VietNamNet Bridge - After nearly one month in Hanoi for training, Linh Chi, the limbless little girl--like Nick Vujicic, has toddled the first steps on her new artificial legs.

New life with artificial limbs for the limbless girl

Limbless Nick Vujicic warmly welcomed in HCM City

On the third floor of the Vietnam Orthopedic Technology Centre on Giai Phong Road, Thuy – Linh Chi’s mother, patiently guided her daughter to write by the artificial hands. The little girl from the northern province of Yen Bai seemed to gradually get used to with her new "friend."

From the meeting with Nick Vujicic on May 23, Thuy and her family have stepped into a new page in their live, getting rid of the haunted past. Her daughter – Linh Chi - is not shy anymore. She is more confident and more comfortable communicating with strangers.

Being provided with free artificial limbs by the Vietnam Orthopedic Technology Center, the little girl is practicing to use and control them.

As usual, in the morning, after the breakfast Thuy took her daughter downstairs to see experts, who would examine and design suitable exercises for Linh Chi. It is already hard for practicing writing but it is many times harder to practice standing and walking.

To help the kid familiarize herself with the new legs, Thuy helped her daughter practice standing 3 to 4 times a day, with one hour a time. Sometimes the kid was tired and wanted to stop but the mother neglected until the one-hour practice finished. After more than three weeks of training, Linh Chi currently can stand pretty firm on her false legs.

Since Thuy and her daughter went to Hanoi, things at home are taken care of by her husband. In addition to his youngest son, the man has to care for his elderly parents of more than 80 years old.

The boy learnt to be independent when he was very small. Just over 2 years old, he could follow his parents on his feet because his parents have to carry his sister. A little bit bigger, he could help carry luggage for his sister.

Thuy said she and her daughter went to Hanoi in early September and she does not know when the training period ends. Thanks to the assistance of the Vietnam Orthopedic Technology Center, the mother and her child have a comfortable life at the center.

After three weeks of training, Linh Chi can write better.

Engineer Dao Thi Duyen, deputy head of the orthopedic dept. said that Linh Chi’s legs are just a short piece of thigh so it was very difficult for making artificial legs for her. Experts had to try many different ways but all failed. Finally, they found a solution: making frames that fit the thighs of Chi, opening the hope of stick artificial legs for her.

At present, the little girl can lean on others and walk for a while. However, she will need a long time to practice in order to walk alone, Duyen said.

"She is practicing with the lower legs, later she will transfer to the longer legs to balance with her height, but no one know how long it takes to have that wonderful thing," the expert said.

In May the world-famous limbless Nick Vujicic came to Vietnam and had a talk with Vietnamese audience in Hanoi. The family of Linh Chi took her from Yen Bai to Hanoi to see Nick.

After this event, Thuy has received a lot of phone calls from strange people, who wished to help her limbless daughter. For the first time, Thuy found that she and her daughter are not alone. Four months later, the Vietnam Orthopedic Technology Center proposed to make free artificial limbs for Linh Chi.

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