In early April of this year, I started The Actice Amputee as a resource page for amputees and their families. My initial ideas was to inform amputees about anything from dealing with phantom pain to new developments in the prosthetic sector. I wanted to inspire them by sharing the stories of other amputees and what they are up to. And I wanted to encourage amputees to be active and try out new things. Nothing less, nothing more.

Earlier this month I published the 50th blogpost. I couldn‘t have done this without the help of a number of incredible people. People who agreed to guest post on The Active Amputee, putting in extra time and effort to write amazing articles. People who shared the content far and wide. And people who got me in contact with more and more amputees, pointed me towards support organisations and special events. 

Back in March 2017, just before publishing my first post, I had no clue where this new journey would take me. I run The Active Amputee as a side project that has to fit in with my day jobs, my family life and my other commitments. I knew it would be a lot of work. Which was fine with me. I was willing to put in what was needed. 

Wha I didn‘t know was how immensely rewarding it would be. Through this initiative I have gotten in contact with incredibly inspiring people. I had the chance to listen to stories that moved me to tears; and others that made me laugh out loud. I learned so much about support opportunities that exist and allow amputees to live an active lifestyle, making all the difference in an amputee‘s quality of life. I got inspiration for my very own adventures for 2018. And working on The Active Amputee has further intensified my feeling of being deeply thankful for each and every day that I can be active and live a self-determined life. I do not take that for granted. 

There will be one more post in 2017, before The Active Amputee will take a break over Christmas. I will be back online in the middle of January. I hope I will see you all again next year. There are plenty of new ideas.

I would like to thanks each and every one who contributed to The Active Amputee. In case you missed any of the posts this year, here is an overview of all articles of 2017. 

• Bjoern Eser on his journey to losing is leg (three part mini series)
• Bjoern Eser on why it is cool to have an amputee dad
• Joanna Waterton shares her thoughts on dealing with stump pain as well as being pregnant as an amputee
• Bjoern Eser on Limb Loss Awareness Month
• Bjoern Eser on the importance of a well fitting socket
• Erin Ball on being a double amputee circus artist
• Adenike Oyetunde on setting up Amputees United, building support networks and raising awareness
• Malvika Iyer‘s story from bomb blast survivor to disability rights activist
• Sonia Sanghani‘s book about cycling as an amputee
• Hedgehog1171 sharing his bitmojis for people with limb differences
• Anoushé Husain on the importance of actively choosing how to live your live, on discrimination and on learning to look beyond what is obviously to the eye
• Liam Twomey sharing his dream of becoming a paralympian
• Angelina Emily Boulicault talks about hiking as an amputee
• Tony Memmel the one-armed guitar player
• Several articles on prosthetic covers, a general one by Bjoern Eser, one by ALLELES and one by IDEthnos
• Michael Robbert Brans incredible story of being undreakable
• Fay Keegan regular contributes to the page; read her article on making tough choices and on asking about limb difference
• James Rudge‘s story of being a one-armed paracours athlete 
• Bjoern Eser on kayaking as an almost ideal sport for lower limb amputees
• Yoav Gaon on setting up yoocan, an empowerment side for people with disabilities
• An.awakened.amputee on her proudest moments of being an amputee
• Bjoern Eser on how to commemorate the anniversary of his amputation
• Several articles on paraclimbing in Edinburgh, the Peak District, Manchester and Newcastle
• Bjoern Eser‘s birthday special: My life in pictures
• Todd Domingo talks about his speedy recovery
• Crystal Chigbu shares the story behind Nigeria‘s IREDE foundation
• Updates from the people who met here before
• Chaos.cat with her very personal story of choosing an amputation to finally blossom
• Bjoern Eser on his 15 favourite Instagram accounts for amputees
• Rob Jones‘ Month of Marathons
• Bjoern Eser writes about combining his passion for the mountains with raising funds for people with disabilities
• Bjoern Eser‘s thoughts about turning obstacles into tasks that need to be solved creatively
• Bjoern Eser‘s summer challenge in the Bavarian Alps and his regular walks in the Shropshire Hills
• Maureen Beck‘s new film „Stumped!“
• Bjoern Eser on airport security checks
• A new film series by The English Federation of Disability Sports: „Me, Being Active“
• Rebecca Sellar shares her love for wheelchair tennis and how it helped her to live a happy life