The Belle Jambe Project

The Belle Jambe Projects Started With A Question.

Why are amputees forced to choose between comfort and aesthetics?

Which led to another question.

Why is realism in prosthetics not accessible to the average amputee?

Prosthetics haven’t really changed in the last 100 years. In fact, Prosthetics wasn’t even considered a Medical industry until 25 years ago.

I have been a lower limb amputee since I was 14 years old, and even though the amputation definitely improved my quality of life, the thing I wanted most was to FIT IN.

I have spent years of my life in prosthetics offices begging for something that resembled ME. I wanted to know what I would actually look like with two matching feet.

What I got was door after figurative door slammed in my face.

The ability to MOVE under your own steam isn’t necessary for living. Nor it seems, for quality of life.

Prosthetics are still made based on the physiography of a man--who have denser bones, more compact muscle fiber, and thicker tougher skin.

Women report 8 TIMES higher pain along with their prosthesis. And sadly, they are 70% more likely to live and die alone. And even more devastating, have a suicide rate 4 times that of their male counterparts.

Women also have a much deeper and complex relationship with appearance than most men do.

INSURANCE and the United States Government REFUSES to acknowledge the correlation between appearance and mental health.

Why do Amputee Organizations out there BURY stories like this?

How can Special effects artists make realistic looking limbs in the movies but not where it matters most?

The problem is… THEY CAN!

However, that cost is insane, and insurance refuses to pay for it because they claim it isn’t "necessary" or "beneficial."

But MUSFX/Designer Brian Sipe and I have an idea.

We want to show the WORLD that it CAN be done, that it IS vital, and that it doesn’t have to break the bank.

That is why we have launched The Belle Jambe Project: Form, Function, and Accessibility for All.

Your donation to The Belle Jambe project, will be used for materials to build our first prototype, and work toward educational campaigns, outreach, and studies to be used in our mission to change the hearts and minds of those in Medical, Insurance and Prosthetic Fields. To finally acknowledge that appearance can most definitely affect our mental health and quality of life, and that all men and women deserve the choice on how they live their lives, including amputees.