Core

I saw my physical therapist Sarah today and now she is working on strengthening my core with a bunch of exercises which I have been working on as well but now she adds more for me to do.  Typical woman, never satisfied........  My balance, walking and stanima has improved a lot.  It takes 70%-75% more energy for an AK amputee to move around.  I didn't know it was that much..........  It takes 20%-25% more energy for a BK amputee to get around.  Just wish that I could have kept my knee.

Thank you

Walking so much better now!  Thank you to all that continue to help me in this endeavor and thank you for helping me for a limited time, Rachel Bray.  Just wish you could see how far I have come.....

Great news August 24 2016

I am just getting back from seeing my prosthetist, John Paul Donovan at Atlantic ProCare and he is very impressed with the way I am walking now! In fact he got a report from my Physiatrist, Dr, Brance who said, and I quote "James is walking the best I ever seen anyone walk with a prosthetic leg who has had a traumatic brain injury." That made my day and hard work does pay off.

equal weight

I saw my Physical Therapist today and I am walking so much better now and also standing so much better now.  According to Sarah, and I quote her "You are finally standing with equal weight on both legs!!!"  I don't know where she went to school, but I told her, "No, now I am standing with 70-80% of my weight on my artificial leg."  She smiled and basically said bull shit and I told her I hope that isn't the way you balance your checkbook.

Physiatrist July 18 2016

I saw my Physiatrist doctor today and he is so impressed with my walking now!!! Now I don't have to see him again for a year! I used to have to see him every six weeks. He likes me walking me much better with my walking stick. My gate and flow have improved dramatically. Thank you JP, Sarah and Rachel Bray!

Walking with nothing....

I am just back from physical therapy where I did something today that I have never done: I walked for 35 minutes without my walking stick/cane!!!!!! According to my physical therapist, Sarah, my form and gate were great and I don't even need the cane! WOW!!!!!

She was so impressed with my new kitty socket and how I am walking now. Now I can't wait to play golf with it, go fishing and just do normal things because now I feel actually normal!

New Socket

My new kitty socket which fits much better and is incredibly comfortabel compared to my old socket.  I am walking so much better now!!!!  Thanks JP and the entire staff at Atlantic ProCare!  Thanks Rachel Bray for your help a couple of months ago....

Amputations planned and not

During volunteering at Amp clinic, I learned a few things.  I always wondered why I didn't walk as well as I wanted and my prosthetic didn't fit as well as I wanted either...... I learned that most people who get amputations today know before hand that that is going to happen so most times the prosthestist is in the hospital and often in the surgery as well, so the leg is cut the way he/she wants it to be cut so the prosthetic leg will fit the best possible way. Unfortunately, since my amputation was the result of a life saving procedure, the docs didn't give two shits about at the time about an artificial leg.......

I see people that walk much better than me and I also see some that walk worse.  By and large, those amputees that get to keep their knee walk much better than those that don't.  It only makes sense.  Unfortunately I am an AK amputee (Above Knee) and since the docs were just concerned with saving my life and dealing with all my other injuries and maladies from the accident the amputation was low on their priority list.  After reading my extensive medical reports, they seemed most concerned with my TBI - Traumatic Brain Injury.  

To this day many of my doctors and my prosthetist maintain that I am doing remarkably well in terms of walking, gate, flow and balance.  I continue to improve but I still can't do what I see other AK amputees do and when I ask why?  They say "you have/had a brain injury".  I am sorry but I don't buy it!  In the beginning, I accepted it, but my Dad never did.  It seems to me that I can retrain the brain to work better.

I have seen a couple of brain scans of mine and the Doc has explained it to me and shown me the damaged areas.  I have done research on this as well and the brain is an amazing thing.  My skull was shattered and I had brain swelling and brain shearing post the accident and from what I can gather other parts of the brain are kicking in to help out and do the jobs of the parts of the brain that were damaged.  

Some of it has to do with sides of the brain which I don't really understand for I have scars on both sides of my head.  I maintain still that the brain excuse is just an excuse and hence is BUNK!  I think walking better has to do with fit and comfort of the prosthetic leg!  No guy ever wants to talk about this but shrinkage is a big factor.  

I hate shrinkage but the professionals seem to like it.  Even the female experts.......  I don't though for I guess I am old school where bigger is better.  LOL.....  The more my residual limb (stump) shrinks, the more taut and defined it becomes hence, the stronger it is.  The bad part is I have to keep going in for new sockets which is an arduous and time consuming process.  They always want the socket to ride up high to capture a bone or two for support which irritates me.

I would much rather have the socket  down much lower for it would be much more comfortable but the experts want to capture that bone  which they maintain gives me the support that I need to walk, have balance and do things.  Unfortunately, I argue that the socket is too close to another area that is sensitive to guys and to another bone which is really important to guys as well.  That is why the new socket procedure is tedious and so damn frustrating.  It must be much easier for a female AK amputee.

Hard work paying off

I had my first physical therapy appointment in a month and my physical therapist saw great gains today!  I now have a new socket which is much more comfortable so I can walk without pain.   My stanima has improved dramatically.  I walk the longest I ever walked without taking a break to rest.  I walked today without my walking stick but rather, just holding Sarah's hand (my physical therapist) without putting pressure on her hand which is a huge improvement for me.  I have been practicing this with Rachel, my friend who is a girl, who doesn't want to be called my girlfriend but rather my friend who I get to see naked.  All my hard work is paying off!

Stamina

According to my physical therapist, Sarah, I have to increase my stamina.  When I walk longer distances my flow and gate suffer and I get winded.  I will work on my endurance once the weather improves.  I also need to talk to my physiatrist, Dr. Branch about my socket and I need to talk to my prosthetist, John-Paul Donovan about the same thing.  I need to talk them both about Transfemoral Socket Interfaces which I think would be a much more comfortable socket design.

Standing up with nothing

Sarah taught me something new this week which I could never do before.  She sat me down on a bench and made me get up without holding on to anything!  I couldn't use me cane or stick because she took it away from me and there were no handles for me to grab onto.  She just stood in front of me and told me to get up.  It was scary but I did it.  I had to use my artificial leg to help me get up.  I would reach forward hoping to grab Sarah but she would move away.  Once I got up, I found my balance point and stood.  I can now do it without Sarah but I prefer doing it with her in front of me hoping to grab her.  Oh well, one can hope.

Really Walking

I am walking, I mean REALLY WALKING NOW for the first time ever.  My physical therapists, Sarah and Suzanne, my prosthetist, John-Paul Donovan and my physiatrist, Dr. Branch are so happy and pleased with all the progress.  It is kind of ironic for me since I didn't really see this huge improvement until I saw before and after videos of my walking and gate.  It is getting much easier to walk correctly and I don't have to think as much to walk which is nice!!!