Milestones

Our 4 year old son Finn achieved a childhood milestone yesterday. He successfully rode his two-wheeler!  He was so excited and beamed with the satisfaction of accomplishment. He can't wait to show Daddy this weekend.
For me, this was the first child of our 6 whom I was able to help with this milestone. Duane patiently helped all 5 of our other children. I just could not run along with them. It was a milestone for me as well. I am so appreciative of these seemingly small things, but the shining eyes of our son were all I needed to know that this was really no small thing. I could not have done this a year ago. I feel that with this (new to me) prosthetic technology, I am 20 years younger than I was with my old prosthesis.

IT IS FINISHED!

Well, it may have taken 6 months from start to finish, but it was well worth the time! It is finished!

The new cover in place. First one like this Dennis has ever made. Pretty good!

A final photo of Dennis and the family with me on the left.

I will unequivocally recommend Metro Prosthetics to anyone needing a prosthetic device. They are professional, great listeners, patient, with a creative and can-do mindset that didn't just get the job done, it literally changed my life. Thank you a thousand times Dennis and Metro Prosthetics!  

Anyone know a good place to take ballroom dancing lessons near Annapolis, MD?

Making the Cover

As long as I've had a prosthesis, I have expected it to look something like my unaffected leg. Because of the shape of my residual limb, it cannot be exact, and that's OK. It is what it is. But I've come to realize that there is a different expectation in current prosthetic fabrication. The emphasis, and rightly so, is on fit, function, and comfort and not so much on the cosmesis (the way it looks). While there are amputees who can afford to have more than one prosthesis (as in one for sports, one for life-likeness), most probably fall into the category with me of having one prosthesis to fit every occasion. So, this brings me again to my very awesome CPO Dennis who is trying something for me for the first time. He is fashioning a hard cover to slip on over my socket which will be shaped as closely as possible to my left leg.  I will then have the choice of wearing my prosthesis with or without the cover. As I explained in a previous post, prosthetics has an element of artistry to it. Here is an example of that.

Dennis starts with a hollow-center styrofoam cylinder

Next, he inserts my socket into the cylinder

After looking at my left leg, he uses an electric knife to carve the styrofoam into a leg shape.

Michelangelo

The shape after carving....pretty good.

The result after final carving and 'sanding', trying to get the ankle as small as possible.

Plastic goes on before wrapping the limb in plaster to make a mold.

Plaster mold after cutting it away from the socket.

Finished plaster mold which will be used to fabricate the cover.

....to be continued 

Swimming and an Explanation

Swimming? Yes, you can. I have always had some sort of swimming leg. And over the years, they have evolved. My first swim leg was simply my every-day prosthesis with a rubber sleeve covering, then taped at the top with water-proof tape to keep out the water. A previous post explains how that was a fail (see "A Few Vignettes"). After that, a special "swim leg" was made for me and was solely for swimming. That worked great and had a "Kingsley Beachcomber" foot molded right onto the end.

Aunt Alice...............Bertha.............Christy...............Destiny
The kids insisted on giving them names.

In the photo at right, that swim leg (Aunt Alice) is shown on the far left. You can see the "P-Lite" liner that went on first, then slipped inside the exoskeleton. I don't recall exactly, but I think that swim leg was made for me in about 1988 (update: after talking to Duane, we determined that it was probably more like 1991). It has been rather uncomfortable to wear for about the last 10 years, so I have not really enjoyed swimming or, especially, the beach. The fit is no longer good, which is the source of the discomfort, but at the beach add to that the sand that enters the prosthesis from the top when one wades into the surf and then grinds into one's skin when walking.... well, I go to the beach for the kids not for myself. The prosthesis to the right of that, Bertha, is my old every-day, exoskeletal prosthesis with the Seattle foot.

 Next, Christy is my new swim leg.When we were discussing with Dennis what I could use for a swim leg to replace the old one, there were a couple of options, but then when he had to go back to re-fabricate a lighter socket, we decided to use the first final socket (now Christy) as the new swim leg. It fits exactly like my lighter final socket (Destiny) and has the Venture foot, it is just heavier. Perfect for use every now and then for swimming. Swim-Christy is pictured at right after I took her out for a swim yesterday at a local swim center. This was so superior to old Aunt Alice.
1) It was completely comfortable.
2) I could wear it to walk in and swim in, so I did not have to bring an extra leg in my swim bag.
3) The knee sleeve kept the water from entering the gel liner, so my leg inside the prosthesis stayed dry. This will be awesome at the beach for keeping out the sand!
4) I was able to towel-dry the knee sleeve after our swim, and change into my jeans without getting wet.

