|
Post by deejay on Apr 12, 2019 21:31:35 GMT
Just to break the silence on the forum....
Hi gasman, hows it going now you have had the brace for a time?
|
|
|
Post by gasman on Apr 13, 2019 6:12:35 GMT
Hi,deejay going extremely well ,family friends shocked at how cumbersome it looks off but different outcome when wearing and under clothing ,it fits like a glove and I get no after affects after extended wear ,after my bracethon I’m now wearing it on a daily basis when going out but not in the house but the 24th of this month I’m off to Scotland (loch lomond ) For 10 days and my intention is to go the full monty wearing the Kafo 24/7 and to make sure I don’t cheat on myself the only footwear will be adapted shoes ( boots,shoes, trainers) so it will be a trial run for going full time , I’ve mastered driving successfully both Campervan and car the motorcycle is getting there , lm being responsible in the fact as driving as I’ve arranged a driving assessment for myself at a local mobility centre to cover the legality of driving with braces and I take that next Tuesday the 16th at a modest cost of £80 apparently it will take 20 minutes in total with about ten minutes roadwork , the test is basically to see if I’m able to operate a vehicle safely whilst wearing a Kafo and Afo on my legs it’s a pass or fail and the outcome will not affect my everyday licence but a pass gets a certificate for insurance purposes which won’t affect my premiums ,well that’s what they say but it’s better to be covered in case a accident then find your insurance is void ,will up date on test and holiday. I try to post a picture of my Kafo but it looks like it’s going to be upside down so here goes
|
|
|
Post by tobebraced50 on Apr 13, 2019 14:45:58 GMT
Congratulations Gasman upon your adventure. I am new here but a long time admirer and the a simulator. I got my first chance a few weeks before turning 50 in 2002. It was an exciting time to experience that first time out and about. It was a thrill of a lifetime hearing a lady GASP as she rounded a corner seeing me wearing a KAFO over my pants. I was totally hooked on the feeling.
|
|
|
Post by deejay on Apr 14, 2019 20:43:21 GMT
Actually the KAFO does a very good job of keeping your leg straight when you are standing on your head !
|
|
|
Post by gasman on May 12, 2019 19:52:52 GMT
Hi well I’m back from Scotland in the end 10 days turned into 18 and I managed (just) to wear my left leg Kafo and right leg Afo from getting up to going to bed it was very hard in the Campervan but on site it was okay and whilst setting the awning up single handed one of the wardens gave a hand and noticed my stiffend left leg and after some investigation he relocated my pitch closer to the amenities block he quizzed me why I hadn’t booked a disabled spot ,I mentioned I’m not on any benefits and wasn’t eligible for a blue badge,anyway from then on I couldn’t go without my braces anywhere as the wardens seemed to take me under their wing , so my plan of going full time sort of came true in fact I couldn’t do anything else.i pottered about guitewell on site but found the shower block a bit dodgy to negotiate but in the end I really enjoyed my 18 days of continuous wear but it was bloody hard, I had to have My wits about me and be on the ball 24/7 ,I’d be cooking breakfast in the awning and the warden would pop in to see if I needed anything ,the weather wasn’t the best so I couldn’t really wear my shorts longtime but managed the odd day around the site dog walk,I got a few stares from other campers but nothing untoward.also on the few days we had sunshine the Kafo seemed okay not sweaty and sore but with summer around the corner will have to see, I’ve got to admit that I’ve noticed that there is a slight bit of muscle wastage on my left thigh /calf as the Kafo is slightly looser and the Velcro straps have to be pulled tighter by a good half inch , I had some serious mishaps and two falls so I won’t be going full time at home anytime soon,just a note I had my driving assessment which wasn’t compulsory but more for peace of mind and that went well ,it was more intense than I thought it started in a simulator type thing which measured various pressures on the peddles and recorded the movements in the driving well that’s the bit where I cheated not to much or to little as to draw attention to my use/misuse of the Kafo,but regardless of my dabbling the results were favourable but just ,on a scoring chart I was 3 points from a fail which would have meant driving adaptions .again over a coffee the question rose up about my lack of blue badge and mobility car and again gave my answer and was told try again and show this certificate and test results ,I won’t be ,my cover story works well for me. Not sure about the muscle wastage will have to get on the exercise bike
|
|
|
Post by castmenow on May 12, 2019 20:19:24 GMT
It sounds like overall you had a good time, sorry to hear about the falls, I know from my own that these can be scary. Are you sure you have muscle wastage or is the thigh cuff settling in with lost of use and stretching slightly, or is your body just conforming to its shape.
|
|
|
Post by gasman on May 12, 2019 20:45:10 GMT
It sounds like overall you had a good time, sorry to hear about the falls, I know from my own that these can be scary. Are you sure you have muscle wastage or is the thigh cuff settling in with lost of use and stretching slightly, or is your body just conforming to its shape. Hi ,I think it’s a bit of both ,the Kafo has loosened but still firm ,I couldn’t span my calf with my thumb and second finger but now they touch together ,the falls happened when getting up and forgetting the auto locks most embarrassing fortunately only my pride was hurt
|
|
|
Post by deejay on May 12, 2019 22:46:34 GMT
Sounds like quite a challenge at times but an interesting one when you find you have to keep the braces on to avoid questions. Were you able to cope with removing braces for showering. I would think thats quite tricky in standard campsite facilities!
