What “Learning to Walk” ACTUALLY Means (More Complex Than You’d Think!)
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- Опубліковано 1 жов 2024
- I realized I've never actually explained "learning to walk"...its a little more complicated than I once thought!
#learningtowalk #amputee #prosthetic
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Fourteen years of pain and failed ankle surgeries brought me to 2018, when I made the difficult decision to become a twenty-seven-year-old below-the-knee elective amputee. This channel is to document my journey of amputation surgery, recovery, and reclaiming my life.
MY PROSTHETIC LEG:
I use the Ossur ProFlex XC Torsion foot/ankle with a direct socket with passive vaccum suction.
MY AMPUTATION STORY - IN VIDEO:
Why Did I Lose My Leg? • HOW I BECAME AN AMPUTE...
How I Said Goodbye To My Leg: • COME WITH ME ON A GOOD...
Seeing My Amputated Leg for the First Time: • Seeing my amputated le...
Day in the Life of an Amputee: • A Day in the Life of a...
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Thank you so much for listening - you make a real difference in my life, you enable me to be able to do what I love, and I am beyond grateful!
you're W A L K I N G!!!!!! Unassisted and really really steadily! You've come so far in the past few months. I'm so happy for you
When I lost all the strength in my legs I had to learn how to walk again. It’s been just under a year and I still can’t walk far and I need my crutches for long distance but it’s a process. There is a walking loop near my house and it’s 4km and my goal is to walk it without stopping by the end of the year
Maaggiie D I still have t gotten used to ,y prosthetic. I didn’t walk for a year. It’s hard.
Omg how are you doing now
I guess Im asking the wrong place but does anyone know a trick to log back into an instagram account?
I somehow forgot the password. I would appreciate any assistance you can give me
@Killian Solomon instablaster :)
@Brendan Alberto I really appreciate your reply. I found the site through google and im in the hacking process atm.
Looks like it's gonna take quite some time so I will reply here later with my results.
As someone with 2 fully functioning legs this was really fascinating!! I’ll think about walking slightly different now!
I’ve you ever have any knee or foot issues you’ll quickly start thinking about it.
nobody:
jo: *both* physically, mentally and emotionally
me: *wait a damn minute*
When i studied dance at Uni one of the 1st things we got taught was how to walk properly. It sounds strange as someone with a fully functioning body to be told you walk wrong but i noticed so many small things such as like you i had an old ankle injury and turned my foot out to compensate and it threw me completely out of whack. So its interesting to see someone elses perspective.
My first pro company class was "how to stand". 1 full hour of standing, walking, and releve. Absolutely eye opening! More for the girls on point but beneficial for me too!
@@forestbell4622 i never realized that i swing my hip out when i walk becase of a very old hip ingery ( broke my hip in infiancy)
@@forestbell4622 yes when they first said we are going to teachyou how to stand and walk i was suprised but it was so interesting.
I never realized how much we use our ab muscles just for walking until I had major open abdominal surgery. It was pretty eye opening.
Scoliosis did this to me -- the times when I was in pain and unable to stand up straight and the world didn't care because I had to get to class or work forced me to learn to walk in a dozen different ways, none healthy. There are wonderful times when I can just walk without thinking, but occasionally I do trip myself up by going, "Wait what is my hip doing?" or "My toes aren't pointed the right way," and then it's like asking a basketball player if she breathes in just before a free throw, and she can't hit one to save her life because she's thinking too hard. o_O
I have severe hypermobility so I tend to walk really tight and really waddly. Learning not to do that - you're absolutely right - is HARD!
If anything I have hypomobility. Sitting crossed legs feels tight and kneeling is very painfull.
I’m always having to focus on how I walk because I have hemiplegia, a form of cerebral palsy. Always interesting to learn about other people’s stuff. 😊 xx
rachelannemarie25 I have hemiplegia too, I dont focus on how I walk as much as I should
This made me realize that I am walking incorrectly with my foot out towards the side. And my physical therapist told me to focus on my right foot and how it wasn't facing forward while doing the exercises
Some specialist athletic shoe shops have gait analysis machines for similar reasons. You are clearly now thinking like an elite athlete not just an amputee lol
It's neat to see how smoothly you walk when you put your mind to it... being meat footed (x2), I'd rather not try to think about what I'm doing while walking cuz I'll probably fall over. Keep up the good work!
I have EDS and it's been a year and a half that I'm working on adjusting my walking posture and still hard, still have to think about it when the pain is high but not so much anymore during the best moments. And that's really exhausting to think about engaging your abs and glute all the time, send you some virtual spoon !
