when is it okay to use a mobility aid?
hi! this is a throwaway account because im too scared to post on my main.
i've been having some pain that seems to align with both my parent's arthritis for around a year or two now (i dont know how long it takes for it to be considered chronic). I'm a teenager so this isn't the best.
it specifically flares up during weather and temperature changes, though it can be ignited by activity. It's prominent in my leg bones but also moves to my back and hands.
anyways, today i was on a college tour with some friends and it was pretty hot - we were going in and out of air-conditioned buildings into heat and back again, so it was pretty bad. not as bad as it has been in the past but pretty bad. the whole time i was thinking of the mobility sticks (canes?? i dont know what theyre called) i saw at walmart but i felt guilty for thinking i needed it.
so, basically all this to say: when is it okay for me to use a mobility aid? with the pain being so fluctuating and so "invisible" , i dont think i should need one. but it would be nice to lean against something while walking. but i also don't want to take advantage of more actual disabled people's issues, what if it seems like im making fun of them?? i guess im just feeling an insane amount of impostor syndrome. i know my pain is probably real but at the same time it feels like im faking it for attention, even though i would never take advantage of something as serious as that. my friends say its better to use resources before it gets worse, and that was comforting, but i still feel like a fake i guess. so:
at what point is it okay to use a mobility aid, such as a walking stick?? thank you for reading !