A mother of two and a quadruple amputee has learned to eat herself with a specially adapted fork, and says she will do ‘whatever it takes’ when she gets home.
Lucinda Mullins, 41, went to hospital just before Christmas for a routine kidney stone removal operation. However, complications during the procedure led to an infection that caused septic shock, requiring the amputation of both her arms and legs.
In the video, published on her Facebook page, you can see the specially adapted device, a black strap that attaches to her arm with a fork sticking out of it, in action.
Mrs Mullins moves her arm towards a bowl of fruit on her lap before successfully sticking a skewer into it and bringing it to her mouth to eat all by herself.
In the video, published on her Facebook page, you can see the specially adapted device, a black strap that can be attached to her arm with a fork sticking out of it, in action
Mum-of-two Lucinda Mullins, 41, lost both her legs after routine kidney stone surgery became a desperate battle against sepsis
Cindy, her husband DJ, and their two young sons before the blood poisoning that nearly took her life
“I know things will never be the same again and that’s okay. But just to be able to kind of live the life I used to have again would be great,” she tells DailyMail.com
The Kentucky nurse had been recovering at Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital in Lexington but was able to return home on January 12 with husband DJ, 43, and sons Teegan, 12, and Easton, seven.
She has remained overwhelmingly positive despite her ordeal, as she told DailyMail.com exclusively: ‘I just want people to know this isn’t a sad story. This has a happy ending. I am alive. I get to be with my children and my husband.’
Since completing rehabilitation, she has learned to control a mobility scooter with her head, to ‘booty scoot’, to stretch her muscles and sit up on her own, and even to use her nose to scroll through the countless supportive messages as she continues to strive for its independence.
More than $280,000 has now been raised GoFundMe are appealing to pay for the ‘overwhelming’ medical costs Cindy and her husband DJ are facing after the ‘perfect storm’ that devastated her body.
However, the family is still adjusting to the changes, including starting each day with a two-hour process where DJ dresses and wraps his wife’s healing wounds to keep them clean, waterproof and free from further infection .
The mother-of-two uses her head to steer a mobility scooter around the hospital
The determination is evident as Cindy learns to scroll on a cell phone with her elbow and her nose
Husband DJ is determined to get the best possible treatment for his wife of 13 years. The couple started dating in their teens after they met on jet skis in Pulaski County Park and he waited 10 years to propose
None of this is getting in Lucinda’s way, as she said she is determined to get back to work as soon as possible, where she worked for 17 years as a certified medical assistant at Bates, Miller & Sims, a local physician’s office. .
When the kidney stone became septic, she was first taken by ambulance to Fort Logan Hospital in Stanford and from there to a University of Kentucky hospital in Lexington.
But the doctors decided to amputate both her legs and told her that she would also lose both her arms below her elbows or she would die.
When the doctors told her about her fate, she recalled: “Surprisingly, I was not upset, I had no doubts about it. I wasn’t angry.
“I know there are going to be hard times, but just knowing that I can see my kids again and that I have the support of my family, I think that gave me peace to be okay.”
“I just want people to know that this is not a sad story,” Lucinda told DailyMail.com. ‘This has a happy ending. I am alive. I get to be with my children and my husband.’ She is depicted with her husband, sons, mother and sister
Friends and family have continued to offer tremendous support and praise to Cindy’s spirit as she tackles her grueling rehabilitation.
“Cindy had another great day of therapy, she also had wonderful visitors who brought her delicious treats,” wrote friend Heather Beshears, who set up the GoFundMe.
“Let’s pray that every day gets a little better.”
Cindy said she was overwhelmed by the outpouring of support, including more than 40 hospital visitors at a time.
Her GoFundMe page states: “Cindy and her family will need to make some adjustments to their home to accommodate Cindy’s needs, as well as her prosthetics and adaptive equipment.
“The cost of all this can be overwhelming. We started this fundraiser because we want to support our hero Cindy, as well as her husband DJ, who has been by her side every step of the way.
‘Cindy and DJ have two young children who miss their mother and father terribly. Sometimes life is hard and you can’t ignore it.
‘Cindy and DJ’s world has come to a complete standstill, but the world around them continues to move forward. Let’s help lighten their burden as they heal and rebuild their lives. We hope that Cindy can concentrate on her recovery.’