Spinal cord injury

“Not Without God: Hope In the Storm!”✨📖♥️

Here is the link to my Facebook live I just did this evening with an excerpt from my latest book, Not Without God: Hope In the Storm! ♥️🙏☦️

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=754441265847157&id=1514758298

About Zina

Zina Hermez has authored the best-selling book, Not Without God: A Story of Survival. She’s been featured in numerous articles, guest posts, podcasts, websites, newsletters, and magazines. She’s recently been featured on the Intuitive Edge podcast! She’s also been on ESPN’s “Solutions from the Huddle” broadcast and on Grace and Truth Radio World! Zina’s written several hundred articles and has taught thousands of students of all ages from many different backgrounds and cultures. She’s appeared in Christianity Today, the Suite T blog, and the Southern Writers magazine among other places. She writes on faith, science, and overcoming adversity. She also writes on health and diet and loves to help others. Her latest book, Not Without God: Hope In the Storm is live and for sale! You can order your copy here: https://www.amazon.com/Not-Without-God-Hope-Storm-ebook/dp/B09P9T2DLT

The Intuitive Edge Podcast Interview!🎙🔊✨

The interview today was fantastic. Victoria even suggested that my story could be made into a Hallmark movie! She said I probably have healing capabilities and that she thinks I could one day walk without crutches!🔊💻🕊️✨ #intuitive #edge #podcast #interview #god #notwithoutgod #astoryofsurvival #hopeinthestorm #author #speaker #writerlife 😃🎙💖

CLICK ON THIS LINK TO WATCH my ‘wind down,’ recap!🔊💻 https://www.facebook.com/zina.hermez.7/videos/1049661458973279/?d=n

About Zina

Zina Hermez has authored the best selling book, Not Without God: A Story of Survival. She’s been featured in numerous articles, guest posts, podcasts, websites, newsletters, and magazines. She’s been featured on ESPN’s ‘Solutions from the Huddle’ and on Grace and Truth Radio World. Zina’s written several hundred articles and has taught thousands of students from all over the world from many different backgrounds and cultures. She’s appeared in Christianity Today, the Suite T blog, and the Southern Writers magazine among other places. She writes on faith, science, and overcoming adversity. She also writes on health and diet and loves to help others. Her latest book, Not Without God: Hope In the Storm is live and for sale! You can order your copy here: https://www.amazon.com/Not-Without-God-Hope-Storm-ebook/dp/B09P9T2DLT

Elon Musk, Part 6

Neurons relay messages from the outside environment. They give information to the body. When neurons have been damaged or disrupted, the messages to the body can also be damaged or disrupted. Elon Musk has been working tirelessly for the last few years to prevent or solve this issue (that causes severe brain disease such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, for example) and other diseases as well as injury to the brain/body through car accidents, etc. His company, Neuralink, will solve an array of brain problems (diseases) through his new technology (brain chip) that will be inserted via Artificial Intelligence.

Sound like a big deal? Yea, it will be an outpatient surgery. It will last less than 2 hours! Sounds unbelievable to me! But this is a real technology that will solve many health problems in the upcoming years. Elon Musk says, If you’ve had cancer or heard disease you are likely to suffer from Alzheimer’s. Or someone close to you will. Unless we have a brain machine interface (chip), many people will continue to suffer. There is an incredible amount we can do to solve brain disorders, Musk continues. It won’t happen overnight. You will know it is coming. I believe they have even received FDA approval earlier this year and have inserted a dozen chips into the brain so far.

Neurons communicate through synapses and get input that causes an “action potential” to fire and the neuron relays messages to its own synapses. They will place “electrodes” nearby through a very tiny threading system. You see, everything comes to you through an electrical signal. We are just a brain in a vat. The vat is our skull. Everything you perceive, feel, hear and think are all action potentials, or “neurospikes” it feels very “real” but these are ALL impulses from Neurons.

