Less Leg More Heart holds its 3rd Annual Cornhole Tournament June 4 at Bonfire Country Bar, 950 Elm St. The tournament is from 1 to 6 p.m.
MANCHESTER, NH – Tina Hurley of Merrimack knows first-hand what a person struggling with the loss of a limb by amputation needs to recover and rebuild their life.
She was a 27-year-old CrossFit competitor, working as a physician assistant, with a new car and in a relationship with the man of her dreams, when, she said, life handed her a curveball.
Hurley went to the doctor after suffering with a cramped calve and foot numbness. She initially was diagnosed with a calf strain. Two years later, with the symptoms getting worse, she received another diagnosis of Exertional Compartment Syndrome: her calves were too big for the tissue they were contained in. The only treatment was surgery.
To try and limit the symptoms, and avoid surgery, she stopped running and exercising her calves, but her situation worsened, preventing her from walking her dog.
At a subsequent doctor’s appointment, she mentioned her mother just had stents put in her leg arteries for similar symptoms. She was referred to a vascular surgeon and diagnosed with a very rare vascular disorder called Popliteal Artery Entrapment Syndrome. The disease limits the flow of blood to the lower legs and will ultimately result in the amputation of both limbs.
That diagnosis came six months after she met the man of her dreams in a CrossFit gym. They were married on Oct. 10, 2015, but her physical condition worsened.
After numerous surgeries, on July 28, 2016, her lower left leg was amputated. She suffered complications and had to undergo another surgical procedure. When she was discharged – one day after her first wedding anniversary – she returned home to find that her husband had packed up his belongings and left.
For three weeks she avoided everyone and stayed at home. She lost 21 pounds because she couldn’t eat. Her best friend broke into her home, found her and admonished her for being selfish. “Your pride is denying the people who love you the right to help you,” the friend said.
That comment made all the difference in her life.
“I learned there was strength in vulnerability and I finally allowed myself to be helped,” she said in an essay about her life posted on the website for Less Leg More Heart, her non-profit.
“A local CrossFit gym opened their arms to me charitably and, just like that, I got a community and my physicality back. I started learning how to adapt things in the gym,” wrote Hurley.
She underwent two more surgeries – each one taking more of her leg. In all, she had 13 surgeries.
Hurley looks on the bright side of things. She said she was blessed to have wonderful people in her life willing to help “pull me out of a very dark place.”
Her right leg, she said, is “slated for the same fate. Everybody has their stuff, right? It’s the best time to be an amputee. You don’t need 10 fingers and 10 toes to leave your mark I this world.”
The year 2018 was a transformative one for her: She trained with Paralympic teams, wearing a T-shirt with the phrase – Less Leg More Heart on it; won the CrossFit Adaptive Championship; got sponsors, and moved to Texas to participate in a nine-week redefining program.
It also was the year she created Less Leg More Heart, her 501(c)3 nonprofit, to help amputees transition into a disable life. It provides clients with peer mentorship, medical advocacy, funding for holistic approaches to care, and funding for services in the home when someone is recovering from the hospital.
Each year, the non-profit helps between 30 and 60 people, she said. Clients are a mix of civilians and veterans with must amputations the result of vascular disease and diabetes, followed by trauma (i.e., motor vehicle accidents) and bone cancer.
Hurley said an individualized plan is put together for each person based on medical, psychological, social and financial needs.
She said when transitioning to home, a new amputee may need assistance with housecleaning, accessibility modifications, meals and property maintenance while recuperating.
The non-profit also connects the person to a support network of people with similar life experiences and someone to help with the medical jargon to improve their understanding of test results, diagnoses, and treatment plans.
Hurley said they also send care packages around the country containing a variety of products from motivational books, to adaptive fitness equipment, CBD products, wellness supplements, among other things.
It takes hundreds of thousands of dollars to provide the support, she said. The non-profit relies on grants, corporate sponsorships, donations and funds raised through events.
The non-profit also raises money to provide amputees with athletic prosthetics. Movement, according to the non-profit, plays a crucial role in the lives of people with disabilities, providing physical and mental benefits as well as a sense of community and accomplishment.
However, access to these prosthetics is a major challenge due to their high cost and lack of insurance coverage. The specialized prosthetics are hard to come by, especially for lower-income families, the uninsured and those on a fixed income.
So, Less Leg More Heart partnered with Levitate, which develops durable running blades at a fraction of the typical cost.
Hurley’s staff are meeting amputees at Levitate’s Test Run events throughout the United States, and want to be able to give as many of them as possible a running blade to take home. When the $2,000 mark is reached through donations, an amputee gets a running blade and the freedom to run that comes with it.
One charity event that is coming up is on June 4, when Less Leg More Heart holds its 3rd Annual Cornhole Tournament. The event takes place at Bonfire Country Bar, 950 Elm St. The tournament is from 1 to 6 p.m. Cost per team is $75.
For more information on Less Leg More Heart, to sign up for the cornhole tournament or to make a donation towards the purchase of a running blade, visit its website at: lesslegmoreheart.com
Wish to be a sponsor for the cornhole tournament? Click here.
