Amputee Clinic staff will tell you when your are ready to be fitted for a prosthesis. Most patients will begin with a temporary prosthesis, because it can take six months to a year for the stump to reach its final size. Once you are fitted with your prosthesis, you will begin learning how to walk again. You will also learn how to:

• Put you prosthesis on and take it off
• Adjust the socks worn on your stump for maximum comfort and best fit when you are wearing your prosthesis
• Care for your prosthesis and your skin

The earliest and most crucial tasks are to ensure that the prosthesis fits properly and that the skin gradually develops a tolerance to the socket (the top part of the prosthesis that encloses the end of the leg).

Learning how walk with an artificial limb doesn't happen overnight. Most people need several weeks of gait training before they can walk on their own. Clinic staff will also help you learn how to deal with stairs, hills, ramps, changing from a smooth to a carpeted or grassy surface, and getting into and out of a car. With hard work and patience, you will find there is almost nothing you can't do.

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