PositiveMed

The Positive Side of Medicine

New Hands Give New Lease on Life

Share This Post

New Hands Give New Lease on Life

At age 24 Lindsay Ess was a bubbly, beautiful, active recent college graduate with a degree in fashion who also worked as a model. She went in for surgery to correct an intestinal blockage caused by Crohn’s Disease, developed a massive infection, and doctors were forced to remove both feet and hands to save her life.

She told a reporter from Nightline, “I’ve accepted the fact that my feet are gone, that’s acceptable to me. My hands [are] not. It’s still not. In my dreams I always have my hands.”

She learned how to brush her teeth, drink, and even send text messages without hands, she tried prosthetics but found them cumbersome, ugly, and difficult. She stated “I can’t do anything with them. I can’t do anything behind my head. They are heavy. They are made for men. They are claws, they are not feminine whatsoever.”

After she qualified for the hand transplant, and endured the long wait for a donor, doctors performed a 12 hour surgery to attach her new hands. Over a year later doctors are amazed at her progress. This surgery has only been attempted 60 times over the last 50 years.

“People used to turn and look at me when I walked down the street because of how beautiful I was,” she told Nightline. “Now they turn and look at me because I’m in a wheelchair and have no hands and feet. The type of person that I was would be the type of person I would hate now.”

These new hands, she says, will be “used with purpose, not just used to look pretty.”

More To Explore

infographics

How to Make The Best Smoothies

How to Make The Best Smoothie Personally, I’m a fan of smoothies and I drink one or two smoothies a day. I always try different

aging

11 Ways Your Body Changes In Your 30s

11 Ways Your Body Changes In Your 30s It’s widely believed that the issues of middle-age don’t happen until you’re in your 40s. However, most

all positive experiences

Fruit Christmas Tree

I saw this and had to share! An adorable, edible tree that would make a great centerpiece! Material: 1 styrofoam cone (small or medium size)