Has anyone ever been designated "temporarily disabled"?

[Junkenpo]

This is regarding recieving a placard to park in the handicap stalls.

In my state (HI), a person can apply for a placard if you cannot walk 200ft without stopping to rest. A doctor must certify this & there are acceptable reasons listed on the application (respitory, vascular, oncological, physical disability, etc). My dad has a heart issues & my mom finally convinced him it's in their best interest to apply for one. A person can also apply for a "temporary disability", if your situation is likely to change. A temporary placard might be issued for anywhere from a one to 6 months.

Now... I'm not trying to start a debate and I would like to say I don't think that pregnancy is a disability.... however, all our pregnancies differ and can be looked at on a case-by-case basis... some pregnancies being more difficult than others.

But for me, since about the middle of my 1st trimester, I noticed that I have shortness of breath, and heat and exertion makes it worse. At my place of work, my parking space is a good 70-80 yards away from my building, and on a hill. In the morning, I walk downhill & down several flights of stairs. In the afternoon, I have to walk uphill/stairs under a blazing sun. I have to take it super slow & stop to catch my breath... there is a (mercifully) shaded bench at the top of the stairs (which is a little over halfway to my car).I always stop and sit at the bench. If I didnt' stop to rest, I'd probably puke (actually have) or pass out, or both. I cry thinking about doing this 5 times a week as I get bigger...I'm about at week 12 now.

The thing is, there are 2 handicap stalls right next to my building that are never occupied.

So... am I doing anything wrong by asking my doc if he thinks this is a possibility for a temporary placard?

Would any of you have applied for one if it were offered? Has anyone here ever applied & gotten one (or turned down)?




p.s. Exercise is not an issue... my hubby takes me to the beach 3-5x a week & we go swimming and snorkeling. If I am cool & weightless, I can move.

[divadivine682]

See, in my case I was. After 6 months or so, my back problems wouldn't allow me to walk more than 2 mins or so (or standing for that matter...doing dishes, etc...) so I think I would have been issued that handicap sticker. I couldn't work after 20 weeks (waiting on tables, bartending...)If you are feeling fine as your pregnancy progresses, I wouldn't bother asking for it. That is, if you can walk without any problems or pain. I have back isssues as it is and the pregnancy made it 4000 times worse for me....but if you're an otherwise healthy person, I would just reap the benefits of the extra excercise

Sidenote: I didn't end up getting the handicap sticker, although DH and I kept on talking about possibly getting one for me....In my state (NY) if you want one, we were told to go to the doctor to get a note stating you need one then go to your local police dept to get one issued? I'm not sure if thats the same in hawaii.....

[sweetneet]

personally i don't think you are doing anything wrong by applying for a placard, i would go ahead and do it. i think the parking lots in some areas are crazy..whenever i go to my ob's appointments or even to the mall my DH usually just drops me off at front and then he goes to park the car because here in TX it was really hot and i would feel sick just walking that much.

also, i know that at my DH's work (where they have a HUGE parking lot, it is very hilly, can take 10 min to walk across) they have special placards for pregnant women (where you dont' have to go through the state), you just let them know you're expecting and you get a special temporary sticker or something that lets you park way up front, near the handicapped spaces. i wonder if other companies have this too.

i must say though that in the 2nd trimester (at least for me), the nausea and tiredness gets waaay better and it wasn't as hard for me to walk long distances etc. it makes no sense because now your heart is pumping way more and the baby is bigger, but i personally feel a thousand times better than i did in my first trimester in terms of general energy, wellness, being able to walk around etc. so i would expect that it would get better, not worse (at first, at least!). however i would still apply for the placard because i imagine the 3rd trimester it would get difficult to walk a lot again (back pain, etc).

[Junkenpo]

Thanks for the opinions ladies! I totally wish there were, but there aren't any pregnancy placards for my work.... nor any of those "family parking" type stalls I remember seeing when I went to the mainland to visit family.

divinediva682: yeah, similar in HI, a doctor has to certify your disability (temporary or otherwise) sign the application, and then you take the app to the DVM & they issue you a placard.

I did not even think about 3rd trimester & the whole back pain, hip pain, bone pain thingie.... my mom says that with her 1st (my older brother) she had trouble walking even around the house, let alone across the parking lot to work. That sucks.

I do make DH drop me off whenever possible. If it's flat, I just walk super slow (itty bitty steps) but the stairs/hills at work are killing me. My place of work is built on a hill, so it's stairs between each building, pretty much. He's not working now, so maybe I should just start bugging him to take me to work & pick me up after now. (sigh)

[Aslan]

If you really feel that you get enough exercise, do you think it's possible that your shortness of breath might be pregnancy-induced asthma? My aunt only got asthmatic during her pregnancies, and I know mine gets worse during pregnancy.