Here is the link to Elon’s full Neuralink Launch event if you’re interested in watching it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-vbh3t7WVI I hope you enjoy it!

About Zina

Zina Hermez has authored Not Without God: A Story of Survival. She’s been featured in numerous articles, guest posts, podcasts, websites, newsletters, and magazines. Recently she was featured on ESPN’s ‘Solutions from the Huddle’ broadcast and on Grace and Truth Radio World. Zina’s written hundreds of articles and has taught thousands of students. Additionally she’s appeared in Christianity Today, the Suite T blog, and Southern Writers magazine. She writes on faith, science, and overcoming adversity. Lately she has been offering food services and is a major foodie! She loves to help others. You can also connect with her on Instagram, Facebook, Linked In, or Twitter.

Elon Musk, Part 3🧠⚕️🤖

Today I thought I’d write again on Elon Musk and Neuralink because ever since I learned about it I am just fascinated. Not only is Musk interested in resolving sustainable energy, but he works at that tirelessly. And his awesome Neuralink Corporation is a neurotechnology company developing implantable brain–machine interfaces founded by him and others.

The company’s headquarters are in San Francisco sharing offices with OpenAI. Neuralink was recently launched in 2016 and first publicly reported in March 2017. It had received $158 million in funding (of which $100 million was from ‘Musk,’ or ELON MUSK himself). It was employing a staff of 90 people including the top neuroscientists in the world!🌍

At that time, Neuralink announced that it was working on a “sewing machine-like” device capable of implanting very thin threads into the brain, and demonstrated a system that read information from a lab rat via 1,500 electrodes. They had anticipated starting experiments with humans in 2020; but have since moved that projection to 2021. Musk says he will initiate human trials by the end of this year.

There is a very low potential for rejection and the implant is not more serious than receiving a heart monitor or hip replacement, for example. There actually are people who have primitive devices in their brains now. People with deep brain stimulation with Parkinson’s Disease, for example, already have a ‘chip.’ So it is already happening on some level, and it has improved their lives!

Not only is Elon getting rockets to the moon through Space X; he’s also the CEO of Telsa. He says that a Tesla is the most fun thing anyone could ever have!😄 But back to Neuralink. The main purpose of it is to cure or atleast make the quality of life better for people with brain injuries or disease that is caused by the brain.

Diseases like Alzheimer’s, Epilepsy, and a number of others will be cured. Injuries like Spinal cord injuries will be healed and having a spinal injury one day will be comparable to catching the common cold. It will be curable.👏

The threads will be implanted into the skull and become flush with the skull. So no one will know. It will more than likely be AI who inserts the threads (because they never mess up!)🤖 And you wouldn’t even know that someone has had it done.

It could return eyesight and restore memory and solve hearing issues. It could alleviate the effects of almost anything that is WRONG with the brain. It could restore limb function (back to curing the spinal cord)!

Believe it! With God ALL things are possible. The greatest physicists in the world even say that in an “eternal universe anything can happen.” This universe is eternal. It is comprised of rebirth after rebirth and it never ends.

We are living in a cosmic bubble bath of universe(s), or ‘Big events,’ actually. I refuse to say ’Big Bang’ because when a universe is born there is no noise or bang. In the beginning God said, ’Let there be light.’ There was light!✨

In this cosmic bubble bath comprised of more than 100,000,000 galaxies (or star systems) that we know of so far, why wouldn’t God create a Neuralink? Why wouldn’t God create an Elon Musk? Yes. People. And it doesn’t have to be the “chip” that comprises the “end of the world” that many of you falsely believe we are heading towards.

It is only around 2,000 AD. We are not even close! Open your mind. There will be the year 5,000, 10,000, and 20,0000 AD, maybe even 500,000, etc. This is not even the beginning. Michio Kaku, a world renowned physicist says that weddings will take place on the moon🌛 in 5,000,000 years!