I wonder how standing and walking feels without braces after wearing so much? I know that, although i have only worn mine for a few hours at a time, it often feels strange to be without.
Not sure if I could ever wear for more than a day or two without the novelty wearing off. At the moment, the challenge for me to look forward to would be to wear in public for a few hours. If it were a situation, overnight stop etc, where i had to keep up the wearing, that would certainly add to the excitement. More than that...I dont think so.
|
|
|
Post by gasman on May 13, 2019 7:54:22 GMT
Sounds like quite a challenge at times but an interesting one when you find you have to keep the braces on to avoid questions. Were you able to cope with removing braces for showering. I would think thats quite tricky in standard campsite facilities! I wonder how standing and walking feels without braces after wearing so much? I know that, although i have only worn mine for a few hours at a time, it often feels strange to be without. Not sure if I could ever wear for more than a day or two without the novelty wearing off. At the moment, the challenge for me to look forward to would be to wear in public for a few hours. If it were a situation, overnight stop etc, where i had to keep up the wearing, that would certainly add to the excitement. More than that...I dont think so. Hi,yes it was challenging at times especially the first fall but obviously it got better the longer it went on until the second fall which was the worst one getting out of the car head butting a shopping cart ,after the fuss it took several hours for my confidence to get back to a level to continue but I had to I had no choice,after that fall I kept close to the campsite for a couple of days as a confidence booster ,fortunately the site I was on had a dedicated disabled toilet facility which was larger so plenty of room which was handy with ref to long time wearing when after some 15/16 hrs and the Kafo was removed for sleeping it felt strange and two weeks into the experience it felt like my leg wasn’t there and I kind of relied on the brace and it was the first thing to sort out upon waking and the novelty never went away but was very taxing as I’ve said in my previous post wearing it full time at home is a no go yet as it’s to intense for everyday use until I feel more competent in every day use and up to now that feels a million years away so for now my pretender days are left for occasional use at home and Campervan breaks away ,next one due 21st may for two weeks (Dartmouth) roll on
|
|
|
Post by castmenow on May 13, 2019 8:00:39 GMT
I have twice put myself into arm casts which I have worn as the real thing for many weeks at a time, once you have exposed yourself to someone publicly who will see you repeatedly then you are stuck with it for the duration. Yes I enjoyed these periods but at times, the desire to cut it off was very high when I ended up unable to participate in some group activities with friends. Despite this, given the chance I would do this again, although the times I have done this were prior to being married and I know that I could not do this with my wife's support. I know that wearing a cast is for a finite period before you can return to normal and if you appeared braced in normal life, then that is for ever. Therefore, a braced holiday is an attractive proposition, you need to wear the brace permanently regardless of circumstances but you know it is for a fixed period and normality can return.
|
|
|
Post by gasman on Jul 25, 2019 8:16:09 GMT
Hi,well the Dartmouth holiday went well with no mishaps/falls and I coped very well with the Kafo/Afo combo,now that I’ve been wearing the Kafo for longer periods of time it really has settled down with the leather work getting really supple especially the knee pad (which was of concern)to me sometimes, and I must admit I wasn’t looking forward to wearing it in the summertime , there was only one moment that I felt like ripping it of due to the clumsiest of it and that was during a off road driving experience, but the moment soon passed as we dropped down this incline ,the heat didn’t affect me that much wearing the Kafo and in fact as the holiday went so well I decided to go to the Riat (Royal International Air Tattoo) 17th July ,I’ve been going to the show for the past 18 years or more for 6 nights under canvas (tent) and on my motorbike with luggage trailer and as my mate wasn’t going this year I decided to do it this time encased in my Kafo/Afo again from leaving home to getting back, I had done all the trips previously in below knee Afo’s so the cover story was well laid out with the group of mates we meet up with and the sites owner now a personal friend, so as it’s a once a year event the progression from Afo’s to Kafo was accepted no real issues there ,but it was a lot harder that I thought Jesus to start with the journey ,well I had ridden the bike wearing my Kafo coping quite well but that was local distances, but 250 miles was a whole new ballgame ,it took nearly seven hours and up till the 2nd stop I wanted to rip it off but as the journey progressed it got a lot better but on arrival at the site my left leg was numb, dead as a dodo and then I had to erect the tent ,fortunately John the owner gave me a hand and the first pints went down ever so nice, that first night I was so knackered and with my left leg still numb I climbed into my bed with the Kafo still on. on waking early hours 3am I took it of to sneak to