My sister makes me stump covers..they are really cute...Ill be happy to send you one...please let me know

For myself, I still have a hard time like looking at my stump, and I hear you. In helping myself I stay more force on the phamton feel of my leg being there, while I'm rubbing the stump etc. When I speak to people around me I will say my left leg is hurting, not my stump is hurting or I need to get new shoes, again this helps me to stay focus as a whole instead having less now. For me this works most of the times until "the stump" is getting out of control and the phamton pain is now more then I can ever held, then that when I really start to hate my "stump".

I think time will help this. I'm not sure what kind of time frame to put in here, but at first I also had a hard time looking at it - I think that forces us to realize the harsh reality of what we are missing. I remember a couple days after my surgery, my ortho surgeon came up to my hosp room and asked to take off my leg and wanted me to look at my leg that was left. He sat there and put his arm around me as I tried not to cry. Now, 15 yrs later, it doesn't bother me at all--that's just the way it is. I REFUSE to call it my stump (yuk, I can barely type it :) ). It is my right leg, it just happens to be 3/4 shorter than my left leg :)

Hi, I have learned to deal with it! I check it every night, checking for redness, open sore's, or anything out of the ordinary. Wash it everyday, shower, after removing liner, and if any swelling occurs. It's hard at first, but something you get used to. I play the cards God dealt me. Hope this helped. Mike

Right after the amputation I could not look at my residual limb (I hate the word "stump", sounds so vulgar). Each day I would take a small look while bandages were being changed. It took some getting used to. I still cannot look at myself in a full length mirror unless I am wearing my leg. It comes in time and your readiness to accept yourself. Mike is right that washing and taking care of your limb forces a person to look at it and become accustomed to the "new" look.

It has been 9 years for me so it is just a part of me.I only had a problem looking at it once that was when I first saw the stump out of the cast I was in.It didn't look so good becuase of it being in a cast.I think we all get used to it after time.I am not sure how long though.Different times for everyone I guess.

I am a new amputee (march07) and I have never had a problem with it. I remember waking up in recovery and being so happy it was all over. I also made the decision to amputate now vs. some time down the road, so this possibly could have helped. After having soo many surgeries over the past 20 yrs, I knew this would one day happen and having the control to do it now and not having numerous major surgeries in the future also helped me to be thankful.
I don't dwell on it and like someone said, I still call it my leg (prosthesis or not), so much that I sometimes confuse my family that I'm realyy talking about my residual limb or prosthesis! It takes time and just how much time, differs from one person to another.....

Hi iam a new amputee too July 23/07. and like Lydie i never have any prob. looking at mine
(short leg) lol but again like Lydie i have been putting up with many operation ,since 1977
and i think iam so lucky i dont have any pain,except the one time i forgot ididnt have a leg and went down that brought the water to my eyes,but i guess it is something we each have to deal with in our own way.
Good luck and God Bless:: joe

Im going to sound like a big chicken (bleep) but, I still have problems looking at it. For 23 years I saw the most horrific things happen to people when I was on the Fire Dept. I guess its different when its you. Luckily, my wife is there for me to inspect it and help me with it. I guess maybe I still miss my leg so much, so if I look there, its a reminder of all the trauma again. I hope I can get over it.

You get use to it and it does get easier with time. The most important thing to realize is that, it is who you are now that is important, not who you use to be. Learn to become comfortable with yourself and don't fight it. It worked for me and I hope it helps you.

CAN I SAY THAT I THINK THAT ANSWERS MY VARY, AS TO HOW IT HAPPENED. I HAD A STAPH INFECTION, OTHERS IT HAPPENED GRADUALLY AND YET OTHERS HAD IT HAPPEN IN AN ACCIDENT. SO TO GET TO THE QUESTION. I DONT MIND LOOKING AT ALL. ITS ME, JUST ME, AND I WAS WORRIED ABOUT MY GRANDCHILDREN WHEN I WAS IN THE NURSING HOME, THEY POPPED UP ON THE BED. THEY ARE NOW 5 AND 8, WITH THE 8 GOING TO BE 9 IN JANUARY. I SAID YOU WANNA LOOK? HUSBAND AND DAUGHTER LOOKED HORRIFIED, BUT THE KIDS WERE NOT. THEY SAID YES GRANDMA TAKE OFF THE BANDAGE! THEY GOT DOWN AND STOOD NEXT TO THE BED SO THEY COULD SEE BETTER, AND THE NURSE UNWRAPPED ME. MY GRANDAUGHTER SAID WOWWWWW REAL SLOW, AND MY GRANDSON SAID, I WISH IT WERE ME. I SAID NO JOHN WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT? HE SAID SO YOU WOULD NOT FEEL BAD GRANDMA. YOUR LITTLE LEG IS NICE JUST A LITTLE SHORT THAATS ALL. BUT IF IT WERE ME I COULD MAKE YOU FEEL BETTER. AND THEY BOTH RUBBED THE SIDES AND TOOK IT ALL IN. NOW WE HAD A NICE WASH UP, AND THEY GOT BACK INTO MY BED AND LAYED DOWN ON THE PILLOWS NEXT TO MY HEAD. AND MY GRANDSON SAID. ITS JUST A LITTLE LEG GRANDMA. NOW HE DOES NOT TALK BABY TALK(THANK GOD) AND NEIGHER DOES THE GRANDAUGHTER. AND AGAIN THEY SAID, ITS JUST A LITTLE LEG, YOU SHOULD NOT GET MAD AT IT. SO THATS IT. ITS MY LITTLE LEG,THAT FIS IN MY PROSTHETIC, AND IT HAS NOT LOST ITS CHARM FOR THEM. THEY STILL WANT TO KNOW HOW IT IS. AS FOR ME. I CANT BE AS SMART AS THEY. I WANT MY LEG BACK. BUT WE ALL KNOW THAT IS ONLY THINGS MADE OF FAIRY TAILS.

thats a great story Linda...thanks for making my day!

I agree with Ronny that was a great story LindaP thanks for sharing.

When I first lost my leg I really had to force myself to look at it. It's very disturbing to look at a body part that has been that dramatically altered, it was there, now it's not and in it's place is a red, stitched up stump. However, the doctors and nurses kept telling me over and over again how important it was that I check my stump daily for abrasions, infections, bruises, excessive redness, callouses, etc. Now I do check my stump twice daily, once in the morning before my shower and once at night when I go to bed. I've been able to identify problems in plenty of time to do something about them before they get bad. It's a problem to look at your stump, but if you don't you could end up with bigger problems.

Glenn Barfield
http://amputeenews.com

It was a little scary at first and with fresh stiches, I was afriad to look under the blanket. Can't say I enjoyed looking at it but got over that pretty quickly. Next biggest challenge - going out in public. Wore pants on hot humid days. Did not want the world to see my prosthesis. After A couple years, I asked my self....why do I care what they do or do not want to see - its my life. My wife and daughter didn't care when I took my prosthesis off or wore shorts around the house or pool in our back yard. I finally started wearing shorts, taking my leg off at public pools and beaches and guess what, nothing happened. no one cared. We are now seen on TV with and without our prosthesis on - it is normal. Support groups are a big help on this kind of issue....Check with the Amputee Coalition of America - maybe they can help you find a support group in your area.