How would you react knowing your left foot would soon be amputated? Anxious? Panicked? Mortified?
Joe, aka Reddit user rightfooted, felt none of those things (or at least, you wouldn't know it from his on-camera persona). The 23-year-old took his unfortunate prognosis with a heavy dose of lightheartedness.
Joe made the difficult decision to amputate his left foot after suffering with pigmented villonodular synovitis, or PVNS. The condition is characterized by joint pain and swelling, as well as joint locking and instability, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. But before undergoing the procedure, Joe decided to take his left foot on the ride of its life.
Joe's sister uploaded an album titled, "The Last Adventures of Joe's Left Foot," showcasing her brother's positive outlook before and after the amputation.
Joe then got a tattoo around his left ankle at Sorry Mom Tattoo in Virginia marking the spot where the amputation would take place.
He showed off his new ink at every opportunity, like at Firefly Music Festival in Delaware this summer.
After the album grabbed attention on Reddit, Joe opened up about his story and the positive outlook he chose to exhibit.
"There was a point a couple days ago when I became overwhelmed and lost it for about 30 minutes," he said on the site's Ask Me Anything thread, also noting he lived with the pain for about six years. "I got a good cry out and felt better since then."
The surgery was successful. Joe said he is already planning out future Halloween costumes -- "Me as a surfer, my girlfriend as a shark."
As scary as the process was at times, Joe knew immediately after the procedure that everything is going to be OK.
"Right before the surgery, I was definitely freaking out a bit," he wrote on Reddit. "It was such a 'no turning back' decision. But as soon as I woke up from the surgery and looked down, I knew I had done the right thing."
Related
Before You Go
