The Story

This is a blog designed to keep my family and friends up to date with my recovery in therapy and life. For those that don't know, I was is a terrible snowboarding accident on March 4, 2010. I was traveling down a trail with my brother-in-law Casey. We were going fast, but weren't out of control. Due to the time of the day, there was what they call " a white out effect", that's when a person has a hard time noticing some elevation changes in the snow. Unfortunately for me, when I reached the point in the trail where it merged with another trail, there was a bad drop off. By the time I realized this it was too late. I sailed off of the drop and was about 15-20ft. in the air before I landed on my tailbone in the hard packed snow. My legs instantly went numb and I was having a very hard time breathing. Casey rushed to me and all I could say was " I just paralyzed myself, go get help!". I was air lifted to Loma Linda Hospital and after hours of test they found that I had shattered my T12 vertebrate. I was put into surgery for 4 hours and received a titanium cage, rods, screws and other materials to rebuild my spine. During the injury my spinal cord was compressed and the broken pieces from the vertebrate actually punctured my spinal cord. After a few days in the ICU, I started to get feeling on the top of my thighs, knees and front of my shins. This was amazing because initially the doctors didn't expect me to regain much, if any , feeling or movement in my legs. I spent 8 days recovering in the ICU before I was transferred to Long Beach Memorial Rehab Center. I spent 2 weeks recovering there, as well as receiving great therapy. I progressed so well that I was actually discharged a week early. Next, I researched outpatient therapy centers and found Precision Rehabilitation in Long Beach. Lucky for me their gym is close and has some of the most qualified therapist in the country. That's the story and the rest will be posted here for you all to enjoy.

As you all can imagine, this has been a terrorizing experience. If it wasn't for the strong support of my family and friends, I know without a doubt, I wouldn't be able to get through this. I strongly look forward to getting back on my feet, so that I can enjoy everyday with my beautiful wife and wonderful boys.


Thursday, August 4, 2011

August 4

We went on a nice vacation with my family last week to Lake Nacimiento. The weather was nice and we had a great time. The water level of the lake was at its highest since 1986 and the lake looked amazing. I am so excited to tell you that I was able to wakeboard while we were there. I'm sorry for those of you who weren't able to hear the news from me. I couldn't wait to tell everyone, but I was waiting to get the video ready for you all to see. For those of you who didn't know, wakeboarding was the only hobby of mine that I loved to do. I would have done it everyday if I could have. I remember laying in the hospital bed, after I was hurt, dreaming of the day that I would ride again. Naturally, that was when I was too stubborn to think that I may never walk again. As time has passed I've realized that I'll never ride like I did before, but I've been hopeful that I could at least get up. My goal was to ride at the lake and I did! It felt amazing to actually do it. I must say, sitting on the back of the boat before I hopped in the water, the butterflies were definitely in my stomach. The first try, I didn't come close and I felt like my dream was being shattered. The second try, I almost stood up and I could smell success. The third try was similar to the second. Then, the fourth try, SUCCESS! I rode for 2 minutes straight and then I had to drop the rope because we were in a tight area. In the boat I couldn't wipe the smile from my face. I did it again the day before we left and had a couple crashes. I'm looking forward to doing it again in the near future. I'm having a problem getting the video from the first day to work, but here's a video from the second time. If I get the first video to work I'll post it here. Thank you all for your continuous support and Keep Marching!
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