on crutches which first introduced me to wearing the kilt on a regular daily basis rather than merely as costume for attending functions and Scottish country dancing. No pleats or shallow pleats at the back would certainly be an advantage for a sedentary person, I often wear an unpleated denim manskirt for long drives which I also wore on my journeys to and from Canada last summer.

**GDub** · 24th December 08, 02:53 PM

I've only seen one guy in a wheelchair wearing a kilt (a UK original). He had a broken leg in a full leg cast. He told me the UK saved him from having to ruin his pants in order to get them over the cast. Obviously not the same thing as someone being permanently wheelchair bound, but he was adamant that the UK was the ideal solution for his needs.

**gilmore** · 24th December 08, 03:45 PM

Ron,

What a wonderful and thoughtful topic to bring up.

I wear an unbifuracted garment daily, much more often than the kilt, which is different from the kilt in two ways. It is longer, to the ankles or a bit higher, and has pleats in the side. To tell the truth, it's a more comfortable garment than the kilt in that I am not sitting on pleats, and since they are on the sides, they move with me, rather than out from under me or pulling the aprons apart as a kilt sometimes does. The length helps in that it is much less likely to ride up than a kilt, so I don't have to worry about modesty. The length also traps body heat and keeps the legs warmer than does a kilt.

**kadalrymple** · 26th December 08, 07:35 PM

Ron,

Having been an attendant for someone in a wheelchair, I would have to say that it would make things easier if a kilt were worn instead of pants. Not having to worry about having the pant legs twist up when adjusting position for starters... I definitely agree that unless the person has delicate skin, the pleats should be no more of a problem than the pockets on the back of a pair of jeans.

**NewKilt** · 26th December 08, 10:59 PM

Mike Butler of Amerililts told me a few years back that he had several customers that bought them because they were confined to wheelchairs or had to spend large amount of time in wheel chairs. He said they also liked the attached sporran to put their stuff in.

I was thinking about what you said, Ron. The Amerikilt is light, the pleats are wide, and there's not that much material - maybe 3.5 to 4 yards even for a man of size.

It was my peripheral neuropathy and degenerative disc disease that got me into wearing kilts in the first place. Here's a link to an article th local paper did on me a few years back. I was trying to let other men with disabilities know that wearing a kilt could improve the quality of life. Mike Butler also added comments about kilt comfort. My collection is larger now - the addiction don't you know.

http://www.newstribune.com/articles/...6feature10.txt

Darrell