I have EDS too
I have some weakness and restricted movement in my left ankle and foot because of nerve damage, so I actually compensate in pretty similar ways. This was actually really helpful!
I have had several ankle sprains in my ankle and it’s caused an “unhealthy adjustment”. Although it’s not a fused ankle or amputated, it’s weird. I’m going to try to walk more consciously and see if I can correct it. Thanks for this video. you seem way brighter and happier here!
When I had my knee replaced a big part of the rehab is learning to walk normally again, not compensating, and using muscles that have been surgically altered (prior to my TKR I had 7 surgeries on that knee including an ACL repair in my 20’s that a surgeon totally screwed up, and it took another surgeon 3 open surgeries to fix)
You probably know it's a metaphor to say your muscles need to learn, but when we talk about "muscle memory," it's actually really cool what's happening in the brain - this white stuff called myelin gets wrapped around the nerves. Myelin was thought to be completely useless compared to neurons, but when they cut open Einstein's brain and found a ton of it, they reconsidered. Now scientists know it's the stuff that controls when neurons fire. The more of it there is around a nerve, the more accurately that neuron fires, and the more automatic (and automatically correct) a behavior is. There's a really cool book called The Talent Code about it by Daniel Coyle. Turns out really slow, conscious practice is the best way to build myelin!
I wonder how this realates to second langauge aquisition. It turns out that listeneing and reading content in that language that you can just understand or figure out is the best way to go and that actualy pronouncing or writing things down only helps with the pronunciation and writing themselves.
Love your videos! “Words are hard” that’s me too😂
I actually have weak ankles so they bend inwards while walking/standing. So I try to correct that with physiotherapy, but honestly I feel like I now know less about walking than before. Like how do you put your foot down correctly? It's heel first right? But that feels weird...
😂😂 I know I am not am amputee, but I think I get the struggle 😅💕
I have EDS and my left knee has always been one of my main problems; so much so that I damaged nerves in my right leg with overcompensating. My physical therapist is always telling me that my body has all sorts of maladaptive methods for moving.
After getting fibromyalgia a few years ago, and at the same time finding out I have minor hyper flexibility in my joints (not as severe as eds) Ive been forced to think about how I move my body much more. And I still have much to learn.
Currently dealing with plantar fasciitis and this has given me more reason to think about getting phsysio.
When I'm riding horses I am always told to look up and not at the horse because the horse as more of a chance to stumble or fall. That might be kind of like the same thing.
You looking great they going to cut my whole leg this coming up Thursday the 16th 😖😥😭😭💔🙌🏿💪🏿💪🏿 but your videos help me out big time thank you so so much ❤️😊
Wishing you a smooth recovery and hoping for the best possible outcome for you!
@@johnswaim3919 thank you so much that means a lot to me you saying that much love for you I hope you have a great day today!! 🤗👊🏾💪🏾🙌🏾💕
Good luck❣ You will get through this😊
I'll be praying for you and sending good vibes your way. Hope all goes smoothly!
Good luck! I had my amp surgery the last week in August and I am learning to rewalk now.
I never had to learn how to walk but I had to learn how to run. I used to lead on my heels which Caused my ankle problems that I have now and land how to learn how to land on my mid foot it's hard so I could see the same think with just walking
Well done!! This is so much harder then we think!! I had real gait issues when I started on a prosthetic too. Cos I couldn’t put my heel to the floor when I got injured that hasn’t helped, also when it got to the stage where I was permanently on crutches I struggled trusting it wouldn’t cause me pain on my prosthetic side. Even now hopefully when I finally get a socket on I’m not going to be able to walk right!! Thanks for this though really informative
Wow! That is a big difference! I'd call that progress. Thanks for this. It's actually quite interesting and also helpful.
Chris" (Amped Life) advice made a huge difference to my body alignment. Pretend (1) that you have a string puling straight up thru your body and head and (2) that you have a towel wrapped around your hips to keep your hips tilted forward. Really helped with my hip and back pain. But like you, I am also going back a physical therapist to build strength and balance.
I had a childhood TBI so my gait is abnormal. When I *really* focus on it, I can walk somewhat normally. But when I’m tired or relaxed at home, I drag my left foot like crazy.
I find myself looking down when I go for a walk (to the mailbox) and I think your advice here will help me be more aware of my walking habits. (Look at you, straightening out my life! 😊)
I'm glad you're learning to walk again. Is the slight limp because of the prosthetic length or just a left over bad habit? Good luck with the training and the race!
On this episode of “I was just watching some comedy and now I’m here...”: Idk man... I’m here and now I’m intrigued...
