{"id":5761,"date":"2019-02-26T16:42:14","date_gmt":"2019-02-26T22:42:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/?p=5761"},"modified":"2019-03-01T15:57:54","modified_gmt":"2019-03-01T21:57:54","slug":"finding-a-new-normal-after-amputation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/finding-a-new-normal-after-amputation\/","title":{"rendered":"Finding a new normal after amputation"},"content":{"rendered":"

At just 8 years old, Jude Hill is finding his own way.<\/p>\n

His lifelong journey as a double amputee began at OSF HealthCare Children\u2019s Hospital of Illinois<\/a>, where he was a patient for four weeks after his feet and lower legs were injured in a lawn mower accident.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt like an eternity. Now I look back and say it was only 28 days,\u201d Jude\u2019s mom, Jen Hill, said.<\/p>\n

That 28-day stay began in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), where children receive the highest level of care possible. As his medical team constantly monitored Jude and assessed his condition, his parents had to learn to take things as they come.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s how it is in the PICU, you live moment by moment. Sometimes we didn\u2019t even know what the next 10 minutes would hold,\u201d Jen said.<\/p>\n

Quickly the family found a routine. Jude\u2019s parents stayed by his side around the clock, sleeping in his room on a recliner and a couch that converts into a small bed. They posted updates to their CaringBridge site about Jude\u2019s condition and kept music playing constantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get to know people, the cleaning crew and the nurses. It\u2019s this isolated little world within Peoria that we lived in, and it became home very easily,\u201d Jen said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe PICU is like a holy place \u2013 a very sacred, holy place. There\u2019s just that air about it that you tread lightly. You want to show respect for other families\u2019 trauma.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finding a new normal<\/h2>\n

After he left the hospital, Jude\u2019s parents provided his care \u2013 tending to his wounds, finding the right prosthetics, helping him through physical therapy and dealing with the emotional trauma of the accident.<\/p>\n

Support from Pediatric Rehabilitation<\/a> and the child life specialists at OSF Children\u2019s Hospital helped prepare Jude and his family for the challenges ahead.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe child life specialists<\/a> taught us how to talk with Jude about the accident and what to expect him to say about it,\u201d Jen said. \u201cOne of the reasons Jude has done so well is because we allowed him the space to talk about what happened over and over again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jude has adjusted to life as an amputee. He and his parents have learned how to deal with the many issues that come up with a growing kid using prostheses.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs long as we keep him in the prostheses and they are fitting properly, it\u2019s just normal. At least our normal,\u201d Jen said.<\/p>\n

Jude plays soccer, rides his bike and swims, among the many sports he\u2019s tried and loved. With five brothers and sisters he\u2019s never at a loss for a playmate. He\u2019s also interested in trying any instrument he can get his hands on, which so far includes the guitar, ukulele, harmonica and drums.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe hardest part of it is dealing with comments by people \u2013 just being in the spotlight by virtue of just being different. Outside of that, he just does everything everyone else is doing,\u201d Jen said.<\/p>\n

A place for healing<\/h2>\n

Dealing with the physical and emotional trauma of the accident has been a long, difficult road for Jude and the entire Hill family, but one that\u2019s included many uplifting moments along with times of grief.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s been nearly five years since the accident, Jude remembers his time at OSF Children\u2019s Hospital. When the family drives by, he\u2019ll often remark, \u201cThere\u2019s my hospital\u201d \u2013 the significance of such a positive sentiment isn\u2019t lost on his parents.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor all this kid went through there and all that happened at that hospital, for him to have fond memories of it is really strange to me. That says something about having a pediatric hospital in Peoria, where they are considering how to make this a non-traumatic experience, even if it starts with trauma,\u201d Jen said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At just 8 years old, Jude Hill is finding his own way. His lifelong journey as a double amputee began at OSF HealthCare Children\u2019s Hospital of Illinois, where he was a patient for four weeks after his feet and lower legs were injured in a lawn mower accident. \u201cIt felt like an eternity. Now I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":5815,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[116,223],"tags":[916,142,915,911,102],"coauthors":[757],"class_list":["post-5761","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pediatrics","category-patient-story","tag-child-life-specialist","tag-childrens-hospital-of-illinois","tag-pediatric-icu","tag-prosthetics","tag-rehabilitation"],"yoast_head":"\nFinding a new normal after amputation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Jude Hill became a double amputee when he was just three years old. 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