We are a new planet. Think Star Wars. You never know with all this space exploration. Elon also says the end goal is to travel from planet to planet–think space civilization!🪐🌏✨🌙⚕️🤖🌏🌟

About Zina

Zina Hermez authored the best selling book, Not Without God: A Story of Survival. She’s been featured in numerous articles, guest posts, podcasts, websites, newsletters, and magazines. Recently she was featured on ESPN’s ‘Solutions from the Huddle’ broadcast and on Grace and Truth Radio World. Zina’s written hundreds of articles and has taught thousands of students from all over the world spanning many different backgrounds and cultures. She’s appeared in Christianity Today, the Suite T blog and Southern Writers magazine among other places. She writes on faith, science, and overcoming adversity. She has recently launched food services and is a major foodie! She loves to help others. You can connect with her on Instagram, Facebook, Linked In, or Twitter.

Elon Musk, Part 2🚀💻🤖

I think this is the single best scientific YouTube interview I have ever watched! And I have watched many! Elon is brilliant and the more I listen to him the more I learn. He says AI (Artificial Intelligence) in the future could be used as a weapon (that’s scary); however, AI will continue to help us make advancements in technology and even medicine.

The problem is if AI gets larger than we are, or if there is more AI than there is us that could be a problem. What he was saying was mind blowing. A company is just a cybernetic collective of people and machines. True. When you think of it that way it’s easy to fathom how some are so successful. He and Joe Rogan even question whether we are all one giant cybernetic collective due to networks like Google and other social networks like Facebook and Twitter. We are constantly connected to AI now whether we realize it or not. After you are gone, your ghost will be living here.

We are the ones building the AI even though we are biological. The percentage of intelligence that is not human is increasing. How often can you NOT get a human on the phone or simply go through AI to get your answers when you call large companies like Amazon, for example. I mean, you can get a human on the phone at most places like USPS after going through a bunch of AI.

The percentage of intelligence that is not human is increasing and he says that eventually we will represent a very small percentage of intelligence. The internet is just a projection of our lymphatic system, but of course it is not human and made up of our lymphatic system. The more lymphatic resonance the more engagement. It’s why Instagram is so enticing. You get more images and more video. It appeals to our Lymphatic system.

We are getting more and more connected. Elon says he has tried to warm people to slow down for a long time now about AI taking over. However, our ‘bandwith’ is still slow. So, I guess that’s a good thing. Lol Nobody listened to him about AI, he says.

What’s crazy is he starts to talk about what is going to happen. And this video was recorded three years ago. He says there will be some sort of technology that is new that may cause damage or death, and there will be an outcry and investigation. Years will pass. There will be an insight committee and rules and regulations. Omg. Coronavirus Pandemic?

Then he compares the enacting of seatbelts that took many years. It’s almost like he was having a prophetic moment about the coming on of the pandemic and MASKS or the vaccine. Wowie wow! His brilliance is inspiring. Most of all he’s a nice guy. He wants to cure people with diseases caused by the brain. For example, having a spinal cord injury will one day be like having a common cold. It will be easy to cure.

So will Alzheimer’s and other ‘brain’ diseases where messages can get corrupted. It will be AI performing the surgery not a doctor and he will be on standby though. They will insert “threads” into your brain that will make you function normally. A number of diseases will be cured through this technology and he is developing it now through his Neuralink company recently launched in 2016.

At some point, our capabilities can be out of this world, literally. I am talking “Iron Man’ capabilities according to Elon. YOU HAVE TO WATCH IT! HERE IS THIS LINK BELOW!

Understand that God has already made you with “computing” power because God is the greatest computer disginer that has ever lived. In my opinion, if we are living in assimilation and in some sort of cyborg collective it is God’s collective. God is the greatest scientist ath has ever lived!🙏✨👑🌐🌍🪐💫
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycPr5-27vSI

About Zina

‘Keeping Up With the Chaldeans’ (Not the Kardashians!) Interview

Check it out, everyone! This is my latest candid interview that I did before the stay-at-home orders (over two months ago) with my generous hosts, Anthony Toma, and Junior Binno. Here is the link to the YouTube show: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=keeping+up+with+the+chaldeans Please LIKE and subscribe! It is a MUST watch!

