VA prosthetics help Veteran

Fitness goals

When Ben Shortreed lost his hand in a fireworks accident, his life changed dramatically.

During an impromptu outdoor party, the firework Shortreed was gripping suddenly exploded in his left hand. The result was a mangled mess of skin, bone and muscle, and the decision was made to amputate the hand.

That brought the Marine Veteran to the Prosthetics Service at Milwaukee VA Medical Center.

Working with prosthetist Justin Heck and the team, Shortreed was fitted with a prosthesis and began the long, arduous process of learning how to live life as an upper-limb amputee.

Shortreed started with occupational therapy, learning the basics, including how to dress and bathe.

Heck noted that many upper-limb amputees—who comprise only 8% of all Veteran amputees—reject prostheses because the learning curve can be difficult.

But Shortreed was determined, realizing that learning how to use a prosthesis was as much a mental exercise as a physical challenge.

“There are so many things we take for granted. If I go to Costco, and I see a case of water, I have to think about, ‘How am I going to pick that up?’ he said. “There’s a period where you don’t think you can do something. Then the realization pops, and you’re like, ‘Why couldn’t I? Let’s find a way.’”

Once Shortreed went from “can’t” to “can,” he took to social media to see the great things other amputees were accomplishing. He also met a fellow upper-extremity amputee who was working as a lineman for an electrical company.

“That was helpful for me to see somebody doing the activities that I wanted to do,” he said. “That’s when I started buying in, saying, ‘I can have an almost 100% normal life as an able-bodied person,’” he said.

Continuous practice

Shortreed said he continually practices using his prosthesis.

“I make conscious decisions during my everyday activities,” he said. “I say to myself, ‘Should I do this left-handed?’ I have to force myself to do that.

“This whole process of being an amputee has taught me a lot of patience, and every day, even now, it’s like a puzzle,” he said. 

“This (the prosthesis) doesn’t do the work for you,” Heck said. “You have to choose to use it.”

Shortreed certainly uses his. He has been through numerous prostheses in the past five years. He has broken or worn out many of them and keeps pursuing the latest in the technology.

He uses different prostheses—or different attachments to those prostheses—depending upon the activity. His most high-tech myoelectric prosthetic has jointed fingers and is stimulated by the muscles in his forearm. Depending on how he flexes, he can make the hand perform 20 pre-programmed grips. Or he can create other grips as well.

Plus, Shortreed said it makes him look “symmetrical.”

“Yes, it’s a black robotic hand, but I look like a complete man, and from a mental standpoint that’s really important,” he said.

Physical transformation

One of the life-changing decisions Shortreed made after the accident was to focus on his physical health. That led him to the Supra Human program, which goes beyond physical fitness to focus on nutrition, accountability and “mindset reprogramming, a focus on changing your identity and mental approach to achieve long-term success.”

Shortreed’s success in the program led to him being named “Supra Human Man of the Year” earlier this year—quite an accomplishment for someone with one hand.

His plunge into exercise and weight training not only pushed him, but the prosthetics team as well, making sure his “hand” could handle the strain.

“I told Justin (Heck), ‘I want to start working out, so let’s get the right attachment,’” Shortreed said.

He described his first month at the gym as “frightening,” not only because of his prosthesis but also because he hadn’t been in a gym in 20 years.

For amputees, weight-bearing exercises put an inordinate amount of stress on muscles in the residual limb. And for Shortreed, that stress is in the elbow, which is where the sleeve of his prothesis is anchored.

“Anytime I’m doing a pull-down exercise, that weight is pushing back, and it’s all hooked on the elbow,” he said. “So, the elbow holds a lot of weight.”

Constant adjustments

Shortreed’s exercise regimen has meant constant tweaking and adjustments for his prosthesis. Heck said Shortreed is easily in the top 1% of Veterans when it comes to physical activity and the stress put on his prostheses.

While everyone deals with physical changes to their bodies as they age, amputees must also deal with atrophy of the muscles that at one time connected to the missing limbs.

For Shortreed, his commitment to fitness meant additional, dramatic physical changes.

“With Ben’s (Shortreed) workout program, he’s kind of ebbed and flowed as far as his weight and his residual limb size, but it’s also sped up some of the atrophying, which has made it very difficult to fit into a traditional (prosthesis) socket,” Heck said. “So, we’ve done a lot of back and forth (with Ben).”

Heck estimated that Shortreed has been through five different sockets over the past five years because of his body changes.

Working together

Shortreed’s relationship with Heck and his team at the Milwaukee VA has been more than just provider-patient.

“It’s a friendship, and you have to have that relationship,” Shortreed said. “They really dive deep into my lifestyle and activities and design around it.”

Heck and Shortreed agreed that when they first started working together—about four months after the accident—Shortreed was in a “darker place” because he was still struggling to figure out life with one hand.

“We talked about that at length,” Heck said, noting that sometimes prosthetists also have to be psychologists. “We’re empathetic if not always sympathetic. We’re here to push you and to be your cheerleader.

“The relationship that Ben (Shortreed) and I have had over the years has been phenomenal because we’ve been able to be real, just humans… We work together.”

Shortreed agreed.

“Justin (Heck) does a nice job of digging deeper—about my lifestyle, what I want to do—and through that process, we come up with functionality,” he said. “These (prostheses) are really tools to enhance how we live.”

Heck has been impressed with the way Shortreed embraces the technology and works each day to master tasks people with two hands do every day.

“It’s about getting back to whatever normal is for that person,” Heck said. “We ask our patients all the time, ‘What’s your goal? What do you want to do next? And how do we make you motivated to get to that next goal?’”

Embracing the future

Heck and Shortreed are excited about the future of prosthetic technology. Already, some prostheses are being connected to bones and nerves, and Shortreed foresees some sort of neurological link between body and prosthesis.

“It’s like science fiction, but we are right there,” Heck said. “We’ve always talked about goals and what the next thing is.”

Shortreed praised the care he has received through Milwaukee VA.

“I’m truly grateful for the high level of attention and care this team gives me,” he said. “I feel very fortunate, because I feel that with private insurance, I wouldn’t have these opportunities… I wouldn’t have the fitness journey I have now. I know I’d be a different guy, but for the negative.”

Learn more about VA’s Rehabilitation and Prosthetic Services.

It’s never too late to apply for VA health care you’ve earned. If you are a Veteran or know a Veteran who has not yet applied for their VA health care benefits, learn how to get started.

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This article was originally published on the VA Milwaukee Health care System site and has been edited for style and clarity.