Malcolm Taylor doesn91裸聊视频檛 mind talking about his arm.
You91裸聊视频檙e not going to bring up anything the 14-year-old from the rural southern Vancouver Island community of Cobble Hill hasn91裸聊视频檛 already heard.
91裸聊视频淚 have had every kind of question,91裸聊视频 he assures.
A Grade 9 student at Frances Kelsey Secondary School, Taylor was born with just one hand, his left arm ending just a little bit above the elbow. Last year, he was fitted with a myoelectric arm, which can sense muscle impulses and allows him to open and close the hand simply by flexing the muscles in his residual limb.
Taylor has had different non-electrical prosthetics in the past, and a previous electrical one, but this is the best one he91裸聊视频檚 ever had. It91裸聊视频檚 not quite state-of-the-art, he says, but it91裸聊视频檚 the best in terms of price and functionality.
The arm was paid for by the War Amps CHAMP program. The War Amps began more than 100 years ago to assist war amputee veterans returning from the First World War. It has expanded its programs over the years to support all amputees.
91裸聊视频淭hey pay for all my prosthetics,91裸聊视频 Taylor points out. 91裸聊视频淚t makes life a lot easier.91裸聊视频
Taylor received his current prosthetic about six months ago after working with beta versions before that. The process involved having a cast taken from his arm, getting the prosthetic custom-fitted, and having the electrodes fine-tuned. The work is done by a prosthesist, and isn91裸聊视频檛 invasive.
91裸聊视频淭here91裸聊视频檚 no surgery,91裸聊视频 Taylor explains. 91裸聊视频淚 can take it on and off at any time.91裸聊视频
The many steps were worth it for the new arm.
91裸聊视频淚 can do a lot more things than I could with the other one,91裸聊视频 Taylor says.
The myoelectric arm allows for gripping motions that Taylor91裸聊视频檚 previous prostetics didn91裸聊视频檛, like grabbing a stick.
91裸聊视频淚91裸聊视频檝e tried throwing things but with little success,91裸聊视频 he says, adding that would change with practice. It definitely makes a difference that he grew up without a hand.
91裸聊视频淚t would probably be easier for someone who has had a hand before to get the hang of it,91裸聊视频 he says.
Taylor91裸聊视频檚 previous prosthetics didn91裸聊视频檛 have nearly as much going for them.
91裸聊视频淗ave you seen a hook hand in a pirate movie?91裸聊视频 he asks. 91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 not inaccurate.91裸聊视频
He couldn91裸聊视频檛 have picked up a medical face mask with the old one, for example. And the new one works well enough that he doesn91裸聊视频檛 have to put one thing down to pick another up.
91裸聊视频淚t takes away that extra step that91裸聊视频檚 always annoying,91裸聊视频 he says.
Taylor will have to get a new prosthetic, eventually, but he can probably get this one refitted before that happens.
91裸聊视频淭hey91裸聊视频檙e supposed to be very tight,91裸聊视频 he relates. 91裸聊视频淪o you grow out of them really quickly.91裸聊视频
Other kids at school definitely approve of this one.
91裸聊视频淭hey think it91裸聊视频檚 really cool,91裸聊视频 Taylor says.
Not only is he not shy about discussing the arm, he admits he may even show off from time to time.
91裸聊视频淚 can punch walls,91裸聊视频 he says with a mischievous laugh. 91裸聊视频淪o I do that occasionally.91裸聊视频
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