In case you don’t know who the Chaldeans are, they’ve been around since B.C. days and have developed a reputation for learning and knowledge of math, writing, and astronomy. Their greatest king was Nebuchadnezzar, the ruler of the Babylonian empire (from 605-562B.C.), and he was also the creator of one of the Seven Wonders of the World: The Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

Babylonia is also referred to as ‘the land of the Chaldeans’ time and time again in the Bible. We originated in southern Mesopotamia, one of the cradles of civilization (along with India, Egypt, and China). I can speak the language, although, I was born in the U.S. I’m second generation.

I talk about my book, Not Without God: A Story of Survival, and recall my accident and other events including a healing work that was performed on my left arm! There is no greater time than now to watch! This should encourage, inspire, and help. I hope you enjoy it!

About Zina

💕🌇💗

Zina Hermez is the author of the best-selling book, Not Without God: A Story of Survival. Her stories have been featured in Christianity Today, the Southern Writers Magazine, guest blogs, medical journals, and newsletters, among many other places. She’s written a few hundred articles. She’s had the privilege of working with thousands of students from different backgrounds and parts of the world. She’s taught at automotive corporations like General Motors, Ford, Nissan, Bosch, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, and has worked with people of all ages. Zina began her own teaching services incorporating math and other subjects. Her writing endeavors earned her an invitation to speak at the Harvard Faculty Club’s “Business Expert Forum.” Her goal is to help others overcome adversity. Socializing with friends, taking trips, baking, listening to music, trying new hairstyles, and networking are among her hobbies. You can connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter.

‘Not Without God’–a Passage

Today I would like to share a little bit of writing from my book, Not Without God: A Story of Survival:

Here is a passage:

‘As a child, I knew my path would not be easy. The Lord told me. Not in words but in feelings and in thoughts. I would ride my bicycle up and down our street, we lived in a cul-de-sac, and I would climb to the top of the tree. I was active. I’d play sports. I was kind of a tom boy, and I heard from God on my daily bike rides–I felt his presence strongly and he would say, “This road will not be easy, Zina, but I will never leave you nor forsake you.” I knew it would be difficult. These were more of ‘whispers in my heart.’ God was introducing me to what was to come, but letting me know that I would get through it.

8D08928A-1497-40C2-BEAC-D6311B672630 — At seventeen years of age, practicing how to walk!

After my accident at just sixteen, I had severe injuries, my spine not only broke but shifted at the (mid) thoracic level. My tibias and fibias were shattered in both legs as well as in my left femur bone. I needed rods and screws to hold my broken bones in place. I had a C1 fracture, and I’m lucky it wasn’t worse. That kind of injury can leave someone a quadriplegic (a quadriplegic typically loses usage of their legs and their arms, they may even have breathing trouble and need a trach).

I was told by a select few doctors that I would never walk, and today I am able to ambulate with forearm crutches or a walker. Unless it is icy and snowy out, or unless I am not feeling good. I especially use a wheelchair on ‘icy’ days because I have had a few falls!

It’s ironic because the street I grew up on was called “Gramercy Ct.,” and archaically, the word “Gramercy” is used to express gratitude, the word ‘mercy’ can mean, forgiveness or ‘many thanks.’ I am thankful to be alive so I don’t think that the name of my childhood street was a coincidence.

I am able to walk with AFOs (an ankle-foot orthosis) now, because my braces have been cut down through the years since I’ve gotten stronger, but it was something I had to ask about. A physical therapist will rarely ask if you want less of a walking brace, I mean, they evaluate you at periodic evaluations but as with all recoveries, one needs to be proactive.

