I was born with multiple congenital limb deficiencies (missing bones in both hands & legs) which resulted in many surgeries and left foot amputation. I have yet to find something that I want to do but can't!! AMA

Have you ever cosplayed as a ninja turtle or night crawler?

If Halloween counts, the yes to the turtle.

Nightcrawler, someday. My fake German accent needs work.

On the vein of video games, could also cosplay as the Arbiter from the Halo series.

I could, but I don't have the artistic talent to make that costume. At least with Nightcrawler, I can just get some blue paint, a tail, and a trench coat.

You gotta do Kain

That would be fun!! Not sure if I want to shave my chest though.....

You can probably be an Elite Covenant too

I'm not tall enough. :(

Could always be a grunt!

I might be too tall for that.... Plus, I don't know if I could get the waddle down. That takes talent.

They're like 5'8" or something. Not too short.

Oohh that's fine then.

Longer prosthetics! We have the technology

They can make me better, stronger, faster!

Yes you are.

I guess so. I thought they were over 6 feet, but I guess it's closer to my height.

Would you rather have your life be narrated by Morgan Freeman or James Earl Jones ?

Vader, all the way!

Can you explain why they amputated your foot instead of making you a shoe for the other foot to make up the height difference? Or like... I dunno, doing that "break your leg and lengthen it" thing I've heard about? And how does lacking a fibula affect your ability to walk or play sports, etc?

When I was born, breaking the leg and lengthening it was a huge risk. The chances of it working properly were far less than "simple" amputation. I think the difference was too large for a special shoe to work properly.

The lacking fibula hasn't made much of a difference, with the exception of my foot turning in slightly when I lift my leg. The major issue was the complete reconstruction of my right ankle, which is constantly in pain when I am active. That, I've gotten used to.

Are you completely missing the fibula or is it just fused with the tibia the way your hands were? Do you think it's possible your fibula developed to be much stronger or perhaps you just developed more muscle for support?

It may take me longer then I have at the moment to see if it's been asked before so if you don't mind another question, do you know the medical details of what caused your condition? Thank you in advance and know your awesome for living life regardless of your limitations.

Completely missing. I think there's a bit more support, probably from a slightly stronger Tibia.

No idea, and the doctors don't seem to know either.

Did you ever get made fun of in school?

Not much more than everyone else. I went to a very small High School, so people were less selective (on who they made friends with and who they made fun of), due to a lack of options.

You have a great attitude! I'm wondering, did your parents make a big deal that you were different? Or did they instill the never say die attitude? You rock man!

Thanks!

They didn't make much of a deal out of it, at least not in front of me when I was little. They did worry, but they let me try things that I wanted to try. If they had concerns, they'd ask the doctors, who would say that it's fine.

My left leg was slightly shorter than my right leg, at birth. So, doctors amputated my foot,

what? why?

My grandfather was born like that and the doctors never did anything that severe and he´s still fine and walking around?

It was too short to just have special shoes.

Are you any good at bowling?

I suck at bowling. I need to find a ball that fits my hand, and that probably means drilling my own holes. Although, since I only bowl once every 5+ years, I haven't had the urge to go and spend money on a ball.

I'm pretty sure you could buy one from CL and widen the holes using a driller.

EDIT: Nvm, what you could do is to ignore the thumb hole and make the two other holes into one.

My Uncle offered to do the drilling, and maybe someday. I have so much stuff that I don't use, I don't know if I have a place to put it. I just don't play often enough.

I get all that, I just want to know if you run a vacuum before you play them games? The carpet is looking rough bro.

Maybe someday, but it needs more than just a vacuum. The most high traffic area+white carpet = looks like crap.

Steam that shit

I'm renting so, when I move out I will.

As a suggestion... My roommate has her parents steamer... And she steams our carpets once ever couple months. It takes her only about an hour, but the way she sees it, why make the place look good only when you leave? People often comment on how white our apartment carpets are and its thanks to her. Worth the thought anyways.

Very true, but I am the only one who is ever in my apartment.