After I had foot surgery, I definitely had to learn how to walk just a little differently and ended up nearly pulling a tendon or something from doing it wrong😅
So you now never can wear heels? (Sorry if being rude, just interested)
Actually she can if she wants to with the right ankle and foot. Check out "amputeeOT" she does a video about it.
Have you seen the Ted Talk called “Beautiful Artificial Limbs”? You may very well have. It is interesting and uplifting, and an approach I would never have thought of. If you haven’t, I hope you’ll look for it.
Thank you for this, really interesting. My left hip and butt started in 2017 ish? having major issues of an overly tight muscle and pain which sometimes itself causes my left thigh to start to go numb when i stand or walk "wrong" and it all comes back to the fact that i broke my foot in 2004 when i was 14 years old and in 2012 i fused the joints in my foot and got a metal plate in there etc. Oh and on top of all that I've had Scoliosis my whole life, never treated because the angle was never "that bad". It's all affecting the rest of my body now and since 2017 and I'm still in my early 30s. I want this body to provide me the best quality of life it can for many decades to come. So i want to do what i can to be aligned. Thank you for this thoughtful explanation and video!
Great to see you learning to walk again just take it one day at at time you seem like a very determined person love you jo i know you'll make great progress
I have to think about walking and other "automatic functions" regularly. I often also have to think about breathing otherwise I hold my breath inadvertently.
Yep, my right ankle is fused ... I have knee and femur rotation along with a twisted sacrum, a crooked spine and serious neck issues. All this causes severe and C.H.R.O.N.I.C. P.A.I.N.
I completely empathize. You shoukd see a chiropractor though to keep you straightened while uou relearn to walk the correct way. Keep on keeping on Jo. You're a ☆ROCK STAR☆
I think you going to see a physical therapist again is a very good idea. Its their job to help figuring out something like that with you and show you how to learn to walk correctly. It helped me a lot.
But I am amazed how far you came on your own.
Hi, Great video! The majority of people (amputee or not) do not walk properly and it is something that can be learnt/re-learnt. Engaging your glutes is the key! I have one question for you, I am an AT in Canada and work with active population with similar gait patterns often(even without a prosthetic). I found that working/exercising in an hip extended position ex.lunges staggered stance w/ weight or not, helps fire the glutes and release the tight hip flexor muscles that limit the range in the hip. Have you done some work in a hip extended position when re-learning to walk? if you did, did it help? I am very curious to see if that could work with someone like you with a trans-tibial amputation. Once again great video and channel! Hope to hear from you. Thanks! Pat S
Well, as a matter of fact, I have had to think about walking.
Don't think your 5K is possible, *KNOW* it is possible, because it is.
I love your videos. Even though I'm an abled body person, I watch your videos and the videos of other disabled youtubers because I´m fascinated how people manage to cope with their disabilities and can still live a full life. I love to see you doing progress and getting better and I am amazed by how far you have come. I´m Sorry if I made mistakes but I´m from Germany and English is not my first Language, I´m still learning. Thank you so much for your Videos and I wish you all the best!
I could really see the difference in your walking. I'll pay attention when I walk today...and probably not walk smoothly at all. I'm not the most graceful human!
I'm doing a 5K in March too...at night. It's a glow run!
I have RA. Back in 2003 my right knee became very painful. I had to lock it to walk. Due to shenanigans by a major aircraft company (starts with B), our company lost it's military contract. Lay offs ensued. I worked at a call center, very stressful, and RA got worse, going to full-body agony. 2010-- ended up disabled. After 3 years on opioids, I quit cold. Total body pain hasn't resumed, and I am working on climbing stairs using my right leg, and remembering to bend my right knee when I walk.
In the background....erm...does that say HOPE or HORE? See what I mean, my friend? Hore=frost.
I have Fibromyalgia and Arthritis which cause pretty much everything to be funky. My right knee, however, is one of my biggest problems. I often have to think about how I'm walking because of I don't, I'll move too fast, and my knee will lock up(especially if I'm doing stairs)
Thankyou for sharing this! Very interesting!
Can you please please please guide about taking care of the stump with the products available in india as there are not the variety of products which are available in other countries PLEASE JO HAVE A VIDEO ON IT
I'm sorry, I keep getting distracted by the "HOPE" sign on your shelf... It looks like it says "HORE" 🤭
You're killing me watching you walk barefoot on that prosthetic, Your foot shell will wear out so much quicker if you at least have a sock on it.
Gait has such a HUGE effect on the rest of your body. My right leg is wrecked from pretty much the hip down (EDS and a LOT of injuries pretty much make it baby giraffe leg held together entirely by heavy duty braces), and I have a deeeeep thug roll when I'm tired. I'm basically hauling that whole side around with my core and my left leg. And it's actually changed the whole shape of my back. Occupational therapy helped me a lot with it, though.