The reason I am telling this story is because my life is a miracle, and so is the ability to walk. I don’t take it for granted, and I thank God every day! I want you to know that whatever it is you are going through–you can make it, too! As long as you persist, work hard, and have faith!

May God bless you all…

About Zina

73840719-0BFE-4A74-979C-DE7D4B67C89A Zina Hermez authored the best-selling book, Not Without God: A Story of Survival. Her stories have been featured in Christianity Today, the Southern Writers Magazine, various guest blogs, medical journals, newsletters, and she’s written over 200 of her very own articles. She’s had the privilege of working with thousands of students from different backgrounds and parts of the world. She’s taught at automotive corporations like General Motors, Ford, Nissan, Bosch, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, and worked with students of all ages. She began her own teaching services incorporating math and other subjects. Her writing endeavors have earned her an invitation to speak at the Harvard Faculty Club’s “Business Expert Forum.” Zina’s goal is to help others overcome adversity. Socializing with friends, taking trips, listening to music, and networking are among her hobbies. You can connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn or Twitter.

True Love Came To Visit

I sought after God at a young age. It wasn’t until after I had my accident that I REALLY experienced His love. I felt it through others. What I mean is, I found it in the three short months I spent in the hospital. As strange as it may seem, for the first time—my life had meaning. I had all these injuries and had become paralyzed, but I was still searching.

I lived in a good neighborhood and went to a good school. But I would ask God questions about life, and about what it all means. I knew there was more beyond what I could see. Then I got my answers. True love came to visit me in that hospital room.

Through compassion from doctors, nurses, and loved ones – I experienced a PEACE like none I had known. Life is so precious! When you are well, you may not necessarily feel like you “need the Lord.” But when you are sick, and hanging onto life by a string – you know it. And the way he comes in to rescue you is remarkable!

You can be in a desperate place, a minute to minute, moment to moment kind of place. I urge you to seek after him before the accident and before the diagnosis. It’s like not being prepared for a flood – if there were an “extreme” weather event, you probably would’ve wished you would’ve bought insurance. And luckily, most do. Buy insurance!

Invest in the One who can bring you security. Believe, read, pray, and seek! You will be better prepared in case there is an “emergency.” “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock (Matthew 7:24-25).”

God is love because He sent his only son, and he died and rose again for us! We have proof of it. His promise to redeem us from agony is proven to be true in the resurrection. There are reasons we go through what we do. We may not understand why. But if you pray and have faith through the pain, true love will reveal itself. Good things will happen to you again.

He will be the one listening while you’re in bed when you need to talk to a friend. He will be with you when you have anxiety. He will be with you when you have to go to the hospital to visit a loved one. He will be there. Every. Step. Every. Time. God truly is a fortress in our lives…

About Zina

Zina Hermez authored the book Not Without God: A Story of Survival. She works as an English as a second language Instructor, and has been an educator for almost twenty years. Her stories have been featured in Christianity Today, guest posts, newsletters, and medical journals as well as nearly 200 of her very own blog posts. To learn more about Zina visit: zinahermez.com.

“How a Teenager Overcame Traumatic Injuries”

My story was shared on the Salonpas blog earlier today, and I wanted to post it! I answered questions from a reporter in New York about myself and my book. Here is the link: http://www.salonpas.us/blog/teenager-overcame-traumatic-injuries/

I was asked how I felt when I first heard I would not walk again from doctors after my accident, and what my first major step in recovery was. Other questions were about what role my faith has played, and what made me decide to write a book, along with more! I am pleased with the article!

Hope you enjoy it!

About Zina

Zina Hermez authored the book Not Without God: A Story of Survival and created the Spinal Cord Injury Solutions! online website. Zina works as an English Language Instructor, and has been an educator for nearly fifteen years. Her thousands of students have been from many parts of the world, and she’s worked with all ages.

