GLENDA (Chilliwack, B.C.)
I was diagnosed with bone cancer in 1987 and became a right hemi-pelvectomy amputee in January, 1988. I had a three year old son at home and had only been married five years. It was never an option NOT to have another child even though my family physician was skeptical. Thanks to my prosthetist, Tony Vanderwaarde, who built me a marvelous pregnancy socket and leg, I walked into the hospital using my prosthetic leg and crutches on my delivery date.  Tony was then working for Sabolich Prosthetics in Oklahoma but now owns Award Prosthetics in Burnaby, BC, and he is still doing marvelous work for amputees of all levels.  The expandable socket he made fit, for the most part, throughout my entire pregnancy although I used it mainly for support rather than function at the end of my third trimester. I delivered a healthy 7 pound 14 ounce baby boy, through a normal vaginal delivery. We documented the latter part of the pregnancy and the birth on home video and I am currently working on putting it onto a DVD which will be available through my website at www.glendastandeven.com  It was an amazing experience to capture on film and I'm so glad now that we did because it will certainly help answer any questions a HD or HP will have if they want to get pregnant.
 
It's now been almost 22 years since I lost my leg. I've won two silver medals in the 1990 BC Winter Games in slalom and giant slalom; received the Rotary Club's Paul Harris Fellows Award  and the Chilliwack  Woman of the Year award in 2003; the Governor General's Caring Canadian Award in 2005; and am currently writing an autobiography with two other cancer survivors called, 'Choosing to Smile' (please join our Facebook group!) which will be released in March, 2010. I'm still happily married to my wonderful husband, Rick, and our lives are full and blessed. I choose not to wear a prosthesis as my shape changed dramatically after the birth of my second son and I've also gained too much weight to make wearing an artificial leg feasible. I use light-weight forearm crutches specially designed by my prosthetist Tony Vanderwaarde to suit my life-style and I can walk faster than most two-legged people. Tony is trying to get me to try a peg leg while I'm working in the kitchen so that may be a possibility in the near future... we shall see!
 
I think the best advice I can give to a new HP or HD is to be open to suggestions and find what works for you. I used a leg for the first four years but realized I could go much faster on one leg using forearm crutches which was necessary to keep up to two active children. Losing a leg was life changing but not in a bad way - just the outside package changed - I'm still me!
E-mail: gstandev@shaw.ca
Personal web site: www.glendastandeven.com

JOE (Nova Scotia)  
I am 48 years old and lost the leg at age 12 to osteosarcoma in October of 1963 [left HP]. The previous 2 years was spent in and out of hospital about a half dozen times in an attempt to remove the cancer which kept coming back. The cancer was in the hip close to the joint. It eventually became malignant so there were no options except amputation. I live in Dartmouth Nova Scotia which is on the east coast of Canada. There is a population of close to 1 million people and my prosthetist tells me that I am the only HP that he has worked with and the only one he knows of in the province. So the expertise to provide HP's and HD's with quality prosthetics is limited. However, the prosthetists that have made my limbs over the years have done the best they can.

I can identify exactly with your descriptions of limbs made in the early years of HP prosthetic technology. The endo construction with basically a block of wood shaped like a chin and another block shaped to look something like a thigh with a leather cover was heavy and cumbersome. The newer technology and materials has made a tremendous difference in the cosmesis and function of the limb. The component construction and cosmetic cover produces a look that is more realistic. I never wore shorts in public until this type of construction was used for HP's.

It has been almost 36 years since the surgery but I have always worn a prosthesis. However time is beginning to take a bit of a toll. The remaining hip joint is deteriorating and is causing some discomfort. Scoliosis has been evident for years. The lower vertabrae are kind of twisted and cause some pain. The endurance is becoming shorter so I'm finding that I wear the limb less than in the early years simply because it is more comfortable, particularly in warmer weather. It is difficult to know if this is par for the course because there are no other HP's to talk to for comparison. I am a self employed professional photographer.
E-mail: joe.robichaud@ns.sympatico.ca
Personal web site: 
www.ability.ns.ca/entrepreneur/profiles/jrobichaud.html

I use both a prosthesis and crutches to get around, but I had a fall on crutches last October and dislocated my right shoulder, I'm still wary of using the sticks when I'm on any sort of smooth tile or ceramic surface.  So mostly it's the prosthesis when I go out, sticks at home.  I still golf occasionally, but took up lawn bowls three years ago and tend to do that quite a bit in the summer.  Since 1991 I've been involved with amputee sports, am secretary of Ontario Amputee and Les Autres Sports Association and Treasurer of Canadian Amputee Sports Association. I will be pleased to talk to anyone else in a similar situation.
E-mail: ampsport@interlog.com

I wear my prosthesis 15-16 hours per day. I am an active amputee-I hike, ski, kayak, golf, swim, play floor hockey (the goalie) and wheelchair basketball (truly a violent game). I’ve played hard over the years, always do my stretches and flexibility is my key to avoid injury. I’m not afraid to fall, I take risks and will try out new prosthetic devices if I think they are going to benefit me.

I use a UC Davis split socket design (two pieces, joined by adjustable cross straps in back, and belt in front). This is cooler and than the sockets that wrap around the body, but still uncomfortable above 78F (25C). DAW graphite hip joint (locked in the open state), Total Knee, a rotator and Quantum foot. I’ve tried and rejected many other components in the past. My prosthetist is John Girling.

I do not say I can’t do something, unless it is physically impossible. I don’t blame the leg. The beauty of this is that it gives me the freedom to choose whether I want to do stuff. I ask people not to help me unless I ask for help, and am not afraid to ask for help when I need it. I have a pretty stubborn and independent streak, but it works for me.
E-mail: Robert.Katzer@gov.bc.ca