When I was younger I walked with my feet turned in alot (I don't know exactly why). So I took ballet classes and that helped alot. Also- some of my fav fictional characters are amputees :).
Who are your faves?
I do that too. Its called being 'pigeon toed' m trip sometimes😂
Yes I’ve had to think about it: I had a severe patellar (kneecap) dislocation and every step was shaky.... obviously not as severe as having a part of a limb amputated but I did have to think about every step as you’ve said in your great video!!
I have EDS and have severe trouble with my left foot and ankle. I had to have reconstructive work done a few years ago and I have other issues that have kept me off of it with severe pain from time to time. So I definitely know what you mean about leaning to walk again as I’ve had to do it a couple times myself. It’s difficult and frustrating, but not impossible. I still think I turn my foot out to the left a little bit, but I have consciously had to correct it. Best of luck with your gait training, you’re doing great so far!
I can relate. I sprained an ankle and didn't properly rehab it. I soon got plantar fasciitis and again changed the way I walked and ran. While going through PT, I learned to 'embrace' the pain without compensating. With PT and walking and running normally, I was eventually pain free.
Thanks for this. I'm a below knee amputee as well - also on the right side. I haven't walked unassisted since my car accident 2 years ago, and just got a new prosthetic leg. I've been trying to find a PT that does gait training, but it's hard. Practicing walking alone in the house is scary. Well, scary any time! I appreciate the outlook here. Very good tips, and very encouraging. I'm motivated now to put my leg on more often and practice. Thanks again...enjoying your videos!
Found this fun fact out recently..... I literally walk completely from my brain. I look like Tommy from Rugrats when i walk.😂...sigh.
Wow, that's practically the same gait I have whenever I injure my knee/butt/waist. I noticed that locking your muscles in place lessens the pain a lot while trying to go through your day even though you start suffering from stiffness once it's time to relax :(
I don't think I ever injured myself bad enough to keep up the gait for more than 2 weeks at a time, but it's scary how easily I switch to it once the injury happens.
This was such a fascinating video! Four days ago I fell on a sheet of ice outside my apartment and messed up my knee on the way down. Still unclear what exactly I did, maybe just twisted it, but over the course of that day it completely locked up and I could barely walk. As of right now my gait has gotten much closer to "normal", but my range of motion still isn't good and I can't really bend my knee past 90 degrees. I only discovered your channel this week and have been working my way through your videos ever since, so it was really interesting having this happen right after I found your channel, because it definitely has made me realize how much I take for granted having joints that move and work the way they're designed to and to not have to think about walking, like you're describing here! I don't think I actually walk correctly at the best of times--I have a chronic pain condition that flares up in my hips/knees a lot, plus I'm technically hypermobile, and I remember a long time ago being diagnosed with "biomechanically challenged feet" (still have no clue what that means), so all in all I'm probably doing a lot of the "adjusting" that you mentioned, likely messing up all sorts of things in the process. Anyway, thank you for this really thorough and interesting explanation (and for all your content!). I'm going to go try walking around a bit and really pay attention about getting it right instead of letting myself adjust to avoid the pain in my knee. And I'll also subscribe :)
5 years ago I broke both my ankles at once, one requiring surgery to repair. As a result that one was for all intents and purposes “fused” because it was so swollen and the joint essentially didn’t move. Not on the same level as you, but I had daily pain and it wore me down and made me grumpy with my young kids :/
I want to say I found a fix overnight, but that’s not true. However, I did slowly work on my own solutions. Part of the reason I’m recounting this is because I discovered the work of Katy Bowman, a biomechanist and proponent of what she calls “nutritious movement”. She is amazing at explain biomechanics and why body awareness is so important in terms and visuals that are easy to understand. She’s got a great podcast too, I devoured all, nearly 100 of them in a very short period of time. She talks about a bunch of the things that you just did, like turning out your foot to compensate, which messes up your knee and hip, etc. Which is how I ended up with arthritis in the “bad” ankle and the opposite knee, from my compensation pattern (I walked a lot like you demoed in the video). Her book “Whole Body Barefoot” is all about the biomechanics of walking and how do it mindfully in a way that helps you be able to move well into the future. And it includes stretches you can do to help gradually repair your alignment.
Over the past 3.5 years I have slowly worked on making the connections to repair my body as much as possible. When it really started to come together for me at an even higher level was this fall when I decided to trial a Keto based diet (with help from a dietician) to see if it would help address the constant inflammation in my body, and in my ankle especially. And it did (not that I’m telling anyone to go that route, it just worked for *me*). As a result I have been able to make a ton of progress at a nearby CrossFit gym, which puts a lot of priority on ensuring good body mechanics before anything else. And last month I started skipping rope for the first time since I was a kid!
