A couple years ago we bought new furniture for the first time in nearly 30 years. The main concern was the recliners.The love seat has 2 and so does the sofa. I have a very bad back and bad knees. DH is bed bound for the most part so when I am able to get him up and out of bed the recliners make all the difference. It took a lot of looking and months of searching to find what was just right for our needs. Walking is not easy for me and depending on the weather I can walk or need my scooter. It make take more to get me from car to chair to the furniture stores than I like and when I was shopping I had someone with me but I took my time to find just the right pieces. I had to wait almost 2 months to get the sofa as it was back ordered. It was well worth the wait. We are just hopeful it will last for another 30 years like our last pieces did. Please get out there and sit in and try before you buy. You won't regret it in the long run.

Definitely agree you should go to store and try out different chairs. We have 2 La Z Boy chairs, 1 for hubby and 1 for me. Mine is smaller than his and fits my short legs better. We have had other brands but they just didn't last. As to the electric option my neighbor had one that she really liked until the day she was fully reclined when her dog ran behind the chair and knocked the plug out of the wall and she was trapped. Thought she was never going to get out of it, she got rid of it and bought a regular recliner.

I have also had concerns about the electrics ones breaking down, but I also worry that if my husband or I had back pain or other issues that we would have trouble pushing the chair back or forward with our bodies. Is the handle the best, and do the electric ones work manually if needed?

Good questions to ask about the electrics, though I could get out of one if the power was out - at least this year I can. I went to the best furniture store in town - found a small recliner that would work - it is electric, but it's slate blue. My least favorite colors are blue and gray, let alone mixing the two. It's in clearance so the price is good. Do I see a quilted throw in my future? I laughed at my husband's chair with the lift, now I'm looking at one. Too bad I gave his away when he died.

My husband and I bought two Lazy Boy recliners 30 years ago. They are covered in brown leather and have a handle to use to recline. They were expensive and the best investment. I fall asleep in my recliner most nights. Sleep like a baby.

My Husband bought me a goof leather recliner 9 years ago. Guess who almost lives in it. Yes, he spends a lot of time in it.
I mainly sit in the dining room as the chairs are much more comfortable to me.

IF it has a battery backup, electric is the way to go. I've been trapped in mine 3 times now. Highly embarrassing.... but funny afterwards. And then there was the time I tipped it when it was on a platform after I had a knee replacement.... talk about feeling silly….
But I could not have managed a regular recliner while I'd had all the problems with my knee replacements and such...
And you definitely have to try them out. IT takes time and will be awkward but will be well worth it.