Until this interview, this podcast series has focused on healthcare professionals and researchers and the myriad activities in which they all engage. We are very excited that, for this interview, listeners have an opportunity to hear the views of an individual who was on the other side. Mr. Pierre Lucien is an individual who had both legs amputated above the knee. In 2008, while on a training run with the Atlanta, Georgia Police Department, he fell to the ground unconscious when he experienced massive organ failure. In an effort to save his life, doctors had to amputate both of his legs above the knees. He later was transferred to the Rusk Rehabilitation Institute at NYU Langone where he underwent additional surgery and began rehabilitation. Today, he is married and the father of two children and earns a living while employed at a police department in Marietta, Georgia. The interview with him consists of three parts.
In Part 3 we discussed: experience of phantom pain in missing limbs and how to treat it; a sensation of feeling the presence of missing limbs; what he does to stay physically active; his family life and what he does for a living; providing assistance to new patients who undergo an amputation; additional activities in which he is engaged to inspire other individuals to cope with life’s challenges successfully; and thoughts or recommendations important to convey to health professionals.