As I said, it hasn’t been a straight forward line. In Jan 2018 I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer, did over a year of intense treatment, including a mastectomy, and gained a bunch of weight and other physical and digestive problems, but slowly, ever so slowly, I kept taking steps in what felt like the right direction, and it is finally paying off, for which I am very much grateful. I don’t think anyone can truly appreciate the joy and freedom it is to move through your day without pain until they lose it. And to regain at least some of it is a huge gift that we will never take for granted!
Oof can I buy your other foot?
I had surgery of my ACL in my right knee. I had to walk with crutches for 4 weeks. When I did my first step without crutches, I had tears of joy in my eyes :)
I'm a young French podiatrist, and we have an entire matter about how we walk! First percent: what does you foot your knee your hip, what angle do they have, which muscles are used, what do they do? Next percent... It is extremely long and difficult to learn but fascinating!
Ik that I walk wrong.
I think I noticed when I was around 14? When my chronic pain started I tried to get help but it didn't work out. So I tried to compensait.
Now I walk very weirdly. Like...it looks wrong. Ik it does but walking any other way hurts so much more. Am trying to unlearn it and am finaly getting help soon :)
So I'm also an amputee, not exactly the same mine is above the knee whereas Jo's is below the knee. I don't know who has it harder, but they're different. I've only just started walking again, and your PT is constantly telling you what you need to fix. "head up, bigger steps with your left leg, bigger steps with your other left leg. Head up" it's constant. And to be fair i don't have one of those fancy knees that has a micro processor or anything, it's just a simple mechanical joint, and what that means is when I relieve pressure my knee just snaps forward. But back to the point i could probably name like seven things my PT wants me to be doing with every step. It's annoying but it helps me get better with every lesson
I have definitely had to put conscious thought into my walking, but for a very different reason! When I was 11, I got rheumatoid arthritis. It has affected many different parts of my body, but in my legs it has particularly affected my right knee (for which I had a procedure and had to adjust my walking for a little while) and my left hip. My hip is the one that’s caused me issues for years. Usually, I’m okay walking. But when I get sore I tend to angle my foot out because it puts my hip at a more relaxed angle.
You walk perfectly. You walk better than me. Nobody looks really at how you walk. Most people would concentrate on your face. Dont worry if you limp. Its alright, if its more comfortable for you to walk this way.
You have no idea how many positive feelings , a pretty limping woman can rise in man.
If i see a limping woman i like her immediately. I might attribute her many qualities.
You should learn to fly Jo.
As an able-bodied person, I do think about the nuances of walking when I have to walk for long distances efficiently, like hiking, or better, hiking on icy trails. Core engagement, weight alignment , which part of the foot lands first, etc. They fade into the background after a while, but are still somewhat there, making me walk differently to “everyday sloppy walking”.
Because of various injuries I’ve had five distinct changes to my gait...more to come. Some good others not. For me, Ive found it takes about two years for your brain to catch up to the new gait to where it becomes unconscious. Feel like I’ve said this before. My apologies if I’m repeating myself.
I’ve sprained my ankle few months ago, so now I can’t fully bend(?) it. All the hospitals are shut down cause of coronavirus, I basically don’t know what to do
I have Spina Bifida, meaning that my nerves are all out of whack, and I have very little feeling and no movement below my knee. I also apparently can't do anything with my glutes. I haven't walked more than a shuffled step or two here and there in like 5 years, and I've been really wanting to get back into it since I started watching your videos, but I just worry I'll get the braces and crutches I need but I won't use them. Oh well, I'll figure out what I want to do with that later. When I did walk, I had a habit of moving both of my forearm crutches at once rather than one with the opposite legs, and I'd just focus on my thigh because that's about all I could use to walk, especially when I was on the treadmill. I never thought about it too much because the KAFOs (knee-ankle-foot-orthotics) I had made my legs pretty well aligned and straight, but at the same time, my knees would often be together with my ankles splayed more apart, which would mean my the hinges of my orthotics at my knees would get caught together and I'd fall. Hopefully someday soon I can get back to it and learn how to do it properly.
What you describe sounds like mindful walking [meditation]. Being aware of what your body is doing can be a head trip but it can also be pretty good for grounding reasons!
There's a lot of places we go on autopilot for and could be served well by taking the wheel more often.
(This also made me think about how when I was a kid, I'd be looking down a lot and shuffled my feet constantly, until I got some guidance/reminders to try not to do that. It did help me mind how I was carrying myself.)
