Lisa King

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“This amputation is fundamental to who I’ve become, so I feel like it’s my responsibility to be the best I can be and to take what I’ve learned and give it away. It has been a really meaningful journey for me.”  Lisa King, Unilateral Above the Knee Amputee

Whether you have questions about training for a 5K, raising kids, rescuing shelter dogs, facing breast cancer, navigating college campus in a wheelchair, or choosing a prosthetist, Lisa King will have some golden nuggets of wisdom for you. In fact, nothing makes Lisa happier than sharing the perspective she’s gained over three decades of living with limb difference. 

Adapting After Trauma 

In 1992, Lisa was an active single young woman enjoying life to its fullest in Norfolk, Virginia. She taught special education and art to middle schoolers, volunteered avidly, and attended grad school at William and Mary. She also maintained a passion for running, regularly clocking six to nine miles several times a week.   

One afternoon that summer, she and a friend headed out for a cruise in Chesapeake Bay to enjoy the beautiful weather. A wrong turn by another boater took her friend’s life and instantly severed one of Lisa’s legs above the knee. 

Lisa had never even heard the word ‘prosthetist’ before her boating accident, but the man who walked into her hospital room after her amputation made a lasting impression—and it wasn’t a good one. 

“He began listing all the things I shouldn’t try to do in life. The list was so long and negative it felt like my life was reduced to limitations. It plunged me into depression,” Lisa admitted. She vividly remembers two of his most heartbreaking restrictions: she should put aside any thoughts of having children, and high-heeled shoes were no longer an option. 

She met no other amputees who could tell her differently, so why wouldn’t she believe what the prosthetist told her? It took ten months to get her first permanent leg, and those months were so demoralizing and humiliating that Lisa admits she had thoughts of suicide. 

Fortunately, she turned to research instead. This was before you could simply search for resources online, so Lisa wrote letters and made phone calls. When she found the Amputee Coalition of America, she learned that her life did not have to be so limited after all.  

Changing “Can’t Do” to “I Decide” 

“I realized there were professionals out there who focused on what you could do versus what you couldn’t,” she said. “There were advancements in prosthetic technology and people who could teach me to run again if I wanted to.” 

What Lisa really wanted to do was walk down the aisle in high heels at her wedding.  

About 18 months after the boating accident, she finally met with a prosthetist who honored her choices. Lisa received a new leg with a foot that could wear a high heel just in time for her wedding. She wore that leg for another month and decided walking in heels wasn’t so great after all. 

“The point is that I, the patient, got to make the choice. I got to solve the problem and figured out for myself that it wasn’t worth hanging onto that capability in the big scheme of things. But I decided. Nobody tells me what I can’t do,” she declared.  

Lisa’s advice? If the professionals you are working with seem a little dubious about what you want to do, or tell you it’s not going to work, don’t stop. Keep asking questions, find other resources, and figure it out. 

Your prosthetist, more than any other medical professional, needs to be your partner and best friend. If you don’t feel comfortable with the first one you get, Lisa would tell you it’s important to find somebody else. 

“Two organizations that have been invaluable resources in my own journey are Ottobock and the Century College Prosthetics Program,” Lisa shared. Always looking for ways to give back, she has been a long-time patient volunteer with these groups for product demonstrations and student skills practice. 

Learning to Laugh at Herself 

Lisa readily admits that she took herself too seriously in her younger years. In fact, she can remember the exact moment when she realized it was okay not to be perfect—the afternoon she and her husband decided to take a spin on a tandem bike. 

Lisa clipped her prosthetic foot to the pedal, put her head down, and gripped the handlebars. All of her energy was intensely focused on peddling. Then a busload of kids cruised by, pointing and amused.  

“I looked at them, then looked down and realized my leg had lost suction, detached from the socket, and was pedaling along by itself. I laughed long and hard, and it felt really good. That marked a huge shift in my personality,” she explained. “Since then, I’m loud and proud and not afraid to try anything. I believe you have to embody laughter and humor to get through this.” 

Finding a Supportive Limb Loss Community

In early 2022, Lisa moved from Oregon to Minnesota, drawn by the ‘culture and community’ of the greater Minneapolis-St. Paul area. She wasn’t referring to lake life or the ice hockey scene—instead, she was talking about the fun, strong, and supportive network of people with limb loss she found through the Wiggle Your Toes organization.

When you’re new to limb loss, it’s important to see and talk to others who are further along in their recovery. Not only will it help you visualize your future, but you’ll have good company on your journey. Lisa is adamant that the sooner you find your community the better, whether it’s through your church, therapist, or an organization like Wiggle Your Toes.  

“For me, being around other amputees is a fundamental need,” Lisa said. “You have to find your community, and I don’t think there’s another group that I’ve come across anywhere in the country that’s as engaged, uplifting, encouraging, and diverse as Wiggle Your Toes. I feel a strong sense of belonging any time I’m around them.” 

Inspiring Soldiers

It was at one of Wiggle Your Toes’ weekly indoor track events that Lisa met a group of injured Ukrainian soldiers, most of whom hadn't received their prosthetics yet. They were in Minnesota with the Protez Foundation, a nonprofit serving Ukrainians who've lost limbs.  

“Their prosthetist, Yakov Gradinar, had brought these guys to the track to see what was possible, and they happened to be there the day that I got to try on a running blade for the first time,” said Lisa, explaining that the running blade was generously gifted to her by Wiggle Your Toes.   

“The soldiers were watching me try to run for the first time in 30 years, and it was extremely difficult. I mean, the younger people, they just pick it up like nothing, but I’m old,” Lisa laughed, “it’s tough for me! They must have thought I looked like a grandma, or ‘baba’ in Ukrainian, because one of the soldiers said, ‘Well, look at baba. If baba can do it, we can do it too’.”  

Not long after that, Lisa was part of a small team of Minnesotans invited to go to Kyiv, Ukraine where they spent a week presenting to physical therapists and meeting with soldiers in hospitals. “I might not be able to contribute money, but I can be an example,” Lisa said as she struggled to hold back tears. “I showed them that you can have a rich, meaningful life even after losing legs or arms.” 

Living Beyond Limits  

For Lisa, limb loss has become so integrated into everyday life that it doesn’t feel like it holds her back from anything. “When my prosthetic leg is working, it’s just there, and I feel as though I have no limitations,” she said. “It’s just background noise to my life.”  

That explains how she manages to mow her lawn in the summer and walk her three rescue dogs every day—including Nina, the 160-pound Great Pyrenees. It also explains why Lisa chose mastectomy over medication when her breast cancer was diagnosed. One of the side effects of the medication was fluctuating weight gain and loss, and that’s a big deal when you have a prosthetic. “Four pounds gained or lost either way, and my prosthetic leg wouldn’t fit properly,” she explained. “No way was I willing to lose my mobility.”  

Lisa isn’t willing to let others lose their mobility either. For nearly three decades, she dedicated her career to helping college students with disabilities get accommodations so they could have equal access to classes like everyone else. She never cut them much slack, but she made sure they could get what they needed to have the same experience as other college students. “My career became a calling because I could relate. I’ve been there,” she said. 

Lisa’s statement reflects a powerful perspective of adaptation, resilience, and self-empowerment. Not since her first prosthetist showed up with a long list of ‘can’t do’s’ has Lisa let anyone tell her something isn’t possible.   

In Lisa’s words, amputation is a transformative experience. It forces you to develop your strengths, to build resiliency and adaptability, and to live with a positive, solution-oriented mindset. 

“Put simply,” Lisa said, “I’m a far better person because of it.”