WORKS OF ART

 

 

Being an artist who weaves clay into fragile complex ceramic pieces I found the following implants used in osseointegration stunning works of art. I could not help but have my camera - a constant companion - snapping the following images as soon as I laid eyes on them sitting gracefully in a glass cabinet with mirrored back showing off their full beauty and technical genious.

 

 



 

Bone in itself is a complex network of beauty, strength and durability. It is fitting such over looked and under appreciated material fuse with the amazing network of crystal/snowflake like structures made by human hands. Structures bourne from the imaginations of some pioneering orthopaedic surgeons, engineers and technicians working together to combine art with a surgical procedure such as osseointegration. Ground breaking and exciting work that has brought new and possitive chapters to many amputees lives in the form of previously undrempt of mobility options that most abled bodied people take for granted.



 

Yaaaaaaay!!!!

Sam rubbing the middle of my back while I wait for my electric wheelchair to arrive that has taken eight weeks to repair. Notice how my posture here resembles that of a shrimp! Whenever someone massages or rubs my skin my body's response is to curl up into a ball. And it is traumatic and PAINFUL!!

This is my position when placed on my back; again, shrimp like. Severe contractures of the hip. Having spent several weeks by my bedside 24/7 Sam's attendance has helped keep any pressure sores away. Also had the rental of a special air mattress that continuely moves like a wave. Without the mattress Sam could not have cared for me.

At the end of the day it was still exhausting caring for me due to having to keep propping me up, repositioning my pillows that became dislodged due to either my legs' clonis and twitching or my physical activity as I did combate with an IPad game or two. Pulling the creases out from under me was also problematic as can be seen in the above picture with all the crease marks. But mostly NO pressure sores. Sam being on high alert when feeding me in bed during this time had me only choke badly a couple of times. Took me a couple of days back in my wheelchair for me to swallow my food properly again.

Painful, painful, painful. My right foot is now super sensitive due to nerve damage a couple years ago when I had severe cellulitis of the foot while in community care that had me hospitalised for four days. Sam nearly had kittens since the staff had not told him about my situation. He took me up to the hospital by taxi as no ambulance available at the time. No one can touch my legs anyway or I twitch and jump. And if not this it is just down right painful.

The twist in my hips is very visible in this photo. It is taken from above while sitting in my wheelchair that arrived at 8.30 am cutting it fine as a taxi had been booked for 10 am to take us to my appointment with one of the worlds leading orthopaedic surgeons.

Five minutes after being placed in my chair. No I am not comfortable. I need my head rest, tray to lean on and chest strap so I don't fall over due to the twist, twitching and pain in my hips right down to the tips of my toes. And my legs have to be strapped down. Here they were very active and bouncy. Again notice the position of my arms. Until I am fully set up and strapped down in my wheelchair I can not move my arms or my legs move with them.

This is the only sore I started to develop about two days before my wheelchair arrived. Great timing what with the developing sore and my all important surgeon's appointment.

Here I look how I felt. DREADFUL!! Swollen eye; back stiff as a plank. BUT NOT GOING BACK TO BED...NO...NO...NO!!! The above photos were taken on the 14th of March. Today is the 21st and I've spent no time back in bed. I am dreading going back to hospital or anywhere involving a bed.

I turned 40 on the 19th of March, 2013, and thankfully I was able to spend the time in my wheelchair.