Our patient Diana was injured in 2016. She was riding as the passenger in a side-by-side ATV that flipped onto its side, with Diana’s arm stuck underneath. Diana’s boyfriend, Tyler, drove her to the local hospital, but the team there decided to Medivac her to the nearest large hospital in Phoenix, AZ. After two surgeries, her right arm was amputated above the elbow.

Within 17 days, Diana was back at the gym, missing an arm and with a brace on her right leg. But she was determined! She had a lot of support from Tyler, her family and her friends. "My friends played a huge role in my recovery. To say they were supportive is an understatement. One of my closest friends flew immediately to see me when she heard about my accident. My larger friend group came together to share inspiring words and video messages with me to make sure I knew that I could do anything, even with one arm. They all pitched in to buy me new workout gear which included a brand-new pair of Nikes that didn't need to be tied [pictured below] — so thoughtful! During the weeks after my amputation, my friends would come to my house to spend time with me — we played games, laughed, and we even found humor in my new normal."

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Within three months, Diana would be engaged to Tyler. “He was my knight in shining armor. He helped me through everything. He wouldn't let me do a thing. At night, he would stay up with me if I couldn't sleep. He would help me get dressed. He would cut my food. There were so many things that he did to help me through this really hard time in my life, especially right after the accident. He's my absolute rock. He's so special. He's got the biggest heart.”

Diana and Tyler set their wedding date for late in 2017. At first, Diana didn’t really think too much about her arm and her approaching wedding. But one day, several friends sent her information about the LSK Foundation, created by Lauren Scruggs Kennedy and two other women who had also experienced limb loss and wore a prosthesis. They were looking for women with limb loss who wanted to apply for a passive silicone restoration arm as a gift from the foundation. “A lot of people in my support system upwards of 10 to 15 people had tagged me as soon as Lauren posted about beginning the foundation, saying, 'Diana, this is for you. You need to apply.' So, I applied that day. I was probably one of their first applicants. And the rest is history.” Diana was set to come to our center in Dallas, TX, to have her prosthesis created.

Diana had some specific requests for her passive silicone restoration arm. She wanted it to bend at the elbow and asked for the prosthetic fingers to be able to hold her bouquet. Her plan was also to wear the arm beyond just her wedding. “I work at a digital marketing company. So, we do social media reputation management and I’m a manager there. I have a client- facing role. I do a lot of trade shows. I travel to meet clients. Just anything formal, that’s where a silicone restoration prosthesis is going to play a huge role for me. It's going to be really special.” While Diana’s career has changed since then, she still finds her passive silicone restoration arm helpful.

Diana’s arm was ready in plenty of time for her wedding:

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Diana: “I truly believe that these cards were dealt to me for a reason. If I could go back in time and change what happened, I wouldn't because it's brought me to a whole new level of strength. It was completely transformational for me.”

Tyler and Diana now have three children, ages six, three and one and a half. She wrote about them in an anniversary post marking eight years since her accident:
 

 

Diana continues to inspire others at work and beyond, recently winning a Champions of Change award from AZ Big Media, who publishes "business, real estate and lifestyle news in Arizona, and recognizes leaders, businesses, and nonprofits that create meaningful impact through leadership."

We’re so glad Diana was able to come to Arm Dynamics so we could help create her passive silicone restoration. It has been such a joy following her story. We loved hearing that she enjoyed her time with us. “My experience here at the Southwest Center has been absolutely phenomenal. Rob and his team are the best in the business. You can really tell that as a patient. Everybody seems to know exactly what to do, what to say, how to measure, all of the things that go into putting a prosthesis together. Especially because they are focused just on upper limb prosthetics, so, it's really important to have somebody who only does that, working on your arm.”

Creating a passive silicone device was what worked best for Diana, but our centers also fit patients with body-powered, passive positional, myoelectric and activity-specific prostheses every day. If you would like to learn more about the holistic prosthetic care that we offer, and how we teach our patients how to use their devices, please contact us. If you are interested in leaving a comment, you can do so below.

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