No, now all of Reddit is in your apartment. It is everyone's concern. Don't make us Kickstart a steam cleaner purchase for you.

Sshhh, these are not the droids you're looking for.....

Haha you got an Xbox one?

Nope, just a 360. I have an Xbox controller for my PC though.

PC Masterrace FTW. I too got a rig after the age of the 360 and have a 360 controller for my PC.

I've been a computer guy for most of my life. I've always had game console as well, but with the availability of games on PC, and the ability for me to customize the controls for some of them (big plus), it just made more sense to go PC. Plus, 60+fps.

Have you ever gotten a chromosome karyotyping or a microarray done to identify any genetic anomalies?

No I have not.

How has having less than 5 fingers affected your ability to play games competitively?

Specifically league, WoW, and the Xbox which usually require some godawful amount of key binds.

Not as far as I can tell. I know where my deficiencies are in games and very little of it comes from the keys. When I have problems, it's mostly tunnel vision.

That totally comes with experience. You play the game long enough, you'll start to see much more than you used to. But it takes just ONE game where your brain and eyes completely sync with the game. You lose that tunnel vision for a team fight and you kick serious ass. After that, there will be far less tunnel vision and much more raid boss.

My eyes (mostly my brain) lose track of the cursor, which it what causes the most issue for me. I think it's because of the high mouse sensitivity I play with. So even the slightest motion moves the cursor a lot. I need to figure out a better desk/chair combo so I have more room for my mouse and can reduce the dpi.

I also forget to check the minimap a lot of the time, unless I'm supporting. Then it's fine.

Try finding a way to support your posture better and you could drop the mouse sensitivity one notch lower to help keep a better visual lock. If you do that and get used to it, it should help.

Remember that a good rule of thumb is: eye level should be between 1/2 and 3/4 up the screen, keyboard should be at sitting elbow height (or a few inches below), and you should be able to rest your feet/foot/resting lower limb on the floor surface, flatly and with no effort. The worst is if your point of contact with the ground puts strain on your body by not being well seated.

Also, props in general. Over coming out individual difficulties is hard enough, you're beast mode-ing through!

My keyboard and mosue are at the right height, along with my monitor, but my chair sucks. It has poor lumbar support which results in poor posture. It was billed as a computer chair, but it's far more a general office chair.

Just like most people

Yup. If I spent a lot of time on it, I could probably get better at it, but I enjoy it as it is and don't want to ruin that by making it a chore.

But can you see why kids love the taste of Cinnamon Toast Crunch?

Because it's got.......tan lines?

Props for an actual line from one of the commercials. I BELIEVE its from the commercial with the lifeguard. Although, memory could be failing me here.

Yes it is. It's the only one I can remember.

Weirdest comment/question you've ever gotten about your disability?

(Nice ama, by the way! I was born without a left arm myself. :) )

On Reddit. The ones about masturbation are kind of weird.

In person. "Are you alright?" It was only weird because of the concern in their voice. I mean, I got here and there's no blood, so......yes I'm fine.

"Are you alright?" It was only weird because of the concern in their voice.

I can imagine it as if, to them, they think it just happened and they are the first on the scene. The heroism and concern they must have felt "Can I do anything for you? Is there someone I should call?!"

Rock on man, awesome bass playing!

Thanks!

Wow! I just wanted to say this is what the body acceptance movement should be about! You're living your life to fullest and I admire you very much! What's your favorite video game you've played so far and the one you're looking forward to playing the most in the future?

That is a tough one.......but probably Word of Warcraft, with Assassin's Creed coming in a very close second. Almost entirely for the story.

I want to play the Witcher 3, and again, to continue the story. Just waiting for a sale, and the time to play it.

Word of Warcraft? Is that where you write about battles?

No, it's a new gospel, according to Blizz.

Can you say anything more about making a second digit out of a single one? Did the original one have six phalanges?

There were enough bones to make two finger, plus a thumb, in each hand. There is very little flexibility in my fingers, so I don't know how many bones there actually are, or if they are fused or not.