the toilets but upon standing I fell over, I put it back on and everting was fine that’s when I realised how dependant you could become to it if the truth be known my pretending walk seemed to become more natural and not orchestrated. again I seemed to cope well in the tent we went to the speedway in Swindon on thur night but Friday the heavens open up and thunderstorms were terrible and basically I was tented up for most of the time Kafo off, which seemed to easy the numbness but Saturdays show the weather was belting and walking the crowd line was a challenge as the base’s grounds were quite rough & ready but agin I coped well , upon entry to the air show as you would expect the security was very strict and when checked the alarms went ballistic and then when they checked I was taken aside and was checked more manually by the airforce security and as I didn’t have a chair was asked if I wanted to hire a chair with the funds going to the RAF charitable trust at a very competitive £8 per day (manual) all the electric ones had gone I hired one and I was really glad I did as the static aircraft line was nearly a mile and a half long although there was a free bus route operating it was a bit awkward to use single handedly but the busses had ramps and the drivers very helpful , the weather again was hot Sunday but again I coped well, the 6 days really flew by (no pun intended) and I had no real issues, but I must admit I wasn’t looking forward to the return journey so I cheated by leaving the site wearing my Kafo then stopping at a garage three miles away and taking the Kafo off and wearing the boot only ,it did help a lot it only took five and a half hours ,on my arrival I felt totally relaxed .the numbness of the leg left but I still needed the comfort /support of the Kafo all a good learning curve for if /when I go full time.talking about that on opening my mail I have an appointment at the hospital this coming Friday at the orthopaedics department (at last) will update , but before that I’m off again Monday the 29th for 10 days to Keswick but this time in the Camper van again in my Kafo and this time I’ll be attempting some boating (inflatable dingy) in my Kafo.
|
|
|
Post by castmenow on Jul 29, 2019 9:31:02 GMT
You are certainly getting your moneys worth out of your KAFO with extended trips, most envious. It also seems you are experiencing things much more closely to reality and the challenges of this compared to those of us who only wear for a few hours at a time. I hope it continues to go well for you.
|
|
|
Post by gasman on Aug 14, 2019 1:06:06 GMT
Well back home from Keswick, and 10 days turning into 15, I managed extremely well with the Kafo and Afo considering the weather which could have been better had to endure a amber weather warning, thunder and lightning and torrential rain for 10 hrs or more woke up with the awning floating and the campsite refusing any more campers , but soldiered on as you do when visiting the lakes rain is expected, on the good days ( there were about 12) the boating was interesting, I hadn’t really thought that one through properly ,getting my braces and shoes /boots wet wasn’t a option so to overcome that I used bin liners for launching and landing which looked rather strange but it seemed to draw more attention to the leg braces and a few favourable comments ( well you don’t let your disabilities hamper your life).i also hadn’t thought out the possibility of puncturing the inflatable with the Kafo knee joints but everything turned out with no problems, but having said that I didn’t really do much boating I’ll have to re-think that one, I had to carry on the pretence as I kept bumping into people from the campsite in various parts of the Lake District ,well I had no choice as again I only took adapted footwear, I’m really getting into this pretending and can’t wait for the next outing, which is Shepton mallet near bath early September for 8 days or so , and with all these trips under my belt full time pretending doesn’t look like it’s going to happen yet ,and ref my hospital appointment that didn’t go ahead as they cancelled it and are yet to reschedule a new one will update whenever.
|
|
|
Post by gasman on Sept 4, 2019 18:29:37 GMT
Hi, off for another 10 day break tomorrow 5th sept fully braced up left leg Kafo right leg Afo and with a new pair of adapted boots courtesy of VB last week they are so comfy and they go well with my braces don’t you think?, my preference is boots over shoes as the boots look more authentic and seem to attract more attention (stares) it seems like I’ve never been out of my Kafo and now it’s nicely broken in and now fits really snug, and with that my left leg muscles seem to have got some wastage as it keeps giving way when not wearing it ,not to sure what to do about that as I’m at the hospital for my rescheduled appointment on the 16th sept.
|
|
|
Post by JayBee on Sept 5, 2019 10:00:38 GMT
Hope you have a great time away in braces. Like you, I much prefer boots. They were supposed to hold ankles with their complex ligaments in place better.
I've also found change in how my braces fit. I've had to put an extra hole in the strap of both upper thigh cuffs and I'm going one hole further with the mid thigh and calf cuffs. Part of it could be that I've lost some weight, but leather does give a little over time.
Keep us up to date with how your trip goes and the appointment when you get back. Perhaps the group will get some fresh energy as northern spring comes in.
|
|