De'Jai's Inspiration Story

We are fortunate to be in a service industry that brings us many life defining moments – for our patients and ourselves.  One such moment was the day De’Jai came into our office for her prosthetic evaluation.  She was young, only 22, but her eyes were empty of the joy and energy that youth should inherently possess. 

Her world had unexpectedly turned upside down when she suffered a blood clot in her right leg. The surgeon attempted to save her limb with a bypass procedure but ultimately had to amputate to save De’Jai’s life.  Two months post-amputation, De’Jai was fearful and constantly questioning “Why me?”  Although she was surrounded by supportive family and friends, none of them knew the pain and anxiety that plagued her night and day.  

We all tried to be encouraging during her casting and fitting appointments but she avoided eye contact and limited conversation to the shortest answers possible.  It wasn’t until her delivery day that she began to allow herself to believe she would walk again.  She was still focused on what she had lost and not on what she could achieve with the aid of her prosthesis. 

De’Jai states that it was so hard to accept not having a leg.  She was apprehensive about how her leg would look – that it would be obvious she was wearing a prosthesis.  She had difficulty trusting her prosthesis for balance and that it wouldn’t come off and cause her to fall.  We all took small steps with her, finding ways for her to trust us and her prosthesis enough to help her succeed. 

A little over two years later and De’Jai strides into our office with her head held high and a smile that warms all that meet her.  She is confident, not only in her ability to ambulate, but in her future.  De’Jai has made new goals and is making great strides in achieving them.  She is working toward a degree in early childhood development with dreams of owning her own daycare.  De’Jai is also eager to learn to drive.  

When asked what advice she would give another young person struggling to overcome physical and emotional obstacles, she states, “Don’t give up!”  And that advice is applicable to all of us, especially during this pandemic.  

Thank you, De’Jai, for being a true inspiration and sharing your story and light with us!

De’Jai and her Mom smiling!

RAKA and Straight Drive (you know, a car?)

Post by Steve Guess, of Cary, NC

June 2013, 45 years as a Right-Above-Knee-Amputee

CAUTION: Driving straight drive may not be safe, or appropriate, for every above-knee amputee. Don’t drive a straight drive vehicle on public roads unless you’ve passed a DMV driving examination.

I reentered the civilian world from Walter Reed Army Hospital as a right, above-knee amputee on October 16, 1969.  Almost a year later, I needed to have my driver’s license renewed and, because “everyone knows an above-knee amputee can’t drive a stick shift”, I told the examiner that I could only drive automatic transmission, so that restriction was placed on my driver’s license.

Fast forward 25 years, one sweetheart of a wife, a 16 year old daughter and a 12 year old son. We’d bought our daughter a one-owner, red, straight stick VW Cabriolet convertible that needed some dead paint polished out. The first weekend with the car, I was left to take care of the paint while my family had other things going on. After a lengthy struggle with the polishing pad, I remembered that my father-in-law had a buffer. My in-laws lived nearby, but a little further than I cared to walk, so I stood back and talked to myself (it’s okay, no one was looking):

Okay, what are the issues for me driving straight drive . . . I can use my left foot for either the clutch or the brake, but not both at one time, and my right foot’s going to be of no help with either (except for my first car, I’ve had the gas pedal on the right, controlled by my prosthetic leg) so . . . the “Cab” has a hand brake. When I need to brake, I can use the foot brake ‘till I’m close to needing to press the clutch, I apply the clutch, shift into neutral, foot off the clutch and resume braking ‘till I come to a stop. Then I fully engage the hand brake. Starting off is the easiest – press the clutch, shift into first, give the car a little gas, ease out on the clutch to the “friction point,” and ease off on the hand brake at the same time, more gas, less clutch and I’m on my way shifting normally.

I drove over to my in-laws house, as if I knew what I was doing, to find out they didn’t have a buffer after all. I needed my license renewed later that year and I wanted to remove the automatic transmission restriction. I drove with my daughter in her Cabriolet to the license office (I had to have someone with me who could have lawfully driven me over). After passing the written and eye tests, I told the examiner that I wanted the automatic restriction removed. She asked why I had the restriction and I told her. She said we’d need to take a driving test. We did, I passed, the restriction was removed, and I was on the road again.