I started therapy in Orlando!! Prayers are still needed!

Its Tuesday night and I had a great day of therapy today. I went to Lucerne Hospital and Rehab in Orlando where I had my first session of physical and occupational therapy. The people there were really great. I spent my session walking in my braces. They let me try out a new walker and it made walking so much easier. Its more stable under my hands and not as wobbly as the one I have at home. I literally took off walking making a couple laps in the therapy gym. They were impressed by my hip strength and the strides that I was making. My strides actually were normal distance. I still do not have my knees and ankles yet to walk without braces. My walking is still a work in progress. I am by no means just getting up and taking off with them. Getting up from the chair with the braces on is still something I struggle with but I am currently working on my SIT TO STAND with my most amazing therapist who comes to my home. There is NO DOUBT the progress I have made has been due in part from God's gracious healing hands on my body and the dedication and persistence of my therapist and her husband who comes to my home every week!
On Monday, I gave a treat to everyone who came to my house for my weekly "GAME NIGHT" by putting on a walking demonstration! Im not going to lie it was kind of nerve racking with 10 people looking on in my drive way as I walked. Talk about performance pressure! HAHA! I usually walk at night to avoid human contact so they wont see me struggling to walk! I also walk outside because there are LESS obstacles than in my house. TURNING IS HARD so I try to stay away from objects in my path! haha. I can walk in a straight line like a champ but I am working on the whole "turning" thing! Turning is over rated anyways! Once I start walking....ITS STRAIGHT LINES FOR ME!! ha! Seriously though I am getting better at walking. Its going to take lots of patience, determination and practice.
I want everyone to know that I have not and WILL NOT give up on my ultimate goal of complete healing. I am still rather new in this injury and since I am an INCOMPLETE the sky is the limit on my healing! In order to walk "normally" again and without assistance I will need more return in my legs. My knees and ankles as well as better balance in my hips and gluts. Prayer is the ONLY thing that works....the ONLY THING!! The story in the bible that keeps me motivated and has been a source of strength throughout my long journey of recovery has been Matthew Chapter 8 vs 5-13. Faith can do SO MUCH!! Faith can work miracles. My recovery has already been a miracle but I must not give up now. I must not loose faith! I have to keep pushing on towards my goal.
In the past few days I have been literally blown away by people I hear reading this blog regularly! I CANT BELIEVE IT!! I thought for sure that over time the numbers would drop off, but I hear from friends who I haven't seen in YEARS saying they read my blog everyday!! WOW! I am so lucky to have the support of so many. Each and every prayer that you say on my behalf gets me that much closer to healing and walking. It can happen and it will if we have faith in God's healing power! The moment we doubt the power of God and give into the quote "medical facts" is when we loose our focus and faith! We can not doubt, we must believe and pray to God for miracles. If we cry out to him, he will hear us! Thank you all so very much for your continued support and prayers!! My victory is YOUR victory! My progress is because you believed and prayed for me. I WILL BEAT THIS THING, I WONT LET IT BEAT ME!
I LOVE YOU ALL SO VERY MUCH, you are all my brothers and sisters in Christ!
SO MUCH IN HIM,
BRENT

Slowly Making Progress...still having some pain!

Yesterday I went to Orlando and the Lucerne Hospital. The reason for my visit was to be evaluated for Physical Therapy. The Shepherd Center in Atlanta wanted me to continue my rehab so they set up for me to start rehab in Orlando and do outpatient a few times a week. The therapist was blown away by what she was able to see in my legs. She noticed some aductors and abductors (these are muscles on the inside and outside of your hips). She also noticed hip flexors and also glut muscles (butt muscles). She laid me on my side and worked on my legs. I was able to pull my legs back and forth so quickly she couldn't hold onto my legs. She was excited by what she saw and was anxious to work with me.
I am still working out everyday at home and with a physical therapist who comes to my house with her husband several times a week and works me out. My therapist has been a true blessings from God. She is a friend of our families and is very familiar with spinal cord injuries. There is NO DOUBT I would not be where I am today without her help. Between God healing my body and my therapists I have been making wonderful progress. I work on walking everyday with my braces and walker. I am walking further each and every time and with fewer breaks in between. I remember when I first started walking at Shepherd I would take two steps and stop and rest. After an hour I was able to go just a few feet. Since working out everyday at home I have been able to walk out my front door around my sidewalk and up and back down the driveway. I am still slow but my endurance and distance have gone further each and every time.
PLEASE keep praying for my return in my legs. My support group is astonishing. The therapist who evaluated me wanted to know what kind of equipment I had at home. She was blown away by my personal workout gym and my equipment. She asked me, "how in the world did you get all that equipment?" To which my reply was, "I am blessed to have so many people who love me!" That statement is completely true. My support group is beyond anything I could ever imagine. I have thousands of people who pray for me everyday! Your prayers and support are giving me the encouragement to press forward. God is blessing me through your prayers and I KNOW that I will be a tool for him to be glorified.
I ask for everyone to please pray for my shoulder as well. For awhile now my shoulder has been causing me a lot of pain. In time I will need a replacement but my doctor wants to wait until I am older based on the shelf life of shoulders. My doctor was forced to reconstruct my shoulder even though it needed to be replaced. Shoulders only last about 15 years until they need to be replaced. after the second replacement I may not have enough bone mass for the third. They recommend not replacing a shoulder until you are in your 50's. Being that I am 26 my surgeon wanted to reconstruct the shoulder limiting my movement and giving me increased pain. However, if he has replaced it I may not be able to have a shoulder once I was in my 50's. I ask everyone to pray for the doctors to make the right decision on my shoulder. I may possibly need to have the screws and plate removed.
I MUST GIVE THIS ALL TO GOD!!! HE HAS BLESSED ME BEYOND MEASURE!! THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR PRAYERS!! I NEED THEM DESPERATELY!!
I LOVE YOU ALL,
SO MUCH IN HIM!
BRENT

Thank you for your prayers....they are working!

