Cast Your Worries, Reel In Patience

A Fishing Analogy for New Amputees   From experience, I KNOW, without a doubt, that there are fish in our lake. Just yesterday I caught a huge northern pike and released him….. he is in there, waiting for the next lure to tempt him. How does this relate to amputees and our journey? Great question. Patience, for one. And knowing how to keep moving forward, even when you feel like giving up, for another. I must have casted 1000 times in 5 hours last weekend, and not a nibble!!!! 5 hours!!! I’m either totally dedicated to my craft or absolutely crazy! But, I love the POSSIBILTY. The possibility that I could catch a fish, maybe even the biggest fish in the lake (I may be a little competitive 😏) keeps me going. Not my biggest catch, but I’ll take it as a win!   This is the same for amputees. No matter what I tell newbies, until they go through it themselves, it just doesn’t click. Some people think they’ll get through it without a hiccup and be off and running right after they get their prosthesis. What you have to remember is that 1) Everyone’s experience is unique and individualistic. 2) We all atrophy and thus makes our fitting process a challenge, and 3) You don’t know what you don’t know, and it won’t make sense until YOU go through it. That being said, going through the early moments of becoming an amputee are like fishing. You know that you will be able to walk again, run, hike, bike, swim, etc. You’ve seen tons of other amputees make it, and the prosthesis they are making now are so amazing and helpful to our success. but you also need to remember that you can’t catch the big fish if you aren’t patient, and ready to put in the time.     Go at it with a positive attitude. Take a step back when things get hard, and you.ve forgotte