Aimee Copeland, the Georgia woman who tragically contracted a flesh eating bacteria after a zip lining accident that cost her both her hands, as well as her left leg and right foot, has a new lease on life, thanks to the latest advancements in prosthetic technology. She is now the recipient of two prosthetic hands that can help her do many difficult tasks that we take for granted, such as driving a car, chopping up vegetables, and even shaking another person's hand. Amiee showed off her new skills with her hands to Today, and revealed her struggles to adapt to her new lifestyle.
After her accident in May 2012, Copeland lost much of her limbs due to necrotizing fasciitis, but thanks to the huge advances in artificial limb technology, she can now use the remaining muscles in her arms to control her new hands. Copeland has now learned how to move her new hands and fingers, as well as control the grip strength of those hands, all by flexing and contracting her muscles. The prosthetic hands pick up on the electronic signals that are used to move a person's muscles, and interprets them as hand movements. Though it is still a learning process for the young women, she spoke confidently to Today, believing that she can lead a more normal life because of the new hands.
"It's almost like a muscle memory with these things...You know, it's like you got to find the sweet spot and be able to pick things up naturally. And that'll come with time."
In the meantime, Copeland is balancing her continuing working with the company that created her new hands to further improve her skill with them, as well as completing her master's degree in psychology. When she looks back at how her life has changed, she told Today that she feels like a completely different person from the one who first suffered that accident.
"Sometimes, honestly, I look at pictures of how I was before, and I feel almost disconnected from that person because my perspective now is so different than the point of view of that girl...And so, in a way, it almost feels like I died a year ago and I was reborn as someone different."