Tag: BAWarrior360

Fear of Being Uncomfortable

Fear of Being Uncomfortable

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Skiing as an Amputee

 

The Canyons, Park City, Utah 2024

 

I don’t know about you but, sitting in a lodge, sipping a drink in front of a fire sounds wonderful. Doesn’t it?

However, I did that for 5 years, while my family all skied and I sat there with tears in my eyes, missing those special moments I knew I’d never get back.

My husband taught me to ski when we were teenagers. We had dreams of teaching our own kids someday and the retiring and skiing through life. 2013 struck me with a knee injury that sidelined me for 5 years! Then, by 2018 I elected to amputate my left leg above the knee.

 

My first goal, 3 1/2 months after amputation?  SKI!

Nice and easy

 

This is why I face my fears

 

Looks like I have 2 legs!!

 

Fast forward to last week and I can honestly tell you that despite my love of skiing and being with my family up on the mountains again, the fears I face before each day really try to take me down. Facing fears is no easy task, and yes, while sitting by the fireplace and sipping a drink in the warmth of a lodge is amazing, NOTHING compares to facing your fears and coming out on top! Not to mention, I will never regret getting out and living my life versus watching it pass before my eyes. I want to live life, and maybe that’s a product of being sidelined for so many years, but I won’t allow my irrational fears take me out of living my best life with my family.

 

Of course I’m going to challenge you to face a fear of yours. You don’t need to be an amputee, either. We all have fears that we can choose to face or turn away from. If you have been turning away, now is the time to stand up straight, adjust your hat, and take it head on! You won’t regret trying, succeed or fail. Because no matter the outcome, you did it! You faced a fear, overcame that emotion and gave it your best. No matter the outcome, you will know you tried and can feel great about yourself for going the distance.

Don’t let fears derail you and your goals. Stay the course, buckle down for the ride, and know that there is no sweeter victory than facing your fears like the true warrior you are and were built to be!

 

So today, decide what you are afraid of and take it on! Despite the butterflies, emotions that well up and want to hold you back, and no matter the outcome. Just go for it!

Rise up, warriors, rise up and face your fears head on! You will NOT regret it!!

 

Have a beautiful and blessed week!

And as always,

Be Healthy,

Be Happy,

Be YOU!!

 

Much love,

 

Maybe I’ll see you on the mountains some day♥

The Most Wonderful Time of Year

The Most Wonderful Time of Year

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 31:32 — 34.1MB)

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Winter Wonders and Woes for Amputees

 

Wintertime brings colder weather, holidays and family time, ice and snow, along with new outdoor activities. It also brings with it challenges for getting around if you are an amputee (or anyone who struggles with balance).

Crutching on snow and ice should be an Olympic Sport

 

I am fortunate enough to live in Arizona but as a family, we love to get out and ski in the mountains of Colorado and Utah.

My very first goal as I was getting ready for my amputation was to ski again with my family. I had just 3 months from amputation to test myself.

Even though there are different ways to accomplish “skiing” I wanted to be standing and looking like I always did as a skier (minus one leg that is). My stubbornness definitely helped me. That plus my perfectionist attitude and drive.

 

 

My first day I was so nervous and didn’t know what to expect. I tell you this because even though I had been skiing since I was 17 years old there was so much relearning to be done and a lot of newness to skiing with only one ski. For instance, turning one way versus another was so much harder not having the downslope ski to aid in control.

As time went by, I began to understand what was needed to succeed. Every chance we got I went on the slopes. And every time I was on the slopes I got butterflies and had to suppress fears of getting hit from behind, falling and trying to get back up (not as easy with one ski and on a slope of snow), or heading downhill and catching icy patches.

There are other ways to ski, like on a mono ski (sitting in a bucket sled, leg(s) strapped down), or using a ski bike.

This past trip we decided to take a day off from skiing, but I wanted to be outdoors and breathing in the cold mountain air and enjoying the snow all around us, so we went for a hike into the mountains.

It was beautiful!

Backwoods hiking

 

Beautiful views, challenging terrain for an amputee

 

Winter life for an amputee is quite challenging. Just as changing our shoes, or going over different types of flooring or terrain, challenges us for a few minutes before we feel comfortable moving about with the change, winter challenges us and our feeling of confidence and trust in each of our steps. We must be more cautious, and meticulous with each step. I am always looking down at where my feet are landing and what type of surface I will be hitting with the net few steps. For me to enjoy the beautiful mountains w were hiking in I had to stop and set myself then look all around. Once I got my fill I would begin to march on once again.

All in all, I am excited for my next winter trip and plan to try snow shoeing and see how it feels to have larger foot on my prosthetic.

Even though there are a lot of new things to adjust to as winter weather approaches, know that you are capable, you just need to learn your perimeters. It takes time, but with focus and determination you can conquer winter without any falls or injury. Always know to protect your good/sound leg and take your time. Don’t allow anyone to push you faster than you are ready to go.

Stay positive and create positive verbal cues for your brain to latch onto and you’ll find yourself maneuvering snowy conditions like a pro!