It's Monday night and I wanted to write a post telling everyone just how much God has blessed me. If anyone ever questions the power of prayer I am living proof that it works! Two of my old babysitters when I was a child came to visit me recently with their families. They wanted their children to meet me since they pray for me daily. Every night before they go to bed I am in their prayers and I know God hears prayers.....especially the prayers of children.
The ONLY hope I have of getting better is through God. He is the only one with the power to heal my body. Since my accident the prayers that have gone up on my behalf has given me the healing I have experienced lately. I am so encouraged and uplifted by all the stories I hear of people following this blog daily. It really touches my heart to know that I can make a difference. I honestly don't feel like I have done anything really. My healing has been to glorify God, it is NOTHING that I am personally doing. I am committed to working out daily and getting stronger. My therapy sessions are going wonderful. I have made great progress in recent weeks. In my last therapy session with my PT I was able to move my ankle down. I would sit on the edge of my mat with my feet on the floor. My therapist would lift my toes and foot up and I was able to push my foot back to the ground. My therapist was feeling movement in my feet when I would push them down. PRAYER WORKS!!
I have NO DOUBT that I am on the road to recovery. This will be a very long process. I do not want people to think that I am just weeks or months away from walking. This journey may take years, but I am making progress EVERY WEEK! My body is slowly changing and I am experiencing new sensations everyday. The prayers will always be the number one thing I request. Some of the top Spinal Cord doctors in the U.S. have done all they can do. I MUST rely on God and BELIEVE in him without DOUBT that he can heal my body. I know that miracles happen today. I always look back to my first few months of my accident and look at the progress I have made and it reconfirms my faith in miracles. Please do not give up on me, pray without ceasing and we will see a miracle. I know that I have been called to spread the word of this miracle to others and I can not wait to share what God has done for me! PLEASE CONTINUE PRAYING FOR ME!!! Share this blog with your friends and family so that God can be glorified through the miracle he is working in my life!
I LOVE YOU ALL,
SO MUCH IN HIM!
BRENT

Please keep me before God!!

It is time for yet another post of my recovery and progress. It has been a week since I returned from my trip in Atlanta. My therapy there was wonderful and I have seen many positive results from my time at Shepherd. Now comes the next phase of my therapy which I will be doing at home until my next session at Shepherd. I have signed up for Beyond Therapy which is a very intense research project at the center. I will be using new equipment and strenuous physical therapy. The results from Beyond Therapy have been very positive with everyone who has been a part of the research. I am looking forward to getting back to Atlanta and really pushing myself in the Beyond Therapy research project. However, I still need more return! My legs are slowly getting more and more feeling back in them and I am noticing vague movements in my feet and toes. The movement fades on me pretty quickly but there is something getting through. I need prayers to make the connections in my body stronger.
I have been in absolute AWE of the support I have gotten from so many of you reading my blog and following it regularly. It really touches me to know that I have so many prayers on my behalf. Everyday I meet new people who tell me that they have been reading my blog and following my progress. I know many of you do not comment but follow the blog weekly and most of you DAILY! My prayer is that everyone will be uplifted by my experiences and that you can use this blog to hopefully help you out in your daily walk!
Maybe, this was the purpose for my accident? Maybe, there is a reason this is all happening to me? I do not know why things happen but I DO know that God can take every situation and use it to glorify him and THAT is what I am trying to do with this blog. I want everyone to see the blessings in my life and not look at the tragedy of this accident. Yes, it is true that what has happened to me was terrible, but I will overcome it. I would not wish this injury on anyone and I pray that NO ONE has to go through it.
God blesses those who believe in him and have faith. I have NEVER wavered from my belief that I WILL get better. I have to give this entire injury over to God and allow him to work in my life. The response this blog has gotten is due only to God! I need prayers everyday in order to overcome this injury. My progress so far has been amazing. I will never stop working until I walk again. Even so I realize there is only so much I can do. I must have the healing hand of God to touch my legs in order to make me whole again. I have NO DOUBT that healing will happen. Thank you so much for your prayers! I am blessed that I am not doing this alone! My Christian brothers and sisters are always supporting me with your prayers. I would humbly ask that when you go to bed that you say a special prayer for me and my healing.
I also request continued prayers for my friend Jennifer. She is in her last week at Shepherds and will be returning to Little Rock next week. She too has seen recovery in her accident and I know that one day we will both walk again!! Please keep Jennifer Goodwin in your prayers as she battles with her injury.
I LOVE YOU ALL!!
SO MUCH IN HIM,
BRENT!