After my final amputation in 1977 that left me with a 3-inch residual, I began to wonder how many activities I would be able to do. So I asked the doctors. Their answers were not the best, as they provided me with a long list of activities that I would not be able to do, including riding bicycles, playing tennis, snow skiing, etc. In the 12 months that followed, I was able to understand why I could not do all those activities, as I was hardly able to do more than just walking in my first two dysfunctional prosthesis. But once I had my first good prosthesis in 1978, and for the next decade or so, I found myself seeking out all these prohibited activities subconsciously. This took up much of my time and energy: seeking, planning, learning, and trying those activities, until I became good at almost every one of them, with minor exceptions.
Then, about a dozen or so years later, it dawned on me that I was only seeking most of these activities to prove something, subconsciously perhaps. Once I became self-aware that I was spending too much time, energy, and money doing some things that I had no interest in, I started on a correction course. Going forward, I started to only work on the activities that I liked. Here is my point: as a BK-Short amputee, we have limited daily energy on our feet, which is usually less than standard-size amputees, and certainly less than what we used to have before losing a leg. So, use this limited energy wisely, by doing the things that you want to do and the things that are meaningful to you. Don’t follow anyone else’s prescription, whether family, friends, or professionals. They just don’t know what you are capable of doing in your prosthesis; only you can figure this out. Basically, try the activities that you like, give it your best, and if you continue failing, then and only then you can decide to add this activity to the “no can do” list.