Have you ever read Stephen King's "The Gunslinger"? In the second book of the series there may be something I think you could relate to. Edit: ninja edit Edit 2: before anyone says anything, the series is "the Dark Tower"

I've got all the way through "Wolves of the Calla", but I'm not as fast with a gun as he is.

Have you shot guns before?

Yes. Mostly rifles.

How about sex? Can you do it?

Yes.

Masturbation?

Yeah, I always go for the very relevant questions :)

Someone always does, and yes.

The sequence of your replies has interesting implications on how we choose to interpret that response! xD

Masturbation?

Someone always does

Yeah, I always go for the very relevant questions :)

Yes

It makes it fun, doesn't it?

Are you such a chill dude cause you are always making peace signs?

Possibly.

Are there any activities that you find difficult to do that people with 10 digits do? What are some things you that you do better?

I have problems holding onto heavy weights or doing exercises that require me to hold my weight up with my fingers. For example pullups are extremely difficult because it is hard for me to hang on for a long time. I have found ways around that though.

I can fit my hand into smaller spaces pretty well. Fewer fingers to worry about when cutting food too.

Less fingers to worry about, but if you do cut one off you have a higher percentage of loss than someone else!

True, but I'm also more careful. I think.

Shadow puppets. Have you mastered those?

Not mastered, but I passable.

Do you find relationships with women difficult? Are you confident enough with your personality that women aren't immediately turned off by your limitations.

When I was younger, maybe a little. No one ever came right out and said anything. I dated a few people, and was rejected by others. Now, I'm far to picky.

I asked this last time, and you mentioned that you wanted to work on video games. Has that gone anywhere, or changed?

Gone nowhere so far. I'm still working on it, but it's a REALLY tough market to get into. That and my complete lack of experience/schooling in the area makes it difficult.

I have expanded my ambitions to working for a gaming peripherals (mice/keyboards/etc.) company, but every place I looked at wanted software engineers. I'm a Design/Manufacturing Mechanical Engineer, with a bit of Project Management thrown in. No software though.....

Now it might not be related to game design too much but I really want you to try a CAD software out - Inventor, 3Ds Max or something such as that just so that you can 3D-print your own feet. That would be fucking awesome IMO. You could put some technological jazz in there too!

I've used Pro-E (a lot) and Solidworks (a little). A very small amount of AutoCAD as well, but I much prefer sketching and dimensioning in Pro-E.

do people always think you're flipping them off? I went to school with a guy with the same thing, and when he waved, people always thought he was giving them the middle finger. it was actually pretty hilarious.

Often enough. People get mad, and then apologetic really fast.

How old are you? Do you have any brothers or sisters?

34 in a couple of days. 1 brother.

Older or younger? How was growing up with him like?

Younger. He was a younger brother, so, annoying, at the time.

What rank are you on csgo?

Unranked.

Did you see they could print bones now in "today in science"? Would you do that if it could help u, how do u feel/ what do you know, about it?

I hadn't seen that! It sounds really interesting, but it wouldn't do (and wouldn't have done) much for me. Even with the bones, I'd still be missing muscles/tendons/cartilage plus the nerves to control it all. Still, it sounds really interesting!

I made some bad decisions. I'm broke and a single mom and I live with my parents. I feel depressed most of the time and helpless too, which I mentally know is utter bullshit.

What can I do to overcome my mental hurdles? I need to pick myself up and I haven't been able to do that for 3 years now. I feel like an entitled privileged moron for asking this of you, but did you have a dark night of the soul and what got you out of it? Do you have advice for me?

So, I knew this question was going to pop up, and I've discussed this with people before.

I can honestly say that I have no idea what people who are depressed feel like. I don't mean that to sound rude, or mean, or anything like that. What I mean is that not being able to understand the emotional weight of what you are going through, I am genuinely unable to grasp the way you feel. Because of that, I can't really provide you with an honest answer. Anything I said would be a platitude, or a lie.

