Category: 2023
-
Exploring STS-90 Neurolab Insights During an Alberta Clipper | Dec 1 – Dec 7 2024
12/1 Holy crap! MY RIGHT FOOT JUST STOMPED ON THE FLOOR! that was crazy! He is really trying to go! I just want to get up and stand up and move! Wow I really felt that and the shockwave through my body, that was intense! You know it really does feel like I’m kickstarting old…
-
Continued On My Journey – Progress & New Goals in My SCI Rehab Oct 27- Nov 3 2024
10/27 Wow! were my hips and quads tight last night and feeling the burn from yesterday!! I’m working on letting go of the hamstrings and hip flexors so that they will relax right now, and I wanted to use this time to help my mental imagery with this! Time for some research! So the research…
-
Sept 1st – Sept 7th 2024: “Bike Day!”
9/1 Okay, here goes another morning. It’s always a tricky time, making time for writing. I know how much it helps me, put all the ideas in place. It helps me so much. Especially when it comes to my legs! there’s so much changing down there, on the daily, it helps me make sense of…
-
July 28th – Aug 3rd 2024: “Your Body Adapts to The Demands You Place Upon It”
7/28 Goodness! This was an amazing weekend at GermanFest with the family! I had an absolutely amazing time! I am feeling so much in my legs right now! My quads and inner thighs are feeling very full right now! Also, when I was getting ready for bed, I realized that my feet and lower legs…
-
May 18th 2024 (Part One): “One Year. One Family.”
5/18 Wow. Just wow. This is just a bittersweet day. Not only have I had one of the craziest past years in my entire existence, it has simultaneously been one of the best and one of the worst years ever. I tried to explain my thoughts to Callie when I was laying awake in the…
-
Dec 24th – Dec 30th 2023: Another Christmas, Another UTI…
Dec 24th What’s crazy is going to church and seeing my mother. Seeing her hands, and thinking about what they signify. Like, I teared up just now just thinking about them. People go on a huge rant about god and what that means to them, but don’t see the amazing things that the ones around…
-
Dec 17th – Dec 23rd 2023: I’ll Be Home For Christmas!
Dec 17th Yep, there is a lot going on. Butt, legs, left ankle! Holy smokes the feeling of a deep burning is there How can I improve the signal from my brain and my legs? This is the real question I’m asking and working on! Dec 18th How do you think of help differently? If…
-
Dec 10th – Dec 16th: Asking For Help
Dec 11th What’s interesting, is the ability to ask for, and receive, help. This experience and this injury has given me the opportunity to truly understand what asking for help is like. By having to make yourself this vulnerable, it really forces us to acknowledge the fact that there are many things we can’t sometimes…
-
Dec 3rd – Dec 9th: Pep Talk
Dec 5 What’s interesting is realizing that the doctors originally said you had 21 health conditions that you suffered. What’s also interesting is knowing that the internet doesn’t have hardly any information on the exact nature of your injuries. So what I’ve been given is one of the most difficult assignments ever to try and…
-
Nov 26th – Dec 2nd 2023: First Week on My Own!
Nov 26th Definitely had some Mexican food!! Making chicken and dumplings tomorrow!! Nov 27th Wow, today I had both the new physical therapy and PM&R doctors appointments Nov 28th Woke up this morning feeling great! I got on my tum this morning and started to do some prone exercises! The are gonna be important for…
-
Nov 19th – Nov 25th 2023: If You Woke Up Paralyzed Tomorrow, What Would You Wish You’d Have Accomplished?
Nov 19th If you woke up tomorrow paralyzed from the neck down, what would you wish you’d have accomplished with your life? What’s wild is this question is kind of relevant, in the sense I’ve already thought about this….. but not the neck down, but the chest…. Does that change my answers? Let’s see…. It’s…
-
Nov 12th – Nov 18th: Spicy Sensations
Nov 12th Well I woke up feeling really good this morning! Not a bunch of nonsense in my tum, so I need to make sure I get up at a reasonable time. I need to order my backpack and those handrails… Okay so those are ordered, I’ll look at backpacks later! No worries there. I’m…
-
Nov 5th – Nov 11th 2023: The Black Cauldron
Nov 7th Well, how do you describe pain? Because that’s where I’m at right now…. Anyone I talk to in this household seriously has no understanding of pain or what I’m going thru. It’s extremely frustrating. This bed isn’t just “uncomfortable” but I laid awake for maybe 3hrs last night tossing and turning all spasmed…
-
Oct 29th – Nov 4th 2023: UTI’s and Train Rides
Nov 1st Today I have been feeling a lot better. I think it probably was a UTI…… but lots to do and think about! It’s been an incredible time for me thus far, and I don’t want that to stop. Still feeling kinda wonky and this trip has me fairly stressed….. it wasn’t the most…
-
October 22nd – 28th 2023: First Train Ride
Oct 22nd So, I had a pretty good start to this day! I’ve really been able to get myself up and out of bed on my own actually! And, not to mention….. I actually got my first shower in a house?!?! That was crazy! I can’t believe that happened! The only things I needed some…
-
October 20th 2023 – No Braces!