Okay as I am an amputee I now notice how everyone walks after my prosthetic training. Turns out I never walked properly and now I do😊 When I am tired I find I resort to "hot cold walking" which is what my physio called it. I think you are doing amazing with your walking!!
I'm waiting for an above knee amputation, left leg. I've had no end of surgery on my left knee and after favouring that side for over 30 years, I now have moderate arthritis in my right knee. Thankfully, it's not really bothering me too much.
I think it'll be interesting to know or to find out when I learn to walk again with a prosthesis if I have any alignment issues. I wouldn't have thought so because the leg will be taken above where the problems are. But maybe my body will try to revert to old habits.
Hmmm.......!
I have hypermobility syndrome. I have to consciously make sure that my knee isn't too far back when my foot hits the ground otherwise the knee will sorta just buckle backwards and I'll fall over. Luckily I'm pretty good at remembering now and if I do fall I've more or less learned how to do it without injuring myself.
I've done a lot of physical therapy for my left amputated leg, and as of midnight here, have had my Össur prosthetic leg on for more than 24 hours, fell asleep with it on yesterday, did so much and decided to heck with it, but getting ready to pull it off, think the leg does well, but my face was hurting worse since I got slammed by moving a bed into a wall and had knocked a filling out of my mouth, sliced my upper lip inside and out, and busted my nose helping move a bed. All that got fixed early yesterday morning on the 16th of January, glad my doctor whom fixed my tooth saw me when he did, very amazing young doctor, we talk about interesting things in his office like how Vikings sharpened their teeth years ago, and how if I don't keep the teeth fixed it can cause heart attack, and since I lost an organ in 2018 after dual organ transplants way back in 2011 always have to pre-medicate before seeing doctors for cutting procedures or dental junk, due to my low immune system on anti-rejection meds. But I rented a room to a very unique genius literally, he used to date Lydia Lunch the musician, and has contacts all over the world in his work including royal families and more, and degree similar to my fiueld and other areas and was a former cook and helping build muscle mass with his professional cooking skills back into my cut off leg, which helps a lot. Any way wish you the best Jo and your family, and I had to have my Össur leg adjusted many times before it got lined up well for the different shoes and boots I use. My favorite is the custom made Anodyne boots, but I have three pair of custom made boots and a custom made pair of tennis shoes for jogging which also add a tremendous help for mobility. But even so, moving a bed after 18 months post leg amputation and about a year of that recovery time with two prosthetic legs, shrinking of the swelling, and on and on, still not mobile enough to deal with huge objects like I was before I lost my leg, but putting it into perspective, takes a baby about two or even more years to actually see a child get up and walking on two legs, some upt to three years old, or four. My donor though, whom was a ballet and jazz dancer that died and saved my life was doing ballet at age three whom her kidney is still alive in my body, so guess moving heavy objects like beds and such that are huge was biting off a bit more than I should have expected to be able to handle well for what is missing out of my body with all the surgeries since December 7th, 2011, the day after my donor died and loaned me her living organs, and her pancreas lived six and half years than scar tissue caused it to entangle in my small intestine and nearly killed me on April 7th, 2018, then on July 9th, 2018 due to the vein they cut out, and they used to plug in my donors organ's after her pancreas in my body died, and all that scar tissue inside and out, lucky that I can make my abdomen move considering was cut in half twice down the middle and across my abdomen. It hurts in winter too, but I bite the pain issue back and force myself to put it out of mind and keep doing what seems to slam into my life trying to do what I used to do and amazed at how much I didn't look at how blessed it really is to have the ability to just simply move around with high dexterity with two legs before amputation. Miss it, but such is life, new challenges every day time moves forward, tired but I keep pushing the limits doctors tell me way past what they say my body can handle, and having the prosthetic on so long, and not so bad is nice. But I know when I take the leg off, it will probably be a Friday with not being able to handle using it, will see. I just challenge myself, might be dumb but my anger with the issues makes me fight to try, and now time to take this thing off and go to sleep. Thanks for your posts, they help a lot.
I have permanent nerve damage down my entire right leg. I had to relearn how to walk when it happened. Then I had my foot fused (not ankle yet just part of the foot) & had to adjust my walking once again. The fusion didn’t really help & I am so tired of the constant pain. My entire right leg is weak so the slightest issue causes me to have pain throughout my entire body. At one point my doctor talked about fusing my ankle & toes (they bend completely backwards with every step). I don’t know that it would even be worth it at that point. People that have two fully functioning legs & feet have no idea of the struggle. 😢 You’re doing great though & I hope you continue!!