The closest experience I have ever had, as far as I can tell, was when I was younger. I had a fairly bad break up. I felt horrible, didn't want to eat, didn't want to work, I just wanted to sleep. But I didn't just sleep. I forced myself to go out and do things. I forced myself to get up in the morning, go to work, eat, talk with my friends, and live my life like I had been. It lasted for a couple of weeks but it eventually went away.

The problem I have relating this to other people is that it went away. I haven't been living with it for months/years, so I have absolutely no idea how much of a burden it really is.

Do not feel bad about asking. I came here to answer questions, even if I can't answer them properly, I'll still give it a try.

The best advice I can give is to find something, anything, that you enjoy and love to do ( or loved to do in the past) and make sure to continue to do it. If I hadn't continued to live my life the way I had been, I don't know what would have happened.

A while ago I saw a post with almost the same title (about not finding anything you can't do) and the dude had the same condition as you in his hands. Are you the same guy? Sorry to ask this, it's just that they do look fairly similar.

Yes, more than likely. Hhmm, maybe I should add that one to the post....

But can you run Crisis 3 on the highest settings?

Maybe. 4790k with a GTX 760 so it might be close.

Having been born without my left arm from right below the elbow and down I've had much of the same experiences as you have. I've done a lot of sports (skiing, climbing, downhill biking and more) and video games (CS, WoW, Quake, etc) just like you have and like you I've never found anything I absolutely couldn't do.

My question is have you ever found that mastering these activities has been prevented by your deficiencies? And if so how do you deal with the psychological aspect of not being able to perform as well as you want to/could have?

I honestly don't know. With the exception of some video games (and bass), I haven't really done anything long enough to even come close to mastery of it. A lot of the things I did as a kid I just stopped doing. Mostly because I was growing and finding new interests.

Psychology, I just keep trying. I always want to be better at most of the things I do, so I've never actually been perfect at something. I always find something that I need to work on. When I do run into a wall, I change the definition.

There are songs that would be very difficult, if not impossible, for me to play. So, I've altered the way I tune my bass, to play it.

Why did you put a sock on your prosthetic foot?

Saves the shoe, and the rubber foot casing.

Holy shit, how can someone be that badass?

Very carefully.

Have you posted threads on 4chan before or am i mistaking you for someone else?

It was probably someone else. I've never posted on 4chan before.

Have you ever given rock climbing a try?

Yes. It was fun.

How much can you squat, bro?

As much as my knee (fishing injury) can handle. Which probably isn't a lot.

fishing injury - please explain

I had 2 options. Fall in the lake, or jump in the boat. I landed weird and blew my knee out. I think I landed with a my knee locked, it felt like it slid sideways.

oh brutal :( hope that hasn't deterred you from heading out still

I wasn't a fan of fishing to being with.

Can you give me a high five?

With 2 hands, yes.

Count to twenty?

Done.

Have you seen Mad Max yet? I hope you have seen Mad Max: Fury Road by now. I have cerebral palsey myself, and seeing a character with a disability kick some ass is pretty awesome! Do go see it.

I've heard it was a great film! I'm trying to get a bunch of people to go and see it soon.

Not to be rude, but are your hands a handicap in martial arts ? Or can you grip and throw punches normally without fear of injuring yourself ?

I have a "sharper" punch due to the lack of surface area. My grip is different, which makes things work differently, and can make it harder to break, sometimes.

can you swim?

Yes, but I don't like it. My leg shouldn't get wet, parts of it will rust. So it has to come off. Too much prep work and then getting out of the pool (lakes are even worse).

Can you drive a manual car fine? Or have you never tried? Also do you play diablo 3? What class and how do you play that class?

Edit: I don't mean like keybind wise for the diablo 3 class, just what type of build you're running.

Yes, I have a currently drive a manual. Lots of fun, and I'm the only person I know who can drive it, so no one ever asks to borrow it!

I haven't played Diablo 3 in months. Last time I did, it was a Dh with a Entangling Shot/Cluster Arrow build. Long time ago.

Manual is the best kind of car. :)

You should try witch doctor out, it's a lot of fun.