Oct 20th WOW THERAPY WAS FUCKING AMAZING! I’m really really really fucking happy right now!!! I was actually getting myself up to stand!!!! With no brace!!! No support but with the therapists!!! It was HARD! But i was doing it!!! I AM doing it!!!! I AM REALLY DOING IT!!! The therapists were really encouraging and…
-
October 19th 2023 – BFR
Oct 19th Another day another note! It’s really exciting to think about how the feeling of tingles and pins and needles is always changing! I feel like the backside and potentially the front side of my right leg is feeling “asleep” almost…. It’s kinda wild The pins and needles is changing day by day, and…
-
October 18th 2023 – Rest Day
Oct 18th I didn’t get a chance to take notes in the morning, which is okay. I’m glad I’m getting to it still and before I lay down! I had a pretty relaxing day. Didn’t do much to stress myself out, or try to do too much work. I think it’s important I take days…
-
October 17th 2023 – Hip Dip
Oct 17th Huh 🤔 I feel wild after getting dry needled again, this was wild, my left and right hips and sides really do feel more inline, and I feel the pressure of my right butt cheek too…. I felt the hips release and in my lower back, which is really interesting as well! I’m…
-
October 16th 2023 – Dry Needling
Oct 16th I got dry needled today! It’s a pretty wild time, because it always is a pretty relaxing time. I have to shimmy about and get on my tum, and I get a bunch of needles stuck in me, which is really cool, because I think it’s actually helping! It’s wild to think that…
-
October 15th 2023 – Slow n’ Steady
Oct 15th Waking up today I really am feeling grateful. Had quite the day out and about yesterday with the madre, and it’s been great trying to get her out of the house! It’s really good for me too, if we are being honest.. What I’ve been noticing is that if I lay on my…
-
October 14th 2023 – Planks
Oct 14th Well I got to wake up in the morning and discuss some of the changes in real time! Which was super cool! The pins and needles was only around my ankles and down! And the feeling of fullness was really there on my right calf! I was able to get on my tum…
-
October 13th 2023 – Chick-Fil-A
Oct 13th So I had a longgggg night rest last night! This was a wild one, to say the least! I probably fell asleep around 8 o’clock, so this was around 12hrs of sleeping…… I noticed that the change in my leg sensation now is that I feel the weight of my legs now actually,…
-
October 12th 2023 – Reflections
Oct 12th So, this morning I had the opportunity to wake up extremely restful, and not in a ton of pain! I do always still feel my ribs, and yesterday I did need a pain pill to help manage that for me. I haven’t taken a pain pill in quite some time, so it’s good…
-
October 11th 2023 – Pulse
Oct 11th Well I feel better and better when I get in up the morning! Long gone are the restless and sleepless nights. I finally feel like I can keep the uncomfortableness under control and at bay. I spent this morning really feeling my body. I do it every morning when I wake up but…
-
October 10th 2023 – Independence List
Oct 10th Wow, things really have been able to change and get back in control! The tingling and buzzin that was so prevalent yesterday is no longer there! But has been replaced by a fullness, tightness, and awareness that my legs are really there! Instead of my entire injury section buzzing uncontrollably, my abs have…
-
October 9th 2023 – Focus
Oct 9th So when I wake up in the morning a choose to take an opportunity to talk thru my thoughts, it is a way for me to gather them as well. Something I have Learned is that it isn’t quite as common as I may think, to have so many thoughts running thru my…
-
October 8th 2023 – Emotions
Oct 8th When I think about this journey, I really have been able to wake up with a sense of optimism. I have a lot to get back to! So much to do and see! I have a life to rebuild! What’s been wild too is noticing how I’m feeling, the different emotions I’m feeling,…
-
October 7th 2023 – Encapsulation
Oct 7th Have more courage to take your own shits in life. That quote almost brought me to tears reading that from a fellow who has overcome such a significant amount of adversity. I really am doing that personally myself. And it’s hard. And I want and need to remember why I’m trying to do…
-
October 6th 2023 – Hips Don’t Lie for this SCI
Oct 6th I did have an okay nights rest tonite! Waking up and trying to understand all of the news for the day! What has truly been interesting is realizing that my mid section, abdomen, obliques, and lower back are truly there. They really are all firing, even though they may tire quickly! I do…
-
October 5th 2023 – “Balance – what’s it do to an SCI?”
