A Kentucky mother of two who lost all four limbs is in good spirits and recently showed off her new prosthetic arms and legs.
Cindy Mullins, a nurse, had her arms and legs amputated in January after a kidney stone infection left them septic.
Months after the surgery that changed his life forever, Mullins, 41, called last Friday the “big day” of his life because of his new prototype arm.
In a photo posted to her GoFundMe page, which has raised more than $333,000, she is seen smiling as she wears a black prosthetic on her right arm for the first time. A second photo shows her grabbing a brochure at an orthopedics office.
The same day, she also received new legs. In one photo, doctors help him walk with the prosthetics.
“I never thought I would be so happy to have pink, sparkly legs,” she wrote.
Cindy Mullins, who had all four limbs amputated due to a kidney stone infection, is seen with her prosthetic arm five months after her first operation.
“I never thought I would be so happy to have pink, sparkly legs,” Mullins wrote on her GoFundMe.
Mullins, 41, undergoes physical therapy with his new prosthetic legs
Mullins has been preparing to practice using prosthetics since early March.
“As if she wasn’t strong enough, she’s about to be. We just went to Cardinal Hill for a few weeks of intense therapy to prepare her for the prosthetic journey she’s about to begin ” her husband DJ wrote in a March 8 post.
Mullins initially underwent treatment for kidney stones, which are hard balls of salt and minerals that form inside the body.
The doctor left a temporary stent in his body after the operation to prevent any blockages. When she removed the stent at home, as instructed, the mother-of-two started feeling unwell and fainted.
She was rushed to a local hospital, where doctors discovered that an unremoved kidney stone had become infected.
“I just want people to know it’s not a sad story,” Mullins told DailyMail.com. This has a happy ending. I’m alive. I can be with my children and my husband’
Mullins, pictured alongside her son at a school event while recovering from a quadruple amputation
Mullins lost his legs and arms when an infected kidney stone led to sepsis and doctors were forced to amputate his limbs to save his life.
Mullins learned she had gone into septic shock and her organs were beginning to shut down. She was stabilized and placed on a ventilator before being taken to a larger hospital in Lexington, Kentucky.
Over the next few days, his organ function improved, but soon blisters appeared on his limbs. When she regained consciousness, doctors told her she would survive the infection, at the expense of her hands and legs.
She underwent a series of amputations that ended with the removal of her forearms in February.
“I just want people to know it’s not a sad story,” Mullins told DailyMail.com in early February. “It has a happy ending. I’m alive. I can be with my children and my husband.
After hours of grueling physical therapy sessions, Mullins regained her ability to eat on her own using a specially adapted fork attached to her arm.
She also learned to sit up on her own and scroll through her phone with her nose.
The 41-year-old learned to sit up straight and eat using a special fork after hours of grueling physiotherapy.
A GoFundMe campaign raised more than $333,000 to cover costs associated with prosthetics and home adjustments. The page also serves as an online journal documenting Mullins’ recovery.
Mullins began training to use prosthetic arms and legs in early March.
Yet her husband DJ and two sons had to adapt in the months following Mullins’ quadruple amputation.
Every morning, DJ must bandage and bandage his wife’s wounds to keep them clean and watertight.
The 41-year-old mom said she is determined to return to work as a certified medical assistant when she is ready.
The GoFundMe campaign was organized by close friend Heather Beshears and grew into a diary documenting Mullins’ recovery.
“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,” Beshears wrote on the page.
“The costs 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.’
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