Give prosthetics to low limbs amputees in Colombia

Yulieth is an inspiring woman with great willpower. She demonstrates that there are no impossible obstacles to overcome when we have dreams to fulfill and the mind willing to achieve them. Her children are her greatest motivation because, as she said, "they are a reflection of who you are, and I want to be the best example for mine."

It all started when she discovered that she had a kidney problem, for which she had to go to the hospital for frequent dialysis. On September 7, 2021, like any other day, she got up to have her treatment, accompanied by her cousin, because she didn't feel well enough to drive alone, let alone after dialysis. The rain did not seem to stop on the way home, the pavement became slippery, and the traffic congestion got worse. The driving seemed to last forever until they crashed a car when they lost control of the motorcycle and slipped.

Yulieth's cousin managed to jump off the motorcycle, but she did not have time to react and went flying until she landed on her left knee. While she was assimilating what had just happened, she waited for the ambulance to arrive, which took more than 50 minutes due to the traffic congestion caused by the rain and the accident.

There was not much time to make decisions. On September 9, one day after her daughter's birthday, her leg was amputated to prevent gangrene, which would continue to spread, as her toes started to turn purple. The whole foot was already the same color. She only remembered the words of her little girl, who said, "remember that we are waiting for you at home, leg or no leg." Yulieth was able to return home the next day after the surgery. She received therapies that were a gift from the physiotherapist who treated her case as she did not have the resources or the affiliation to any health entity that would cover her needs. She felt that she would not be able to get out of this situation.

During her recovery process, she said, "I started to search desperately on Facebook because I did not have the resources and wanted to do everything again, like seeing my children play soccer. I looked for prostheses in foundations, and I found Mahavir Kmina. I read and started to cry". For her, it meant that she could recover her hope and her illusion of being independent again, mobilizing herself.

Although she cried with emotion, she also doubted whether what was happening was real, "the truth is that one does not believe. I sent the form and told the people at the house without knowing if it was true. A month later, I received an approval e-mail crying with emotion because I couldn't believe it". With the support of his family, she celebrated the great news that on Monday, February 7, 2022, she would receive her prosthesis to start over.

"From the moment they receive you at the halfway house in the Corporation, everyone has a lot of charisma. It's like you come back and live," she said, as she recalled that day when her dream of obtaining a prosthesis became a reality. During her stay in Medellín, she shared her experience with people who have amputations "I was very nervous, but when I saw that people were working with a prosthesis, I was surprised. They received us very special, saying that you can also do everything again", adding, "most people make you feel that without a leg you cannot do anything and in Kmina it is the opposite, they made me believe that I am capable of everything."

Deison, one of the Corporation's prosthetists, was in charge of assisting her and fabricating her prosthesis. During the fitting, he gave her some advice to move forward. He told her about his experience as a bilateral prosthesis user. His testimony was enough to empower Yulieth and show her that everything is possible. "Deison told me that I had to love my prosthesis, that there are many people who do not adapt to the prosthesis because it hurts the stump, but that was no reason not to try and keep walking." Deison's words and testimony became a great motivation to take, more and more, firm steps forward, regardless of the pain in the stump.

After spending a day at the Corporation, she felt joyful. Her family felt upon seeing her return, "when I arrived with the prosthesis, they were very excited." Although she began to use the prosthesis she had received with such excitement, she noticed that her stump was swelling, so she decided to use it little by little while her limb was getting used to the orthopedic device. As she adapted, her will to resume an active life increased, and she decided to go back to the gym, the one that once gave her back her self-esteem and self-confidence and where now, as she said, "I tried, I saw that I was capable and everyone at the gym helped me with support."

As she was taking ownership of her prosthesis, she thought of her children as a source of inspiration to move forward. "I have a girl and a boy, and the girl has a tumor in the neck, cystic hygroma, which has no cure, and I have turned a lot to get a drug in Bogota." These are how she recounted the impact on her life and the support she received from Mahavir Kmina, "thanks to the prosthesis, I could turn around to take it to Bogota and continue with the treatment of my child, this prosthesis impacts my life, the life of my daughter and my family" adding "what they have done in my life, is to give it back to me."

Before losing her leg, she worked in a roasted meat and sancocho business, and once she gets the surgery for the kidney transplant, she longs to return to her job. In addition, she wants to continue studying. She is a technician and wants to do a degree in child pedagogy to become an example for the little ones.

At the end of the conversation, very grateful to the Corporation, she said "Now, I have a second chance. I like everything about the prosthesis, I feel free. I put on the prosthesis, and my self-esteem goes up to heaven. I do things by myself as I am very independent, and I can walk hand in hand with my children without crutches". Also, for her, having the support of her husband has been fundamental in the whole rehabilitation, because for him to have Mahavir Kmina is synonymous with blessing.

Links:

• https://www.mahavirkmina.org/single-post/la-pr%C3%B3tesis-que-le-devolvi%C3%B3-la-vida-a-yulieth