Perhaps He'll Run a Marathon Someday...

On October 24th, 2007 the unimaginable happened.  The stairs on my Dad's deck fell to the ground dropping him 20+ feet to the mountain below. 

Two stairs fell out of the staircase that connects the two decks on my parents Colorado home.

He broke his neck, broke his back and fractured his ribs.  He did not, mercifully, hit his head and remained conscious through the entire time.

The fall left him unable to move his legs and what little movement he did have in his arms and hands was mostly spastic and not coordinated, controlled movement.

He underwent surgery to repair his shattered neck and was told that the fractures in his back and ribs would just heal with time.  Whether or not he would ever walk again was a more dismal topic.  Doctors wouldn't say one way or another if he would walk, nor would they put any odds on it. 

He spent 8 days in the Neuro Surgical Intensive Care Unit and then was discharged to Craig Hospital.  Craig is a rehabilitation hospital that works exclusively with spinal cord injuries (SCI) and traumatic brain injuries (TBI).

Dad spent 3 1/2 months as an inpatient at Craig.  During this time he underwent intensive physical and occupational therapy 5 days a week.  He fought infections, allergic reactions to antibiotics, more surgery and more invasive procedures than most of us will ever have done in our entire lives.  He fought hard to keep his spirits high and remain hopeful.


Mom shows the brace that Dad wore for 12 weeks.  Mercifully the back brace only had to be worn when out of bed.  The neck brace was worn 24/7 for over 12 weeks while his broken neck healed.

When he entered Craig at the beginning of November he had minimal movement of the toes of his left foot and no movement at all on the right foot.  His arms and hands were able to move but with little coordination or strength thus rendering them mostly useless.

We celebrated small milestones with him.  We cheered when he wiggled his right toe for the first time.  His sisters were with him to witness him holding his own coffee cup for the first time.  We silently cheered when he became more coordinated in the driving of his power wheelchair thus eliminating some of our nervous gasping as he drove too close to a wall or another object.  


Dad's sister cheers him on as he drinks his first cup of coffee on his own.


Out for a walk around the hospital grounds in late November.

In his final weeks at Craig Hospital he began pool therapy.  His nurses had told him all along that a patient often first feels the freedom of having their body back when they go into the pool.  Dad wrote on his CarePage that night that it was the best he had felt since October 24th. 


 Pool therapy at Craig Hospital

Perhaps the most celebrated victory before his discharge was seeing him standing up and taking a few steps during physical therapy. 


Standing in the parallel bars during physical therapy.

Dad went home on Friday, February 8th, 3 1/2 months after the fateful morning of his fall.  Life at home has been very difficult.  My Mom is responsible for all of his care and is worn ragged by the hard work.  They had to make some difficult decisions about modifying the home to make it wheelchair accessible.  Doorways were widened, a chair lift was installed on the stairs, a ramp was put in and a bathroom was gutted and completely remodled. 


First day home.

My Dad is a strong man.  He will work as hard as he possible can to recover as much as possible.  He simply won't accept living in a body that's not functioning.  This isn't to say he doesn't get discouraged.  My Mom told me that every morning when he gets out of bed he asks if he has to spend the day in a wheelchair again. 

It's now four and a half months since his injury.  Certainly a long time by many measures.  On the other hand he now has good control and coordination of his hands.  He goes to physical therapy 4 days a week where they immediately started work with him on standing and walking. 

Yesterday he walked 100 feet in his therapy session.  If he's already taking baby steps at just 4 1/2 months then I choose to believe that the sky is the limit on his ability to recover. 

Perhaps he'll run a marathon someday....