Finally! Got a new prosthetic leg that should allow me to finally start walking again after two years

Two years ago, I suffered an injury near my toes on my left foot. I didn't notice for a week, and it got infected. They had to amputate the front of my foot, just behind the toes. Alas, nine months later, after multiple additional "revision" surgeries, that wound refused to heal, and the decision was made to amputate.

Because I'm in my late 40s and therefore young enough that I should be able to walk again, the next place they go is below the knee, so in March of 2022 I had a BKA (below knee amputation). By June it had healed enough that I got my first prosthetic leg.

Unfortunately, my medical history is… well… very long. I was diagnosed with diabetes in 2007, but had no insurance. They put me on metformin, but that didn't help much - and while I cut out *sugars*, I didn't know about *carbs*, so I was poor and surviving on pasta, potatoes, rice, bread… and nobody thought to educate me, and I just slipped through the cracks. (But I did drop from 380lbs to around 325lbs, so please don't judge me TOO harshly)

In 2017, I had a saddle pulmonary embolism and should have died, but obviously and luckily did not. At that point, recognizing that living in a small town with no insurance and insufficient work was going to leave me dead, I convince my wife to let me look for work. So I found a job and we moved.

Alas, a decade of damage was already done, so while I got insurance and started getting my health in check, since 2018 I've had four heart attacks, my kidney function is close to failing, and I have a number of other less critical issues.

So back to last year. I got the prosthesis, but heart/kidney issues hit and my body was retaining more fluid, so I couldn't wear the prosthesis. Once I got that in check and was back to wearing the leg every day (around late January of this year), I actually shrank so that I was having to wear a number of socks (you can see a white sock in the video - that's a 3 layer sock) - upwards of 15 layers. But the shape of my leg had changed, and I was unable to *walk* in the prosthetic leg, it only helped in doing transfers with the wheelchair (to bed/toilet/car/etc).

I also got a different doctor at the clinic who actually listened to me. She is SO FREAKING awesome. And so a couple of months ago, after a couple of appointments where we tried adjusting the previous leg and various things, she started the process on a new leg. First they had to cast my leg. Then three weeks later, I went back and tried out the "tester" they made from the casting - not designed to be a permanent leg, just to see if it would work. It needed adjusting, so another three weeks for them to make another tester. That one worked, so then it was ANOTHER three weeks to today's appointment to pick up the new leg. Everything just takes time!

But I got the new leg today!

Now, I'm essentially starting from scratch. I haven't been able to walk - it's been just over two years since the original injury that I've been having to use this damn wheelchair… so I've never built up a callous on my remnant leg. Also, mostly sitting means my stamina is extremely low - especially with my various other issues (I didn't mention, but anemia is one of the many).

But! While it's uncomfortable to walk with a walker, I CAN DO IT NOW. I can only go around 100 feet before I'm exhausted, but that's okay! That's a start! For the first time in two years, I have true and real hope of getting back on my feet........ well.......... back on my foot ;-) — and building up stamina and actually walking. It'll take a while before I'm comfortable on this leg. But it fits SO much better.

Even wearing it just a few hours now, it is so much more comfortable and less bulky.

I may not walk any more today - my back is killing me. But tomorrow? I'm hoping I can walk 2-3 maybe 4 times for like 10 minutes, or even 5 minutes for the last session. I want to build up my stamina.

I also have been wanting this bitterly because with my heart issues - I have two stents, but they can't put any more where they're needed, so my solution to get healthy is "diet and exercise".

I've been working on that. I'm down to 289lbs. Part of what's hurt me on losing weight is that insulin tries to store that energy - so while I haven't been overeating, my body has taken the food I do eat and tried to store it as fat, so I've been holding weight AND being anemic and tired. So frustrating! So progress is slow, but I'm expecting that....... exercise will help.

I'm hoping this is the watershed moment that finally gets me on the path of changing the rest of my life.

First I have to build stamina walking with my walker. Then once I'm able to put full weight on my leg and be okay doing that, I can try to graduate to using a cane. I may always use/carry a cane for stability, but as long as I get where I can walk decently normally with a cane, I can start driving again, which will be really nice. Then I can look for a bicycle solution that works - because when I was younger, I used to ride my bike everywhere, and there are some awesome bike paths here in SE Virginia that I want to ride.

Hopefully I'll be able to look back in 2027 and 1) be alive, and 2) look at 2023 as the midpoint between the lows of 2017 and the hopefully-then me, able to walk, run errands, go biking…

Here's a comparison of the old leg - on the right - with the second tester on the left. Note that the tester is clear plastic - the thing inside is the gel liner that goes on my leg. It has a steel peg at the bottom with grooves that "clicks" into the top of the pylon which is how the thing attaches to me. But you can see what a big difference there is there!