The Blurred Line

One year on...

So I thought I should tell you I am finally back to Manchester.... 7 weeks after I moved. I am sorry I have been really bad in keeping you up-to-date with my progress. I don't have many excuses really but I shall try to outline why a little later on. But first what have I been up to? What stage am I up to in my rehabilitation?

Well I've finished really. I don't walk with an aid anymore really and you can't tell that I have a prosthetic leg just from glancing at me. Going down stairs in particular is a bit annoying as my leg gives way a bit but I don't have pain, not on any more drugs and just back to normal really.

After three months in a wheelchair and then three months on crutches, I had to learn to walk again which, bizarrely, is a really hard adjustment. Crutches were an utter pain – literally – so I'm very glad to be able to walk around without the blisters and burning pain through my wrists! I felt like I had a life stuck on the pause button just waiting to press pay again. Actually, the first time I thought "I want to blog again" was when I saw the x-ray which showed that my bones had finally fused together and I could come off the crutches. I was such an amazing feeling that I couldn't quite believe it at first.

I felt like a waddling duck when I first started walking. It's so frustrating because you remember how to walk but your body doesn't seem to! Ballet training really helps though – having to think about the level of your hips, shoulders, knees and then the tempo and evenness of your footsteps and the swing of your arms. I didn't realise just how much bum muscle goes into walking – sounds intuitive but it really does put so much work in! To help with all this, I progressed onto a rather fancy-looking waking stick which I still use sometimes when I'm feeling tired. The picture below is of my first steps.

Actually I was at a "Stand-up for Ealing Labour" comedy event in November where one of the comedians was complaining that young people don't realise that old people are just the same as young people except I quote: "they just feel lucky to wake up alive in the morning." Thus, I learned that threshold for old age is 22 but then again I do have a walking stick and freedom pass!

But what have I been up to? Well, I went away with my family to the Yorkshire Dales which was really lovely. I learned that the National Trust have really good ways to make things more accessible and can't praise them highly enough. At Malham Tarn, you can hire a motorised all-terrain wheelchair for £5 though my grandad's foot did not appreciate this... twice!

I've actually done so many things that I can't really think. I have amazing friends and family and have never been one to stay much at home anyway so I haven't stayed still. My ballet friends, Charlotte, Lizzie and Lucy came to London in July for a picnic and then a Cuban dance show at Sadler's Wells which was really fun. Actually Sadler's Wells is another place that has great accessibility options and you can get a free carer's ticket with their Access Scheme. It's also really easy to get to from King's Cross in a wheelchair. I've been a few times with my mum and also my good friend Kate since. Definitely recommend it.

Another huge thing – that was like one of the actual good things of 2016 – was that my sister graduated with a 2:1 in maths in Surrey! She was absolutely gorgeous as always even when she smoothed her top with chocolate – very classic Susanna!