 Next
time we speak on the telephone there's a good chance you'll hear
me say, "Hey,
guess what? This is a standing up phone call!"
I stand regularly in an Oswestry Standing Frame which is a wooden
contraption with leather straps that hold me in all the places where
I bend - my knees, ankles and waist, when I try to put weight on
my legs.
In fact, much of this website has been written while I have been
standing. In true Duffy-fashion, I rearranged my furniture so that
I can stand, talk and type (no I don't chew gum) all at the same
time. I can even touch the ceiling! How's that.
Friends and neighbours accustomed to seeing me sitting down all
the time are always surprised by how tall I am. In my wheelchair
I'm about four feet, six inches, but standing I am my true height
of six feet, three inches.
 I love the freedom standing gives me. It is also great for stretching
my hips and hamstrings, circulation and weight bearing on my bones.
I never get dizzy standing, it is naturally where I am meant to be
and feel comfortable, even after 30 years.
When I stand, I'm reminded what a wonderful producer I worked with
regularly at BBC Radio 4 once said to me,
"You know your problem, Martin.....you
never figured out you were disabled."
A real compliment that always makes me smile. The fact is if you
think you are disabled then that is what you are!
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