Jo: , This message is for your prosthetist... Good Sir, is there any way you could insert a weight triggered micro pulley system that would, as Ms. Jo walks and weight is transferred from back to front of the actual ankle joint of Ms. Sunshine, allow the toes of the foot to grip the ground/floor she is traversing? The Toe joint would move through three separate joints ultimately pointing the middle one straight up while pulling the farthest one away from the ankle directly backward and slightly downward. Thus allowing the toes to grip whatever floor/ground she was traversing, along with a spring to push the toe ahead again for the next step. Thusly, giving her a better grip and surer footing over wherever she was walking. Feel free to contact me for a more detailed explanation and to see if this mechanism is feasible. Ms. Jo has my address and email. Thank You Very Much.
This reminds me of all the effort and energy I exerted to try and stay up right on crutches to the point I couldn’t think or function... I’m so glad I finally agreed to get a wheelchair because now I can think and all my focus and energy isn’t going on not falling and collapsing... it was so exhausting
My mom told me that I’ve always walked with my feet slapping the ground like a duck, even when I was first learning to walk. I have weak ankles which contributes to the problem, but I don’t know what I’m doing that makes me walk weird? Maybe someday I’ll go to a physical therapist
I had to learn to think about walking twice in my life! Once when I had a foot surgery as a teenager and then again in these past weeks because I had run my first marathon and didn't expect "recovery" to be so difficult! My right knee took running harder than my left so I unconsciously compensated for it by making my left knee work harder recently and my gait felt so unnatural! Now I'm having to even think how I stand and sit in a chair because my body feels like it wants to collapse in on itself like a house of cards! I know it's not even remotely the same thing but I say all of that to say this; I understand where your coming from with the unaligned walking leading to a bunch of different skeletal muscular issues!
Sidenote: If you've read this far into the comment I'm going to tell you about the foot surgery I had...
Ok so when I was 13 (oddly enough) I had a bunion removed! Now I know what you must be thinking " bunion gross aren't those only on old people? I can assure you that they are not. Anyways, this was so bad I couldn't walk correctly. It looked like a sixth toe was growing out of my left foot and this bone shoved my big toe almost underneath the one next to it! It hurt to wear closed shoes but I had to because I was ashamed of the way it looked even knowing that made the situation worse! So that summer I had it removed. They had to take out the bone and muscle that made my toe bend that way!
Keep walking tall; your amazing!
You look like your prosthetic is short in the start of the video. Maybe 1/8 inch, 3 mm. Your pelvis drops when you step on that leg. Maybe you need a sock layer or a cut down sock layer.
When you look up, that drop appears to lessen. Maybe your pelvis is pulled under your spine better when you look up. Quite a difference. The more you look up, the better your gait. Wow,
I totally understand what you are talking about. I had 5 knee surgeries and I was walking to stop as much pain. Which put more stress on my hip. So I had to have a hip replacement because I was walking wrong. Which ware my hip out. It took 5 months of PT to walk correctly. It was crazy to me how long it took.
Yup, luckily I got some training @ the hospital after my last procedure to make sure I got it right before entering the real world. I was looking down constantly before thus screwing up everything else as you mentioned in the video. now I don't and everything works out way better.
I think about my feet a lot. Not because I have to. But because in TV as a kid I saw a lot of emphasis on walking with a limp and sideways feet. And people just getting made fun of for being genuinly different. But I do have a problem with looking down while walking. But a lot of it has to do with walking at night and car's brights are on. And I do have a particularly large chest that pulls down on my back. Both of those means its particularly hard to walk with my back straight up and my eyes forward. And its definitely not comfortable
only other time this makes sense to do is dancers or similar learning to feel and see themselves and what that means in terms of conveying stuff to an audiense :P we "just walk" around the room quite often in my acrobatics group:P
You are so correct. I still have my legs, well mostly, as both knees are titanium. Having walked with a cane for nearly 10 years and using the cane to offload weight from them, I too taught myself the wrong way to walk. As you indicated, that causes other problems, and in my case, I now have a very crooked back. About a year ago I had a lumbar fusion and that will take the starch right out of you for many months. I am now walking, standing and learning to walk again and trying as you are to do it upright. Good video Jo, I think you are inspiring to a lot of folks, and while I don’t share your condition, for those who do your straight forward yet humorous approach to sharing goes a long way towards helping them. Bravo Zulu
Dearest Jo, Go to physical therapy or your neck will hurt. Sincerely, Supportive Subscriber.