I mean, tiredness/fatigue is normal in early pregnancy, but shortness of breath in the middle of your first trimester sounds unusual to me (assuming you are of a healthy weight and fairly fit before pregnancy).

[yenanh00]

when I was pregnant my dr offer me one just in case for something happen or I need to make a quick trip in and out.. I dont think there a harm of using it or not using it... I applied for one and got the place card.. I rarely use it though.. I think I only use it 3 times just for emergency throughout my pregnancies..

[Rockst@r]

I didn't know one could be considered "temporarily disabled."

[Junkenpo]

Originally Posted by Rockst@r

I didn't know one could be considered "temporarily disabled."

Often times it's given to people recovering from certain illnesses or surgeries. Also, things like broken legs. Stuff that you will recover or heal from.

For me, I didn't have problem walking up and down the hills until i got pregnant, so I can't imagine that I would continue to have a problem after the baby is born. So my shortness-of-breath might be considered a temporary disability because it interferes with how far I can walk without needing to rest, but would not be an issue after I stop being pregnant.

[PurseFanatic]

If you fit the criteria I would see nothing wrong with you getting the placard, as long as you used it responsibly and surrendered it once you gave birth.

Here we have expectant mother parking up front and I was always lucky to find one of those open or a spot pretty close up open. Other than that I would ride with a friend who could drop me off up front.

Also ask your doctor about walking around the house more, my doc told me to and it helped my shortness of breath, BUT i was pretty sedentary before, so walking some made me build up my breathing ability.

[Junkenpo]

Originally Posted by Aslan

If you really feel that you get enough exercise, do you think it's possible that your shortness of breath might be pregnancy-induced asthma? .

I hadn't thought about asthma... DH has asthma & so do my brothers... I've only ever had an asthma attack once. A couple years ago, we were visiting an aunt & she keeps cats and since it was freezing out, the house was all closed up. Brother & I had to retreat outside. I'm allergic to cats, but never felt my lungs close up the way they did till that day.

But no... i'm panting & short of breath when i walk far, but not wheezing & not tight feeling in my chest. More like I feel like I ran a cross country race. yuck.

[divadivine682]

Originally Posted by Junkenpo

I hadn't thought about asthma... DH has asthma & so do my brothers... I've only ever had an asthma attack once. A couple years ago, we were visiting an aunt & she keeps cats and since it was freezing out, the house was all closed up. Brother & I had to retreat outside. I'm allergic to cats, but never felt my lungs close up the way they did till that day. But no... i'm panting & short of breath when i walk far, but not wheezing & not tight feeling in my chest. More like I feel like I ran a cross country race. yuck.

Its odd you're having issues with breathing now....usually that doesn't happen until late in the pregnancy when the baby is so large it is pressing on your lungs as it grows. I would see a doctor since it may not be pregnancy related this early?

[Aslan]

Originally Posted by divadivine682

Its odd you're having issues with breathing now....usually that doesn't happen until late in the pregnancy when the baby is so large it is pressing on your lungs as it grows. I would see a doctor since it may not be pregnancy related this early?

I agree. Junkenpo, have you mentioned this shortness of breath to your doctor?

[Lilwalnut]

I would definitely mention this to your OB. I wound up in the hospital for a week when I was 25 weeks PG with our DS...the diagnosis...pregnancy induced asthma, but the kicker was that I never ever had asthma before in my life! So, it can happen to anyone at any time.

I'd rather be on the safe side...maybe call your OB to mention this before it gets any worse.

GL!

[omgsweet]

Originally Posted by Junkenpo

I hadn't thought about asthma... DH has asthma & so do my brothers... I've only ever had an asthma attack once. A couple years ago, we were visiting an aunt & she keeps cats and since it was freezing out, the house was all closed up. Brother & I had to retreat outside. I'm allergic to cats, but never felt my lungs close up the way they did till that day. But no... i'm panting & short of breath when i walk far, but not wheezing & not tight feeling in my chest. More like I feel like I ran a cross country race. yuck.

This sounds serious. I'm not a doctor, but it sounds like something could be wrong with your heart. Please get it checked out!

When I was first dx with arthritis, I was given a handicap sticker. I had it for 6 months and then the doc let me renew for another 6 months. I could barely walk that first year!

It sounds like you would def get approved for one.

[elizat]

I don't know about parking permits, but there was a pregnant woman in my office that went on temporary paid disability after she gave birth (not FMLA leave). I don't know what the factors for approval on that were.