[More than 4 decades in the wheelchair--mental approach from everyday and occupational experiences]

The present contribution builds on the author's experience, is however not intended solely as a review, but sets out some approaches and suggestions pertaining to three areas which, in the author's view, belong to the problematic issues in the life of ill and disabled persons in our society. These are: the deficits in rehabilitation; the importance of talking with disabled or ill persons; and the educational integration of disabled children with its present possibilities and limits. Perhaps the views and suggestions set out can contribute to introducing a more everyday problem orientation into future discussions of issues to do with the handicapped and non-handicapped getting along with each other. While primarily starting out from his personal experience as a disabled person in dealing with the first two areas, the author's considerations concerning the third area-which currently is a matter of highly speculative debate in German special education-are based on professional reading and day-to-day involvement in teaching. According to the statements made by those unrestrainedly in favour of educational integration, their initiations seem to have channelled everything appropriately. Educational integration, however, has always been sought for children with less serious handicap, or those with serious handicap and average to good learning ability. For those with serious handicaps, possibly with additional learning restrictions, the author, in the face of an integrational euphoria currently often met with, feels obliged to predict that for this group the school for the physically handicapped will continue to be the "receiving school", as current integrational approaches do not include these pupils or do not meet their requirements.