Preparing My Snow Leg

Yesterday an official snow day was declared at our home. Scott was off work (he is off again today making for a one day work week) because we received almost a foot of snow. Robby could barely contain his excitement.

Knowing that I was going to be outside for a long time, I employed all of my amputee stump-warming tricks. There is little more uncomfortable than a frigid residual limb! It would have disappointed Robby had I cut our snow fun short because my leg was cold.

I activated two hand warmers and placed them in the bottom of my socket. I found that the heat that is generated counters the cold that is conducted up through the pylon in my prosthetic. I buy my hand warmers by the case as they have proven an invaluable tool in the winter.

I then wrapped the pylon with an ace bandage. I hate when snow becomes impacted inside my foot shell; I end up leaving a trail of melted water throughout my house as my leg thaws. The simple step of wrapping the prosthetic keeps snow from sneaking into the nooks and crannies of my prostheses.

After I slipped on my leg, I pulled on a suspension sleeve. I wear a seal-in liner so I typically do not need the sleeve. However, I have learned that deep snow can have a gripping effect on a prosthetic. After walking completely out of my leg when maneuvering through high drifts and landing face first into the snow, I've learned to reinforce my suspension!

With my prosthetic now snow ready, I pulled on my snow pant overalls, put on my scarf, gloves, coat and hat. Finally, I was ready to conquer the snow. Of course, I then had to dress Robby in his arctic garb.

Robby and I were outside for hours and had a great time. After clearing the driveways of all three neighbors (my little guy loves to be helpful) we retired our shovels so that we could play. We threw snowballs and went sledding. Okay, he went sledding. I ended up pulling the sled around the yard like a sleigh dog.

I'm glad that I took the extra precautions to protect my limb from the cold and to secure my prosthetic. I despise being cold almost as much as I hate being limited by my amputation. Robby went to sleep early, exhausted from playing. I'm sure he had visions of snowballs in his dreams. If you need me today, I'm sure I can be found bundled up, outside playing in the snow again.