 

 

FIERCE AND ON FIRE Challenge!

Don’t forget that we are still charging forward on 100 miles before Jan 1!

Are you in?

Check the past couple of podcasts for the link to join and to register for the challenge at Run Motivators if you want to order a medal for your trophy case!!

 

Let’s keep moving and end 2023 active and healthy!

 

May your hot;liday season be filled with family, fun, joy, and blessings of all kinds.

 

And as always,

Be Healthy,

Be Happy,

Be YOU!!!

 

Much love,

 

So You’re An Amputee…Now What?

So You’re An Amputee…Now What?

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:35 — 36.8MB)

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You have made it through a HUGE surgery. Maybe because of an accident or a sickness. Maybe you made the decision to amputate so you could live a better, healthier life. Whatever the reason, you have made it through that emotional decision, and come to terms with your new reality.

Unfortunately, your journey has just begun, but have no fear, you can shine and move forward with your new lifestyle and live an amazing and full life!

You might think that the act of being amputated is the hardest thing you will have to go through, or that you won’t ever live a full life with all the “restrictions”. And while it’s true that it takes time to adjust to your altered body, you can overcome the perceived restrictions.

A life as an amputee can be as good as you envision it, goal set for it, and how you approach it. It is mind over matter. It is about positivity, attitude, and courage.

Your journey, like life itself, will be filled with ups and downs, There will be storms and there will be rainbows. That’s life!

What can you start doing, now that you are an amputee, is adjusting your mindset, from being a victim to being the warrior in your story.

It’s time to goal set, dream of your future, build strength and grit. You will need all of that to find success, and if you prep correctly and envision the possibilities then you will succeed!

You define success.

You will get knocked down but if you realize this you will be better prepared for those moments and be ready to fight.

Remember, you are a warrior, not just because you have gone through something extreme, but because you fought to rise up after being knocked down. You have got into battle and continue to fight for what you want in life.

This week, listen in as I discuss what it took for me to find success after amputation.

 

 

This week is about coming to terms about your body.

Setting goals.

Understanding that this is a marathon and not a sprint, becoming prepared to fight for a better life and finding strength and resilience through adversity, and learning how to get back up after getting knocked down.

Be prepared for battle and fighting for what you want (and you should go into this knowing exactly what you want out of it).

 

You can achieve great and amazing things for your life. You are not a victim, you are a warrior!!!

 

Have a blessed week and as always,

Be Healthy,

Be Happy,

Be YOU!!

 

Much love,

 

Prosthetic Parley with Randy and David

Prosthetic Parley with Randy and David

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 58:48 — 45.1MB)

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Let’s Talk About Sockets

 

 

 

This week we begin a new series called Prosthetic Parley with Randy and David. My prosthetist will come on once every other month to discuss hot topics that you, the viewers are interested in and talking about. This week we discuss what types of sockets there are and what fit might be right for you and why.
Please keep in mind that these are the opinions of two prosthetists, whom I use and trust, but it is in their opinion. We hope that this educates you enough so you can speak to your own prosthetists and make a positive decision on what would work best for you.
We also dive into Limbs For Humanity, a non-profit that Randy and David, have just begun, bringing prosthetics to people who are not able to get one due to location and financial situations. They work with Rocky Point Medical Clinic in Rocky Point, Mexico, as well as doing good for those here in the states. They are in need of your help so if you have any spare parts or old prosthetics that you are no longer using, please reach out to me or them so we can put them to great use, helping others become active and mobile once again. If you aren’t an amputee and don’t know of anyone with spare parts, financial donations is also a huge help so they can purchase the items they need to construct limbs and sockets.
You can reach them at one of the Instagram accounts below:
@limbmaster
@gogobanks
@thelimbcenter
@limbsforhumanity

Or reach out to me:
@BAWarrior360
@angie_heuser

Check this episode out and if you have any topics you’d like covered in the next episode please feel free to let me know!
#amputeelife #amputeegirl #prostheticparley #thelimbcenter #limbsforhumanity #sockets #abovekneeamputee #belowkneeamputee #bawarrior360 #personaljourney #factsandopinions #discussion #liveyourbestlife #podcast

The guys, hard at work

 

 

Rocky Point, Mexico. Rocky Point Medical Clinic

 

Special shout-outs to Rocky Point Medical Clinic, Lencho at LS Labs, @Alps_south, @collegeparkind, and @b.tyler.hyatt

 

I hope you enjoy this discussion time with Randy and David and may your week be blessed!

As always,

Be Healthy,

Be Happy,

Be YOU!!!

 

Much love,

Angie

 

Bouncing Back with Coach Dar

Bouncing Back with Coach Dar

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 59:00 — 45.1MB)

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We all have roadblocks and circumstances that come out of nowhere and try to derail our lives.

These moments, or set backs, can do one of two things to us:

They can disable us, or they can challenge us to grow.

Set backs can become set ups for the next big thing in your life!

Are you feeling stuck, frustrated, alone, or defeated? Today I am excited for you all to join in my interview with Coach Dar, a  world renowned mental skills coach for many professional athletes and Fortune 100 companies, helping them to awaken greatness within and change their perspective so they can get out of their own way.

