title: On an equal footing: adults' accounts of the experience of using assistive devices for standing.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of the study was to illuminate the meaning that standing holds for persons who require standing devices.
  
  
  METHODS
  The phenomenological/hermeneutical analysis of the interviews was carried out using a life world-approach. Fifteen users of standing devices lacking the ability to stand independently participated in the interviews.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Each person's lived experiences of standing in their devices indicated that the upright body position opens up an opportunity for connection to the outside world. An upright body position (i) alters the person's sense of self, (ii) augments the person's availability to the outside world, (iii) strengthens social interplay, and (iv) changes a person's motivation and their expectations over time.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Standing may be something that unites the body and self. Understanding the meaning of the altered body position that the use of standing devices opens up is vital for physiotherapists and occupational therapists prescribing these devices. Furthermore, it is important to take account of the subjective body, as well as the biological one, to enhance the adoption of different body positions and the person's experiences.
authors.affiliation: Department of Research and Development, Norrbotten County Council, Luleå, Sweden. birgitta.nordstrom@ltu.se
authors.forename: Birgitta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Nordström
authors.forename: Annika
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Näslund
authors.forename: Lilly
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ekenberg
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living / Q000523:psychology*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D006233:Persons with Disabilities / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D005260:Female; D005528:Foot / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011187:Posture; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012656:Self-Help Devices / Q000523:psychology*; D016138:Walking / Q000523:psychology*