Prototype

Today was the day I was going in to to get my new leg. Or so I thought. As it turns out, I hadn't anticipated or realised (or asked or was told) that there was another intermediate step to the process.

This involved testing out a prototype of the leg with a socket made from a transparent plastic of some kind. Clearly it makes a lot of sense to test out the fitting with a prototype and not the finished product, so I feel like a bit of a dill to have not realised this.

It meant that the socket could be fine tuned to suit all of the individual characteristics of my stump/knee/tendons etc. It is very interesting to note how many elements go into getting the socket to be sized and shaped precisely to meet your individual needs, and then for the pipe section and foot attached below to be adjusted so that your gait is strong and as fluid and natural as possible.

My hips have weakened and so I need to do a little strength work on them, but apart from that I seemed to be able to use the new low-cut style socket quite well. I will likely need to use a crutch or walking stick as an aid in the first days/week as I develop the natural strength and motor control skills required.

So while I am disappointed that I don't have my new leg just yet, what I do know from the session today is that the use of the new system (distal cup and liner with the pin and socket arrangement) is significantly more secure and comfortable than what I currently use. This is good news since over the last week I was becoming a little anxious about today's session. My main concern has been whether the discomfort and pain that I have been experiencing over the last two months would go away with the new leg. That would appear to be the case.

It should be about another two weeks for George to complete the new socket. So the saga continues....