Oct 5th The amount of sensation in my mid section, my tum, and organs is on fire this morning! There is so much activity it’s really hard to concentrate, really! I had a thought about the sense of “balance” this past night, and would like to explore that. I realized that when I was working…
-
October 4th 2023 – “Does the Real Jim Carey Exist”
Oct 4th What is interesting, is I’ve been having a “slow down” of the spasms and an increase of fullness, tightness, and tingling sensation in both legs! I feel these changes happening each day as I wake up. The tightness in my hips and the calming down of my stomach and abdomen makes the days…
-
October 3rd 2023 – Reese’s Puffs
Oct 3rd Well, for all the great progress updates, it’s hard to leave out when I’m feeling so bad. I’ve had a pretty good stretch of not feeling so crappy, but this morning and during the night reminded me a lot of the earlier days, when my ribs were a lot more tender. Usually I…
-
October 2nd 2023 – Car Ride
Oct 2nd So the urge to have to go in the morning, paired with a more powerful stream while I straight cath all indicate to me that changes are happening down there!! There’s also been quite the stir down there as well, which I definitely feel in association with this most recent activity, any change…
-
October 1st 2023 – Moving
Oct 1st So I woke up this morning feeling more and more in the legs! The sensations are continually changing to a more “normal” feeling and I notice how tired and tight more and more muscles are! Unfortunately I’m not able to be “up” for endless hours, but nobody is! And that’s okay. The amount…
-
September 30th 2023 – John’s House
Sept 30th Today I had quite the day, being out and about for the whole day and for the first time going over to John’s house! I had gotten Max a super goofy dog toy, went to the orchard, and then grabbed a slice of pizza and headed over there with the Schmule! The weather…
-
September 29th 2023 – Look Ma, No Hands!
Sept 29th Each day that passes I’m able to get more sound of sleep, and deeper and fuller rest! I really am feeling and sensing more into my legs! Last night, I was truly feeling full and very uneasy from the full bladder and bowel, that was an experience on the drive home, I was…
-
September 28th 2023 – Inspiration
Sept 28th Today was a good morning of actual restfulness. Going from full nights of fighting to try to stay asleep, I have actually been able to sleep fully thru the night, and I slept in a bit more than usual!! What’s been most interesting is waking up legitimately feeling refreshed. It’s been invigorating! Looking…
-
September 27th – “Feeling This – Nice Try SCI”
Sept 27th What’s truly interesting is how my body does feel differently from day to day. Yesterday I may have truly felt the sensation of having my legs there, for like, all day. They are truly there. It’s hard sometimes getting my thoughts out, all the time. For some days I’m really motivated, and today…
-
September 26th 2023 – Hero Squats
Sept 26th So the feeling of fullness and warmth, like blood flowing to these parts of my body is growing! My right glute and hip is truly feeling more than it ever has this past night! By even the slightest movement in my hips or left quad, I can feel it in my right hip…
-
September 25th 2023 – Shower Time
Sept 25 Sooo today, my abdomen and the spasms have really been cut down! They aren’t as pervasive and persistent as they once were! Like, the right and left side of the abdomen are actually all there! And it doesn’t feel like a sheet of “spasm” has covered them, either. I didn’t use the slide…
-
September 24th 2023 – Wake Up!
Sept 24th Well, it’s a Sunday, and I had the chance to get up and go earlier than I usually do, which has left me more comfortable than I have been in a bit. Last night generated some of the most exciting movements and feelings in my legs to-date! These are still present and happening!…
-
September 23rd 2023 – The Snow Pant
Sept 23rd Need to look up muscle activation while running and biking to get those images of the muscles being activated in my head! I’m already trying to do that, but it will only help! So today I would describe the way my legs feel as being in a warm snow pant. Like my right…
-
September 22nd 2023 – Proprioception
Sept 22nd Proprioception- this is what I’m trying to describe and talk about! This is going to take some time to develop and progress thru!!
-
September 21st 2023 – The Salazar
Sept 21st So waking up this morning, and laying flat on my back, has produced more sensations than I have felt to date. The consciousness and awareness when I cannot actually see my legs is truly there for both of my legs. The senses are truly there on both sides, albeit slightly different, with different…
-
September 19th 2023 – Metal Rods
So, yesterday marked the 4 month mark of the accident. Which is tough to realize. But at the same time, it does feel really good to have made as much progress as I have! And still am! So that’s reassuring!! It’s a lot of work, but envisioning myself walking, in a new future self, is…
-
September 18th 2023 – Straight Leg
So today I did the “straight leg” and “knee tuck” exercises and when I was doing the “knee tucks” my legs were moving so much!! It was honestly incredible! Like, both of my legs were moving “on command” to me trying to bring them to my chest! In the car, the pins and needles feeling…
-
September 17th 2023 – Stand Tall
So this morning, I took the opportunity to do some leg thrusts, and some knee raises while I was laying down. It was part of my meditation, sensing and feeling in tune with my body. And what I did I’m going to continue to do! It was wild because I have some sensation most of…
-
September 16th 2023 – First Case of The Munchie’s
So this morning the feeling in my hips and butt are getting intense! There are so much more of them! I actually got on all fours, and got my hips rocking around side to side, and back and forth! I know this is a long journey, but I’m doing new things everyday! Sometimes the long…
-
September 15th 2023 – Pants Down!
