Amputee Makes lego leg: Hopes To Inspire Others

Woman build legoleg. The final piece: Christina attaches the foot and ankle that she has built

Missouri Amputee Makes Prosthetic from Legos

As the adage goes, “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade”.

Christina Stephens from St. Louis, Missouri, lost her lower left leg from halfway below her calve in a freak accident when a car she was restoring collapsed onto her leg.

“I lost my leg – actually, I lost one-fourth of a leg – when I was changing the brakes on my car and it fell off the jack stands,” said Stephens.

Stephens, herself an occupational therapist, understands that part of the healing and recovery process is acceptance of both the lost limb and the body in its amputatee state. Stephens certainly practices what she preaches. She is quite comfortable with her body and recently took to making a video of her building a Lego-based prosthetic.

‘I liked the idea, because I am very comfortable with my body and like encouraging others to be more comfortable with theirs,’ she told ABC News.

She derived the inspiration from a fellow employee who joked to her about using a Lego prosthetic.

At her home, she set about to do just that after coming across of box of Legos. Within two hours she had a prosthetic that actually fit around her leg stump.

Her video film of her building the curious prosthetic has gone viral with 325,000 views on YouTube. She posted the video in the hopes of allowing people in her situation to watch her enjoy a moment of levity with her body.

Stephens is the administrator of the Facebook page and YouTube channelAmputee OT, where she provides “a resource for amputees, caregivers, people in the healthcare field and anyone else interested in learning more.” Since the injury, she has chronicled her recovery, her use of the prosthetic and her journey through social media.

The video has gone viral, being viewed more than 500,000 times since being published on June 12.

“Sometimes, you just need to be silly,” she said.

Check out her video below

Caring: Christina has launched a Facebook page where she shares videos, resources and healthcare information for other amputees and caregivers

On The Web:

Putting the leg in LEGO: Woman builds prosthetic out of colorful toy bricks
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2355078/Putting-leg-LEGO-Woman-builds-prosthetic-bricks.html

Woman Bulds Legoleg: Woman builds prosthetic Lego leg
http://www.myfoxal.com/story/22758530/woman-builds-prosthetic-lego-leg