I have had two total knee replacements as I have osteoarthritis. They were done six months apart. The fact they cut through some of the muscle was the worst part but learning to walk again was painful and tedious. My muscles have all healed and I work out at the gym but my legs are still not my own. I am slow. I stumble. I have to use a stick. I just can't see the day were i bend my knees to squat or sit on the floor and get up. To have a bath. I can't put any weight on my patella so I'm limited in my movements. Sometimes I wonder if I did the right thing. What would have my bones be like if I'd kept them. Something so simple and it takes over your life. It's top of the list in anything I have to do. I had to get an automatic car. Just small things. I think you are doing great and I'm sure you have days you would like to throw Sunshine away. You are brave and it's still early days. I'm five years in to my first surgery. I have had numerous on both knees and I'm still learning without my stick. I take a bucket full of painkillers during the day. Should this be right when it was meant to fix the pain. I'm lost. I am glad i can walk a little. I should be grateful but i feel I'm not normal. Without the stick I stagger and I fear people think I'm drunk. With the stick I feel old and done in. I get so much motivation from you. I realise you struggle to but you seem to have a positive head. Good luck with the continued walking and keep going with the videos please. Take care and stay safe 💖💖💖
I would have thought that as part of the amputation /artificial limb process they would have had you go to physical therapy where they would have assesed your gait and worked with you on it.
As an autistic, I have definitely given a lot of thought to how I walk. I know I can have a strange gait, and I've tried to understand why and to learn to compensate. There was also the time when I wore an orthosis for seven weeks due to a knee injury, and the months after that as I was rebuilding my muscles, so I had to think about it then. BTW, wow at your improved conscious walking! You got this!!!
About three years ago I fractured my left arm just under my shoulder from snowboarding. It was in a sling from the end of January to March and even after I didn’t need the sling anymore I still wasn’t supposed to use my arm for another couple weeks. But once I could use my arm again I thought about what I would normally do with my arm when I did anything, even just walking or putting dishes away I had to think about how I would normally use my arm and it was pretty weird for a while😂😂 not really the same thing but that’s how i can kind of relate to what you’re saying😂
I think it's really intriguing to how many people can relate to the the thought process of walking correctly. I myself am extremely pigeon toed and never think abut how I walk, so I have hip and lower back pain and developed acute Scoliosis due to my body attempting to correct my gaint. If I do focus on my walk, where I force my hips and feet straight and follow the movements my pain levels reduce dramatically
Footless Jo!
My adjustment took a comparatively short time. After 3 months of traction my legs were like 2 pieces of dead meat from the hips down. With the aid of my physiotherapist & a walking frame I reeducated my leg muscles in just over a month. People who have never been in the situation cannot comprehend the ABSOLUTE JOY of being able to get up & go whenever you feel like it. Body awareness is part of Mindfulness I think & it is such a KICK!
love
Steve Holliday
Adaptive habits are difficult to get rid of. 16 years ago I got my index finger stuck in a door, and during recovery learnt to write using the next two fingers down instead. Since it has never been a problem, I still do this and writing "properly" now feels weird.
Your so right about the whole adjusting to compensate for sports injuries. I got my knee kicked out playing soccer and I couldn't straighten it without pain for almost a year and even after that it would hurt if I used it a lot. To make up for not being able to straighten my knee, I locked my knee into a slightly bent position, and then raised my foot into a slight tiptoe position to make up the length lost at my knee. Its hard up explain without a picture or anything. I used this slightly weird way of walking to prevent pain and completely concealed my limp. I think I walked like that for a solid three years, just knee bent and on my toes. Now, instead of knee pain, it's foot and hip pain since those joints were not supposed to be used like that.
Lately I've been really trying to correct my walking, and what you said is so true. It feels so natural and normal to just walk, but it's not the correct way.
I know it's probably not as hard as fixing 15 years of bad walking, but it's still hard and frustrating
I have patellar subluxation in both knees and have had reconstructive surgery for both. I still walk throwing my feet out to the sides the way I compensated for my kneecaps to be in the wrong place. This has done a number to my hips, low back and pelvis.
I had to learn how to correctly walk again.. though not for the same reason, I have a connective tissue disorder called Ehlers-Danlos that causes among many other things joint pain, dislocation and due to those two my joints are very unstable, so I had to use bracing for my ankles, knees, hips, back, wrists, fingers, shoulder... so it was safer for me to walk, due to the illness being a progressive one I have used a wheelchair for almost 4 years now and I have a personal care assistant that helps me daily too. I have had the same thoughts about walking as you! :D
I've tought about walking before... because when I was younger a karate master told me and other kids that the majority of us didn't even know how to walk properly and then explained it to us. Pretty cool, though I'm still not walking really well... I tend to keep my legs wide and I don't even know why
You are sooooooo cool!!! and I want to thank you because I am starting my UA-cam channel because of you. I learn so much from you THANKS!