I forgot how much easier life is when you have two legs the entire day. Three months after my amputation, I’m finally able to get through most of the day with my prosthesis, and it’s amazing. Not entirely pain-free, but still amazing. I’ve even started doing very brief, like 30-seconds brief, jogging. It’s probably more like really fast stumbling, but it’s awesome.
More and more whenever I catch up with friends, they inevitably ask how things are going. Often they seem hesitant to ask, or there’s the slightest hint of pity in the way they ask. I’m always excited to share, not because of my progress, but because of the opportunity to help people understand a little more about life without a leg.
I’m still learning my way around it, but at this point, I can confidently say that life without my leg is way better than it was with my leg. Without a prosthesis, that wouldn’t be the case, but with it, I’m way more functional and capable. Of course, if you have a good leg, it’s certainly not the case that a prosthesis is better, but in my case, it’s endlessly true.
That’s not to say that this has all been easy, but it has been worth it. Every day, wearing my new leg is less painful, and I’m a little more capable. By the end of the year, I will have far surpassed where I was with a fusion.
Don’t hold me to it, but I’m aiming for jogging a mile January 1st. That would have been impossible with my fusion. I was more disabled with my leg. I had more pain and more limitations. I may look more disabled now, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Some things like showering and getting up in the middle of the night are less convenient, but they’re just blips on the radar. Before amputation, every single step was inconvenient.
Now? Every single step is pure bliss.