So my legs are feeling a fullness to them they haven’t noticed before, and the heat generated within them is significant! New bed topper and I am not chilly when I woke up!! When I wiggle my hips, I can feel in my groin, and down my butt a bit too! The muscle control in…
-
September 14th 2023 – Tired
Soooo my legs are legitimately super tired!!! I can feel that in my quads and hamstrings, and in my calves!!! Working on my independence list and I have a few things I still need to do before I can go to Milwaukee…
-
September 8th 2023 – Wrapped
So the pins and needles feeling is getting more present in my left leg! It changes with the position that I’m laying on too, with the back feeling the “worst” and my tum being the most “fuzzy” The feeling going up my right leg is immense, my right foot last night actually felt as tho…
-
September 7th 2023 – Goosebumps
Goosebumps on my left leg while I’m actually cold?!?! The tingles are back in full force, especially after therapy! Therapy went really well! I was doing sit-to-stands to wasn’t getting a ton of help from the therapists! The slide board transfers are always fun when I’m completely whooped from therapy!
-
September 6th 2023 – Healing Scar
The “pins and needles” feeling is changing, it’s more like a “warm and fuzzy” feeling and much less uncomfortable….. Right lower leg is feeling almost like the whole thing is wrapped, or i can feel all the way around it! My right ankle is feeling much more, as is my right foot!! I can definitely…
-
Getting Weight Bearing for SCI Rehabilitation | Aug 27 – Sep 2 2023
Tall kneeling – new books – new ideas – my pup I miss so much. Simple joys in life help make it all worth living.
-
August 30th 2023 – Where the Notes Began
Aug 30th: sensation in my right leg is off the charts, the bottom of my foot, my toes, inside my toes, ankle, shin and calf, hamstring, groin, glute to name it on the right! My left leg is getting sensation back in the left shin/ calf area Is my lower back getting more feeling Is…
-
Blood Flow Restriction (BFR) Therapy for SCI Rehab | Aug 20 – 26 2023
BFR & Back To School!
-
Standing Frame Tolerance for SCI Health & Wellness | Aug 13 – 19 2023
Getting up in the standing frame, trying my hand at the guitar with bruised ribs. Trying to actually sleep again.
-
More Tossing & Turning – Therapy for SCI Recovery | Aug 6 – 12 2023
Getting in the swing of PT & trying to figure it all out
-
“We did it” Moving Forward from SCI Injury for Recovery | July 30 – Aug 5 2023
Better connections for Stim Pads? Getting outside? Try to do that more!
-
Back In Therapy for Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation | July 23 – 29 2023
First week back in Michigan and started at The Recovery Project! What a great name for what I’m working on!
-
Back In The Hospital | July 16 – 22 2023
Back in the hospital after only being home for 5 days.
-
First Week Home | July 9 – 15 2023
Back in town, reunited with Max. Trying to figure it all out.
-
-
Accident + ICU: Jake’s Perspective
8/31/25 Joe – Where were you when you found out about the accident? It was Thursday, May 18. I was working in Olivet, Michigan, across from the college, on a job with Mitch, Hank, and Mike O. I got a call from Jessica saying you’d been in an accident. I phoned Dad right away, but…
-
Accident + ICU: Jessie’s Perspective
So I wanted to ask my siblings their perspective from this whole ordeal and accident. It’s been a lot to take in by myself, and what Jess has told me was definitely something to stir up quite the emotions. I love my family so much! I am glad to have gotten their accounts thru this…
-
Accident + ICU: Laura’s Perspective
My sister, Laura’s Account. Laura’s my immediate older sister, 2yrs older than me. We’re pretty dang close. This is all written from her perspective. Reading and editing this made me cry more times than I’d like to share. Thank you Laura for sharing. First reactions / where were you? “Like, Where were you? When you…
-
Procedure List
So, This is kinda a doozy too. I am not sure if anyone had a chance to read my injury list, but this one is also alot to take in. If you are one of the faint of heart, I totally understand if you stop reading now. One of the hardest things that I have…
-
-
Injury List
So, what you’re about to read took me a couple of weeks after my accident for me to finally get a brief list from my doctors. It was surreal, lying in the hospital, waking up one day, and wondering, “what the heck happened to me? and why can’t I feel my legs?” also, “why am…
-
About Me
I’m a 30 yr old from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I was in a horrific motorcycle accident, and this is my journey back to living. I’m working on my legs, my core, my central nervous system (ANS) one day at a time. This journey has been incredibly arduous. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone, and it’s incredible…
The Astronaut on Earth 