Jason Koger: First Bilateral Arm Amputee in the World to Receive 2 Bionic Hands & Author of Handed a Greater Purpose
Team Never Quit
Marcus Luttrell
4.9 • 6K Ratings
🗓️ 12 October 2022
⏱️ 67 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Waking up after 3 days in a coma, Jason's life was forever different, as both of his arms had been amputated below the elbow to save his life, and the first thing he wanted to do was to hold his two daughters in his arms again.
In short order, Jason taught himself how to drive again, and went on a turkey hunt and deep-sea fishing. Within a year, he was fitted with prosthetic arms and relearned the essentials of life, including how to feed, dress and bathe himself.
These days, life is back to “normal” for Jason and his family. He has a new son and has taken on the mission of encouraging other amputees. Jason’s goal in life to use his story to help others.
- My arms are body-powered. They basically work off of a cable. When you move your opposite shoulder from your amputation, you’re basically pulling a cable to the opposite hand.
- My cousin said it looked like the Fourth of July was coming off of me. He thought I was dead.
- It basically blew my left thumb off.
- In the helicopter, they cathed me, and my urine looked like Dr. Pepper.
- By the time I made it to the hospital, they had to immediately amputate to save my life because my kidneys were shutting down.
- The surgeon said it looked like a shotgun had gone off inside of my arm. The electricity pulled all my tendons off.
- We’ve always had faith.
- When I woke up from a three-day coma, I had no idea they had amputated.
- When my dad says it’s gonna be possible to get through it, it’s gonna be possible.
- I told the doctor, “I gotta be able to hold my kids. That’s all I care about.” He said he’d make that happen.
- I’ve always been a strong-willed person. I want to do things myself. I don’t want someone doing things for me.
- Eventually, my insurance company said yes to two bionic hands.
- My goal was to be the best prosthetic user in the world.
- I got a call from CNN, asking if they could run my story. Then amputees all over the world started reaching out to me. I told my wife I think this is my calling - to help others.
- I want veterans and non-veterans to know there’s a way to live. 95% of being a successful amputee is mental attitude.
- The hands have an Apple app. My hands know where they are in space at all times.
- The hardest day I ever had was the first day I was home, because one of my girls laid on my lap.
- My brother-in-law bought me a shirt that read: “Look Ma, No Hands.”
- I wrote my first book: Handed a Greater Purpose.
- You can live life to the fullest, no matter what you go through.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The Team Never Quit Podcast is sponsored by Navy Federal Credit Union. |
| 0:03.2 | Now Navy Federal will contribute $1,000 as a lender credit towards closing costs in your new home. |
| 0:07.1 | Learn more at NavyFederal.org. |
| 0:22.3 | All right everybody, welcome back to the TNG Podcast. I'm your host Marcus Matrell. |
| 0:27.9 | Every week it's my job to fire you up, to ignite the legend inside of you, |
| 0:32.1 | and to push you to your greatness. Join me every week as I take you into my |
| 0:36.0 | briefing room with some of the most hard charging people on the planet. |
| 0:39.2 | They're going to show you how to embrace the stuff of life, |
| 0:41.7 | teach you the values of working your ass off, and charge to whatever life throws at you. |
| 0:46.3 | This is the Team Never Quit Podcast. |
| 0:48.3 | Don't buckle up, buttercup. |
| 0:58.4 | What's up everybody? Welcome back to another episode of the Team Never Quit Podcast. |
| 1:02.7 | Glad to be in the studio doing another incredible episode Marcus. How are you this week man? |
| 1:08.3 | But I'm blessed and unstoppable. I've had a great week. |
| 1:10.7 | It's good. It has been a good one. I've been out for the last couple of weeks. |
| 1:14.0 | I know. But it was good because I lost some weight eating just chicken noodle soups. |
| 1:17.2 | I'm okay with that. That's a hell of a diet going through that. |
| 1:20.0 | I just wish I could do that more often because when you walked in I was like wow. |
| 1:23.9 | Sometimes you got to do it. You got to do it. |
| 1:27.1 | We got a great guest in store for you guys. But before we get into the intro, |
| 1:29.9 | we've got a Patreon question of the day. If you could have an unlimited supply of one thing |
| 1:36.3 | for the rest of your life, what is it? It could be sushi, Scotch tape, duck tape. |
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