The AFO is a plastic brace which is a mold of Emily's leg and covers her foot and back of her leg to her knee. It velcros in place in 2 places and helps Emily to walk. It's actually very pretty because it has pictures of butterflies all over it within the plastic. Emily is unable to lift her foot on her own so the AFO acts as an ankle, Emily is able to keep it on for an hour at a time and she's pretty mobile. She loved having her Step-Brother Zach visit last weekend, she walked him round the unit introducing him to the nurses. I've been told that no one knows if Emily will ever recover muscle function at the front of her leg and therefore an AFO may always be needed. On the one hand I'm delighted that such a thing exsists so that she can gain mobility but I'm also struggling inwardly with this incredible loss and my own anger as I see her struggle. She's 11 ...
No comments:
Post a Comment