My brother is having his leg removed February 12th - Advice?

[Berynn]

When I was 22 years old I somehow managed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and ended up being shot by a 38 gun.
Your brother is probably in a lot of pain. Once they actually amputate his leg, after a while his pain will be almost completely gone. With todays prosthetics he will be able to actually run and walk just the same, only he will have a prosthetic. It is more important for your brother to know that his family and friends will love him more, because you were so close to losing him. It is probably better, they remove the leg. He could very easily become addicted to drugs by trying to fight off the pain.
Good luck
Jenny

 

[chicks rule]

Not alot of advice here, but, I know attitude will have alot to do with all of you dealing with this. How does your brother feel about this? My mom is going through chemo treatments right now and I have got to say her positive attitude has done alot as far as how I am dealing with what she is going through. Just be there for your brother and be positive. An older friend of ours is diabetic and stepped on a rusty nail and within a day or so of doing this had to have his foot removed, We went to visit him in the hospital not knowing how he was dealing with the loss and he was in great spirits and cutting up making jokes, and let me tell you, you don't want to tick him off because he threatens to take his foot off and kick you you know where. I am rambling now but one more story about him, He went to get up one morning and couldn't find his prosthetic foot, He swore his wife hid it from him, Well after getting up and looking everywhere for his foot he realized he had it on!!!!

Thoughts and prays will be with you and your brother, Hope all goes well.

 

[NiftyChick]

Thank you everyone so far for your support/prayers/advice/encouragement!

I've found a list of hotels provided by the hospital. Hopefully something on there will work out, but if anyone personally knows of an inexpensive place to stay in the area where I wouldn't be scared to have my kids, I'd love to hear about it! lakecountychick, thanks for the suggestion of Ronald McDonald House as well. I'll look into that.

As far as whether my brother has to lose his leg, I'm pretty sure he does. He doesn't always want to talk a lot about everything and I don't want to gross you out with the details I do know, but things are pretty well ruined at/below his knee and I've expected this operation for a while now because damage is spreading to good parts of his body as a result of deterioration of the bad.

tx_dane_mom, thanks for the compliment on the picture! I love it too - my brother actually took it!

nccountrygirl, I hadn't thought of doing a restaurant dinner fundraiser, but that's a great idea.

I know I'm missing some of you, but I've got to get some sleep tonight, so I'll just post and try and write more tomorrow.

 

[LittleChickenRacingTeam]

A good friend of mind lost his leg below the knee in a car accident as a child. Len was helped by an organization in Canada called War Amps. http://www.waramps.ca/index.html

There's good info on the latest prosthectic devices under The National Amputee section of the site...
http://www.waramps.ca/nac/limbs/legs.html

I'm not sure if the USA has anything similar, but if you contact them they might be able to give you info on services available in your country.

Len went through many painful operations over the years as well, but never let his disability stop him from doing the things his friends were up to. Len learned to ice skate & roller skate while wearing his prothesis. I'll never forget the day he fell at the roller rink, & his leg shot off with skate attached & rolled across the floor. There were kids & parents screaming everywhere.

He could water ski using only his one leg & 1 ski better than most of us using 2. He down hill skied as well, using 1 ski & the poles outfitted with tiny ski's, called outriggers.He was a ski instructor for a time for other amputee's.

With a positive attitude & today's medical technology, I'm sure your brother can overcome this obstacle to live a productive, active life as well. Len's motto is, "What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger."

By the way, how old is your brother????

 

[nccatnip]

Contact the hospital where he will be having the procedure and ask to speak to a social worker. They are familiar with people in your situation and can assist you with all types of things like housing, transportation, etc.
You might want to contact the local Fire/EMS station that handled the call to the scene when the accident took place for assistance with fundraising. Sometimes they will hold a benefit or even have a fund that might help with expenses.
In my experience I have found that most people in your brother's situation are actually relieved to have the amputation. They can actually do more, live better and be pain free. After all this time of medical intervention that is not working, it is resolved and life goes on. I will pray that your brother can find it in his heart to look forward to the future instead of the constant struggle day to day with pain and this chapter in his life will finally be over.

 

[fallenweeble]

NC - wow, what a hard situation. i'm so sorry for your brother and your family.
i live in the san fernando valley just north of los angeles. if you send me the list of places you are considering staying i will let you know if i think the areas are safe. the areas immediately around cedars are very nice (close to beverly hills!) but probably are somewhat expensive.
i really hope that all goes smoothly and that your brother's recovery is swift and that he adjusts to his new life quickly so he can get on with it and move forward.

 

[Scrambled Egg]

Prayers and best wishes for a healthy recovery and recuperation for your brother and both families.

 

[hencackle]

I'm sorry about your brother.

A friend of ours had to have his L index finger removed and he kept having phantom sensations--not phantom pain, but his hand kept itching where his finger used to be. Since he doesn't have a computer, I searched online and found a special fabric used to deal with phantom pain. DH & I said that we would buy one of the special gloves if he ever needed it but he declined. Our friend said that he just scratches the air where the "itch" is and then everything is fine.
http://www.farabloc.com/amputee.html

 

[Rosalind]

He won't be allowed to run competitively. Artificial running limbs are apparently better than actual feet. Although I can see where if you only had one bionic leg, you'd be a little lopsided until you got used to it.

Hope your brother heals up well and makes a full recovery. They can rebuild him, they have the technology...better than he was before. Better, stronger, faster...

 

[dbjay417]

once everything is said and done and he's one legged, its probably best to keep him busy. Might wanna have weekly family dinners if you dont already, also religion can be good for this sort of trauma. Don't let him isolate himself. go for walks, take him places, try to make him feel normal.

Prosthetics are expensive, so I assume he will be wheel chair bound for some time. Might wanna get him some dumbells so he can stay physically active. Video games are not the most social of activities, but when hes loafin around the house playing Gears of War or Unreal Tournament will probably be better than dwelling on his shiney new handicap w/ wheel chair accessory. A pet may also be a good idea.

Does he have a girlfriend, or wife and kids? or is it up to you and yours to look after him full time.