Finding Solutions: Local veteran amputees participate in adaptive cycling
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Our local veterans beat the rain on Thursday morning and took to the outdoors to participate in adaptive cycling.
April is Limb Loss Awareness Month, and our local VA is highlighting services available to veteran amputees.
The VA Augusta Health Care System is finding solutions in building a community of .
Samuel Wakefield was in an accident over 30 years ago where an 18-wheeler hit him head-on--putting him in a coma.
“When I woke up, the first thing I asked my field battalion and my wife was, ‘What am I doing here? ‘” said Wakefield. “He said, ‘What’s the last thing you ? ' I said I was on my way to PT formation yesterday, he said, ‘No, that was 3 weeks ago.’ I said Oh my God.”
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Wakefield says the VA did all they could to save his leg, but ultimately it did not work out.
Now, as a veteran, Wakefield is a part of multiple adaptive sports, including cycling.
“Although it’s supposed to be power-assisted, I do more pedaling than anything else, and it makes me feel like I am on a regular two-wheel bike,” said Wakefield.
For veteran Tony Vannoy, he says participating in these sports is a way for veterans can get the they may need.
“This is a great way to ride with your friends, and if you have any problems, you can talk to them,” said Vannot. “We’re better psychiatrists than the person you may see because we know what you’re going through and we can help you better, we can talk to you.”
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the VA serves more than 45,000 veterans with major limb loss.
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Sixty percent of those veterans have a diagnosis of diabetes.
“In our part of the country, diabetes and heart disease are the most common reasons for loss of limbs, and April is our chance to come together and share the importance of taking care of yourself,” said Melanie Rahn, amputee coordinator with the VA Augusta Health Care System.
Rahn says adaptive sports both physical and psychological wellness.
“Each veteran is at a different point in their rehab journey, and some see where they can go, and others where they have been, and they really are a family,” said Rahn. “We just want to encourage them to not just survive their limb loss, but to thrive from it.”
Both Wakefield and Vannoy went home with their bikes on Thursday.
This was made possible through their VA benefits, which Rahn says veterans should enroll in if they have not already.
For more information on the services they offer to veterans, visit https://www.va.gov/augusta-health-care/
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