I've got one of every class, not all at max level though. Just a DH, Wizard, and Witch Doctor. Barb, Monk, and Crusader in the 60s.

You seem like a really hardcore dude, what is your replacement for the "Rock/Devil's hand sign"?

Thumb and last finger go out, the one in the middle stays down.

What are some things you DON'T want to do?

Dancing, swimming, skydiving, bungee jumping.

How do you feel about comedians such as Alex Brooker and Adam Hills who both have congenital limb defects themselves and build a lot of this into their sets, especially the show "The Last Leg"?

(If you don't know, Last Leg is a British comedy show presented by Hills, Brooker and one other. It was originally a companion show for the Paralympic in 2012 but has continued since. They regularly find humour in their own and other's disabilities.)

Hhmm, British humor........ I haven't seen this yet, but I'll check it out.

Pepsi or coke? Boxers or briefs? Spring or Fall? PC or console? Coffee or tea? Rickenbacker or...?

Coke. Briefs. Fall. PC. Ibanez for now.

How does it make you feel when you see people with depression or anxiety who are 100% physically healthy, not living their lives, by that I mean staying in doors 24/7 and not doing anything apart from hiding away from the world allowing time to pass them by?

I don't know how to feel. I've never had to deal with that level of depression and I have no idea how it feels to be in that position. So I guess, confused is the best answer.

What do you do for a living? What jobs can you do and what jobs you can not do? Is there something that you are better at than 10 fingered people? Most people, even you, say that that is a disability. But, are there any advantages?

Currently unemployed. For the most part, anything that requires me to be on my feet for long periods of time is a no go. It's not that I can't do it, but the repercussions are not something I like to deal with. I went to school for engineering in no small part because it can be primarily a sitting job.

I don't really know if I'm better at anything BECAUSE of my hands or legs. I am better at some things than other people, but I can't say that it's because of my hands and legs.

I've become very good at adapting the world around me to work for me. Making other people's methods and techniques work the way I need them to. I guess that's an advantage, at least mentally.

What's your favorite spooky ghost story?

I....don't have one. I wasn't a fan of ghost stories when I was a kid, and that just kind of stuck.

How do you do your daily work like buying groceries, going to college etc.?

Don't people laugh at you or give you money thinking you are a bagger?

Very few people notice. Pants are almost required where I live, at least 9 months out of the year, so that covers my leg. Unless I am interacting with someone using my hands, no one even looks.

Have you read Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets? And if so, how did you feel about Harry losing his arm bones?

I did not read that book. I saw the movies, but I don't remember that scene.

Gilderoy Lockhart (played by Kenneth Brannagh in the movie), is an idiot wizard, and tries to fix Harry's broken arm (from Quidditch) and just makes his bones completely disappear.

Sorry, it's the first thing I thought of. What are your favorite questions to answer?

All of them.

Have you met anyone with a similar disability? If so, how did it go? Did you hit it right off based on that commonality?

There were plenty of people at the clinic I went to, but in regular everyday life, no. I don't live in a heavily populated area, so there's just a smaller chance of it happening.

Can you jump up and click your heels?

Boom. Roasted.

Yes.

I know a nurse that has the same hands as you. Have thought of doing anything specific, career wise, for your future?

I've been attempting to get a job in the video game industry. I was hoping to, at some point, be able to assist other people who want to play, but are having troubles (or at least be able to direct them to someone who can assist them). That has been slow going. Turns out it's a highly competitive field and I have no experience, but I'm still trying.

I've also considered working for a company that makes gaming peripherals. I'm just waiting for one of those companies to post a position that deals with design or manufacturing engineering. All they have are software engineer positions, and I am far from qualified for that.

Have you thought about doing some modding? It seems to be the best way to get into the industry today, if you don't already know someone on the inside.

I've thought about it, but I don't have the passion for it like others do. It would just be a means to an end for me, and ultimately not something I'd want to do with my life. I wouldn't as happy doing it as someone else would, and my work would probably show that.

