inMotion Magazine

Finding Connections 19 a pantheon of other incredible specimens, including Serena Williams, Lolo Jones and Ryan Lochte, to name a few. How has she come to love and express her body while so many struggle to accept the change of limb loss? “I think I’ve got … the whole world fooled,” she says. “Just this week at the swimming pool, I was sitting there and I looked down at my stump and I thought, ‘I hate how I look in a bathing suit.’ It’s one thing for me to be standing in my prosthetic leg. But as soon as the leg comes off, I don’t feel comfortable in my skin. When I’m in my leg, I feel confident. … Once you take that away from me, that’s when I really feel disabled. … But I can’t let fear and embarrassment rule me. I’ll tell you a trick; I always wear sunglasses. It’s just an extra barrier between me and the world. If I’m not in a space to be open to conversation, I can tune out the looks.” Sarah believes in the importance of support networks, both for herself and for others with limb loss and limb difference: “What I love about the Amputee Coalition National Conference and other events is that they give us these touchpoints where we can gather to share experiences and support each other. In my case, my team is 98 percent of my achievement. There’s my coach, my husband, my family, my coworkers and so many more – my prosthetist, my bike mechanic and on and on. When I’m in a race … I might think of my husband, my mom, or my dad, but I’ll also think, ‘This one is for the entire Össur team, the factory workers who built my leg, the engineers, the techs and prosthetists who worked on my socket.’ I just think, ‘I can’t be weak right now. I’ve got to be strong for all of them.’” Sarah has been strong enough to shoulder the weight of an entire community for three decades and, judging by her confidence, we can all share her journey for years to come. Photo courtesy of Sarah Reinertsen @AlwaysTri “Sometimes you have to look back to recognize just how far you’ve come.” ~ Sarah Reinertsen