This is model and blogger Mama Càx. After being diagnosed with bone and lung cancer at 14, Càx beat the odds with experimental drugs and a leg amputation.
But Càx still gets phantom pain — pain in limbs no longer existing after being amputated — and was recently inspired to learn about others' experiences with it, too. That's why she created #MyPhantomPain.
"Phantom pain doesn't have one narrative," Càx told BuzzFeed, "so I gathered stories from several amputees I follow on Instagram, amputated under different circumstances, and coming from diverse walks of life."
Responses came from Instagrammers including @amputeen, whose "phantom" experiences are sometimes painful, but not always...
... @ash_unique_chick, who also describes burning and itching in addition to shooting pain...
... and @amputee_kat, who experiences different forms of itching and shooting nerve sensations.
Overall #MyPhantomPain achieved its goal of showing the diverse experiences of amputees, although Càx says she was disappointed in some responses she felt romanticized disability.
"All in all, I'm glad I wrote it," she said. "Those who needed the information will benefit from it. Personally, I will be trying some of the methods the other women shared."
