Becoming my own success story!

At only 30 years old, Sean R. experienced a life changing event due to a significant fall and near drowning episode resulting in an incomplete spinal cord injury with paraplegia.

“Several weeks prior to starting therapy with Rehab Without Walls, I decided to call a family friend, who many years earlier had experienced a skiing accident and was tragically paralyzed. He had since redefined his life with quadriplegia and was thriving. He fore warned me that the most difficult time he had during his ordeal was returning home for the first time. Learning how to access your own home, learning a new schedule, and finding a new routine. Above all, finding ways to stay productive, maintain a sense of purpose, and the biggest challenge of all, learning how to be alone.

What was once my oasis, my own home, was now an unfamiliar, perhaps even a hostile environment. I was certainly not prepared to take on more change, especially any that would leave me without guardrails or safety nets. At least, that is what I thought and indeed what I braced for, until I started with RWW.
I have read many success stories in my life; however, I have never exactly starred in one, at least, not until I started therapy with RWW. Without sharing just how much my life had changed after my injury, without fully expressing how impactful and difficult this journey has been, I would not be able to properly articulate just how important they have been to my recovery.

Simply put, if it had not been for my therapists, I would not have my life back the way I do today. My story would be many things, no doubt, but it wouldn’t be like the other success stories I have read about. But because of RWW, I am a success story and for that I am forever grateful!

Each week, my physical therapist Kacey and occupational therapist Christine teamed together and formulated a plan so I could accomplish all my goals and they did so with the utmost professionalism and care for my wellbeing.

Whether it was at the gym, the grocery store, the hardware store, to the staircase, or the dock where I learned to transfer from my chair, into a dinghy, row out to my boat, and even operate it and return safely. The balance of this well-rounded team provided me with support at every angle – physically, practically, and mentally.

To no surprise, my social worker Courtney, brought valuable skills and care to my recovery. Each week we met she would present new pathways for me to process my injury, organize my thoughts, and see the broader picture surrounding my injury. Each session left me with a stronger vision of my recovery, a sense of security, and new tools to process my stress and thoughts.

Coupled with Kacey’s focus on how I rebuild strength and regain motion, Christine’s focus on how I navigate my home and community, and Courtney’s focus on how I process thoughts and emotions; the final piece of this puzzle helped complete my care strategy. Each facet of my team was critical to my recovery. True to RWW’s business model, I went from feeling like a ‘weakened hospital patient’ to a fully functional, community ambulator, motivated and driven.

Rehab Without Walls hires incredible talent, my therapy team has been critical to my recovery. I would not have been able to accomplish even a fraction of my goals had it not been for the personal care and touch of Christine, Kacey, Courtney, Kirsten, Tatjana, and Rachel. Each one of these therapists is one hundred and ten percent dedicated to the wellbeing and recovery of their patients, and I will remember each of them forever.

I look forward to continuing this journey on my own and wearing my experience with Rehab Without Walls as a badge of honor as I continue to make strides. Despite the changes my injury has brought about, for the first time I’m in a place where I can change things back to where they were before my injury.” – Sean R., Patient