There are a couple of areas that I do enjoy that relate to video games though. Data analysis is, for me, very fun. Designing automated systems, with the exception of my lack of programming skills, is also something I enjoy. So I've tried to focus on my strengths and what I enjoy.

Do you ever have really dark days where you feel down and how do you cope with those?

The only time that has happened to me was because of a break up(s). And then, I forced myself to go about my day as I normally would. Get up, eat food, work, eat, play, sleep, etc. It wasn't fun, but it eventually went away.

Do u smoke weed?

No

Can you high-five someone?

I can, with two hands. It looks weird, so I usually just go for the high-three.

Amazing people like you who don't let the cards life dealt you stop you from living life make me feel guilty about not doing more with my health! You're an inspiration, truly.

My question is where did your motivation come from? Could you put a finger on how you are so motivated. A family member, a doctor or something.

I don't think it came from any one place, at least not as far as I can tell.

My family (parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles) were.....pushy and supportive. They would always help em do whatever I wanted, but more than that, they would push me (and everyone else in my family) to just do more, and do it better (correctly).

On top of that, figuring out how to do things differently was a fun challenge.

What's the weirdest thing someone said to you ?! 😊

Can you see why kids love the taste of Cinnimon Toast Crunch?

Was kind of odd.

Whats your favorite song to play on bass and how long you been playin!?

My favorite song changes all the time. Right now it's probably RATM - Calm Like a Bomb. I've been playing for 17 years or so.

With your legs both missing a bone, is there a higher chance of breaking a leg? Also what made you decide to persue Filipino weapons training as opposed to others?

I would say that there is a higher chance, but I've never tested it out.

It was one of the arts that was being taught by the club I joined in college. I think I like it because of how complicated it is. There are so many options for even the smallest of movements, so there's always something new to learn.

What did you think of MayPac? What big fights are you looking forward to now?

I haven't actually seen the fight. I had some friends tell me that it was worth watching, and that Mayweatherwon, but they didn't agree with the judges on the numbers, or on the punch count.

Can you see why kids love the taste of Cinnimon Toast Crunch?

http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/373b0j/i_was_born_with_multiple_congenital_limb/crjgh09

Do you know the specific medical name for your condition(s)? Did they know anything was up before you were born?

Hands - Complex Syndactyly

Legs - Fibular Hemimelia

No, no one knew until I was born.

First of all, mad props for taking the cards you were dealt and managing to win.

My question is : how do you maintain your health ? How do you stay in shape ? I have a huge aversion towards perfectly healthy individuals (no missing legs or bones etc) that allow themselves to end up at 300+ lbs and being more fat than self-esteem would normally allow.

Once again, congratulations !

I exercise and eat fairly well, it comes with the martial arts. We've got a few exercises that we do nearly everyday, mostly strength training.

Do you mind helping me pick out a new laptop? You seen like you know about computers.

I know very little about laptops, but I hear (and other people can feel free to correct me) that ASUS makes some really good ones. It really does depend on what you want to do with it though.

Nope. I agree. I fix computers for a living (though not always a fun one).

Asus is by far one of the highest quality laptops you can get. After that, probably Dell if you spend enough. HP sucks now. Acer is garbage. Sony is okay but full of bloatware.

And before anyone says it, Alienware and Digital Storm suck. Alienware is just an overpriced Dell and good luck finding drivers easily for the DS.

I bought a Toshiba laptop years ago, and it functioned well. Not the best, but far from the worst, until the hard drive failed.

OP, what position did you play in high school?

I wasn't very good, but linebacker. My brain didn't get the intricacies of football at the time. Now I understand it far better, but it happened a little late.

Why do you wear a sock on your prosthetic foot?

It saves the shoe from being torn to pieces.

Can you grow another foot?

Maybe on the back of a mouse, but I don't want to go through the trouble of going back to school to get another degree.

You say there is nothing you can do eh? Well seeing as you are a white male I dare you to go to tumblr and try to have pride about yourself!

I can try, but I don't tumblr.

Have you ever considered joining the circus?

I don't much like clowns.