Coach Dar has also just published her first book titled, “The Art of Bouncing Back”, a great metaphor for life, right?

She speaks from a place of experience as she delves into the setbacks she’s had in her own life.  These “moments” could have easily destroyed the person she is, but instead they have set her up and placed her where she was meant to be, helping thousands of people, of all walks of life, achieve greatness despite their situations.  Through the tools she speaks of in her book and with us today, you too can unleash greatness and live your best life.

It’s time for you to Bounce Back!

Coach Dar and yours truly

 

If you are struggling right now, wondering if you’ll ever be able to bounce back, Coach Dar and I talk about the basic things you need to start doing right NOW, to change your mindset, and gain mental fortitude so you can move forward, and become a stronger you!

Get started today, change your thinking, practice positive affirmations, and watch yourself become the best version of you, living the life you want to live.

 

Thank you, Dar, for being a guest on my show. It was a real pleasure, and I am grateful to you for sharing your own personal journey so others can learn from you.

 

You can get Coach Dar’s book, here, or wherever books are sold.

 

I hope you all have an amazing week, and as always,

Be Healthy,

Be Happy,

Be YOU!!!

 

Much love,

Angie

 

 

Reframing Your Circumstance

Reframing Your Circumstance

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 46:57 — 49.4MB)

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Living Life With Gratitude

 

 

Life is hard.
You can choose to lay down and have it destroy you or you can reframe your thinking and how you view your circumstance by finding things and people in your life for which you can be grateful.
It’s that time of year when we hear people say they are thankful for their life, we see trinkets in our homes that say, “Grateful, thankful, blessed”, and Thanksgiving is right around the corner in which tell the people around d us that we are thankful for them in our lives.
Thankfulness is a hot topic in November, but what if you are struggling right now?
What if you are going through a rough patch?
Well, this is the time, more than ever that you need to find those moments, things, and people in your life that make your life special, happy, or filled with joy.
By reframing how we see our circumstance we enable ourselves to be at peace through these hard times. By seeking out the silver linings in our lives we are choosing a path of gratitude and happiness amidst the struggles.
This can be life altering! And the more we practice this way of thrilling and speaking the more often we will see what we are going through as just a moment, or blip, in time. A moment that will pass and nothing more.
Remember, we all have these moments. They are chances to define our character, grow, and reinvent ourselves. Without these hard times we cannot truly appreciate the good that has been in our lives or the good that is to come.
Reframe your thinking. Reframe your circumstance. Practice mindfulness, living in the moment and appreciating the little things in your life that are truly good.
Living a life of gratefulness is a choice, and one that will not only affect your situation, but it’ll also effect the people around you.
Choose an attitude of gratitude and spread that to all those around you. You might be surprised on how your outlook on life will be uplifted, and how you bless someone else with your positivity will come back to you ten-fold.
Practicing gratitude and reframing your circumstance:
* Don’t be picky, appreciate everything!
*Be mindful, and present
*Keep a gratitude journal
*Remember the hard/bad times, they will help you cherish where you are now.
*Pay it forward
*Reflect. Spend 5, 10, 30 minutes in quiet time, thinking about all you have
*Reframe your bad situation by finding the silver linings, what it could be teaching you, and how you are growing stronger for the future by going through it.
*Celebrate the little things
The sunshine
My family
My prosthetic that allows me my freedom

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours,
And as always,
Be Healthy,
Be Happy,
Be YOU!!!
Much love,
Angie
#thankful #grateful #gratitude #thanksgiving #podcast #bawarrior360 #abovekneeamputee #calltoaction #attitude #reframeyourcircumstance #payitforward
What’s Your Story with Dani Aravich

What’s Your Story with Dani Aravich

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 51:08 — 34.5MB)

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Come join us as we hear Dani tell her story. Born without a forearm and hand Dani’s parents, although not expecting that, showed her that she could do anything and be anything she put her mind to.

Dani had always been into sports and her dream job is to be a GM to an NFL football team.  She went off to college, got her degree in business and started working for the Indianapolis Colts and Pacer organizations, which led to, what she thought, was her dream job working for the Utah Jazz, however she grew impatient and felt something was missing. That’s when a Paralympics came to her attention.

Growing up she always competed with “able-bodied” individuals and not until after college and working her first few jobs with elite athletic programs did she explore para-athletic events. And like a dream Dani found herself qualifying and competing in both the summer AND winter Olympics, for Team USA!

Dani’s journey allows us to dream and contemplate the realization of our own dreams, and how we, too, can live them out at any given time, we just need to have our eyes open to the possibility and a mindset that says, “Yes, I can!” and “Why not me?”

What an incredible story of believing in oneself, pushing the limits, and going for it all! Don’t miss this interview.

 

 

Dani, thank you again, for spending time with me and allowing more people to hear your story. I hope they all feel encouraged to reach for the stars and dare to dream. I know I am!

 

And as always:

Be Healthy,

Be Happy,

Be YOU!!

 

Much love,

Angie

 

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