The only downside that I have to figure out is that the foot cover holds water and it was awkward trying to get the water out without taking off my socket. I may have to decide between awkwardness and the inconvenience of removing and replacing the socket. Also, the foot cover is very hard to remove to allow the whole thing to dry properly at home. This is very important to keep the parts from rusting and getting moldy. I need to find a tool. Note to self: ask Dennis about a foot-cover-removal tool.

The Final, Final Socket

OK, folks, after much fitting, fabricating, testing, and tweaking, I have my final socket! And let me tell you, it was worth the wait. This socket is so much lighter than the first-final socket, which in its turn was so much lighter than the test socket. My knee is so happy! I believe my theory was correct, you know the theory in which my right leg essentially had a 4-pound weight strapped onto it while using the test socket and so I was strengthening the leg the entire time? And then the weight was reduced to something more like a 2-pound weight with the first-final socket. Now, this final-final socket feels as though it hardly weighs anything at all. As a matter of fact, the gel liner and knee sleeve together feel heavier than the socket. My knee feels good nearly all of the time. I can still over-do and end up with a sore knee, but that's just life.

First the gel liner and stocking go on

It fits!

Sliding into the new socket....

But, it is not finished yet. Dennis now goes back to work to make a cover for all of this, so I can look good in my dress when Duane takes me out to dinner..... although, I may be starting to embrace this whole socket-and-tube look.

Victories

   

Victories come in different packages. Some victories are small, some are huge. This orchid is very nearly ready to bloom. This is a small victory. I have been watering it and looking for the perfect spot to provide just the right amount of warmth and sunshine so that it desires to bloom. It has taken months. But look! The effort and patience have paid off, and possibly tomorrow it will show us the loveliness of an orchid flower.
A victory necessarily implies some obstacle, something that must be overcome. In this case, it was simply the right amount of water and sun.








Other victories are bigger, with more at stake. More effort, more time, more emotion, more investment, more sacrifice. As I chronicle a part of my journey as an amputee, my heart aches for those who have lost loved ones and those who have lost limbs following the bombings at the Boston Marathon. I can't imagine the pain, but know that I have been praying for patience in your tribulations as you strive for your own victories. I remember that I cannot do it in my own strength, but "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13)."



So, today my bigger victory pales in comparison to the mountains others have to climb.

If you have read along with me, you know that in recent years, many things I have been accustomed to doing I have had to modify or curtail altogether because of pain. Well, my victory today is that I AM PAIN-FREE! In November, December and January, I had to apply a lidocaine patch to my knee 12 hours per day so that I could function. Now, I am able once again to comfortably take walks with my kids. On a recent camping trip, I was able to almost effortlessly walk up and down the side ramp on our travel trailer. This was something that a few months ago I could not do. So? I can help move the bicycles to and from the trailer. I do not like watching while others do the work. I am now able to walk up and down (most) stairs step-over-step. When my 4-year-old still wants me to pick him up....I can! Walking in the sand used to be intolerable after a couple dozen steps. Now? I spent my stroll on the beach marveling at the beauty of God's creation, soaking in the sun and the sounds; the surf, seagulls, the kids playing. When you have pain, it is difficult to think about those things.

Next post.....the final (final!) socket is finished.

Why the delay?

April 22, 2013     At last check, Dennis was back in the workshop fabricating a second permanent socket with the goal of making it more lightweight than the first one (which I am currently using). I need to back up a bit and explain another ongoing issue I've been experiencing. As I've shown, this prosthetic system has 3 parts, 1) the gel liner which is applied over the limb, 2) the socket that goes on next and to which the foot is attached, and 3) the knee sleeve, applied over the top of all which is the final 'lock' on the suspension. I will be receiving 2 gel liners and 2 knee sleeves, one to wear and one to wash, so that I always have a clean set. The first gel liner I was given worked perfectly with not a single problem with the fit or any skin issues. When we were sure the liner was working, the second one was fabricated from the same mold as the first. So, no problem. Well, not exactly. For some reason, the second liner was too tight. After a few minutes of wear, it felt as though it was strangling my leg and my leg felt tingly and began to become numb. Sure enough, when I removed the liner, my leg was bright red and I felt 'pins and needles' for about 15 minutes. After discussing this with Dennis a new, second liner was made. I have had this one since April 2, nearly three weeks. This one is not as tight as the one that was replaced, but I did continue to have some milder tingling and tightness, making it difficult to wear for longer than 4 or 5 hours. After talking to Dennis, we came up with an idea to relieve this problem. We drilled a 1/4" hole at the base of the socket. This allows air to escape as I slide my leg into the socket, relieving some of the tightness of the liner. This has made the difference and I am now able to wear the second gel liner comfortably all day.

A tiny change that made a huge difference.

Dennis needed to wait until we solved the liner problem before starting the new socket because the alternative would have been to start from square one with a new original cast/mold. We are both extremely happy that we did not have to go there.

I received a call today that the newest socket is ready for a fitting, so next week I will give that a try.