Zina writes articles on faith and overcoming disability, and her stories have been featured in Christianity Today, Spinal Cord Injury Zone, SCI Access, newsletters, and medical journals among many other various publications. To learn more about Zina visit http://zinahermez.com.

A Marine that Walked Again!

Here is a beautiful and inspiring story of a marine I found on Google, and I wanted to share it! Here is the link: http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/nation/2014/11/24/marine-bionic-legs-bronze-star/70062558/ This article also does a nice job explaining what the ReWalk is—one of the latest advancements in technology for people with spinal-cord-injuries. It is battery powered, a wearable robotic device that enables people with paraplegia and other types of lower limb dysfunction the ability to stand, and actually walk!

I’m grateful I don’t need the ReWalk to walk, but for this advancement I am very thankful because I think it will change lives for the better and help a lot of people walk again. Even if minimally, it will get them out of their wheelchairs. Just like it has helped Capt. Herrera.

About Zina

My article in “SCI Access”

SCI ACCESS: Insights and Information for People with Spinal Cord Injuries published my article.

Here is the link. Be sure to scroll down to page 14 and read “Alumni News.”

http://www.med.umich.edu/pmr/modelsci/Newsletters/SCI%20Access-Spring-2013.pdf

In a previous blog post I wrote that I would share the full article when it was published on the internet. This is their May 2013 newsletter issue. If you’re interested, check it out! I hope you can be inspired by some of the amazing stories of recovery and efforts to find a cure.

SCI Access is a newsletter provided by the University of Michigan Spinal Cord Injury Model System. UM-SCIMS is one of only fourteen SCI model systems in the United States.

They call me periodically to complete survey studies. I always gladly cooperate. I love to help U of M in any way I can, because that is the hospital that saved my life. You can also visit their main page: http://www.med.umich.edu/pmr/modelsci/

And this is a blog post I wrote about them back in July: https://zinahermez.wordpress.com/2012/07/04/university-of-michigan-c-s-mott-childrens-hospital/

I was there for almost three months after my accident in October of 1994. U of M became my home. When my future was unpredictable and grim, I felt safe there. When my discharge date drew nearer, I felt afraid and depressed. I did not want to go home because I developed a system there. I had learned how to deal with my injury.

The doctors and nurses were so friendly. Dr. Geiger had a smile that could light up any child’s life. Dr. Polley’s compassion was incomparable. Robin and Julie, my nurses were very kind. It amazes me that it’s been over eighteen years, and my team of doctors and surgeons are still there. Walking the floors of Mott Children’s, saving children, saving lives.

Love is a force that is able to heal the worst of situations. I pray for anyone in the hospital or ill to have the best care, the kind of care I was blessed to have at U of M.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck1ZLuDBQUI

“A few quick tips on how I heal”

My dad fell in church the other day. He said it happened as he was going down the steps. He felt a shooting pain in his back shortly before and there was nowhere to sit. As he walked down the step his leg gave out, he collapsed. Other church members hurried over to catch him. He suffers from Sciatica and some arthritis. He turned 80 last July. Aging can bring about some of this. I think he’s becoming addicted to these cortisone shots. He’s had several and always seems to think that is the cure. Once the medication wears off, the pain comes back. I was talking to him about the importance of exercise and moving around. I notice he doesn’t move around as much. Naturally, when we don’t move our body weakens.

I kept thinking, if it’s that hard for my dad to move without having paralysis. Imagine how much harder it is for the paralyzed? Well, I can imagine, because I have been. The majority of people with spinal cord injuries are told they’ll never walk again, and I never understood why. If nerves have the ability to regenerate, and muscles can be strengthened, why are people told they will always use a wheelchair? “Twenty years of study in humans has shown that the spinal cord has its own sophisticated nervous system that helps it recall how to move,” says Dr. Susan Harkema, a research leader in the field.

People sometimes turn to alternative options such as stem cell surgery. But that surgery does not fully solve the problem. It’s where they use adult stem cells extracted from other parts of the body, and implant them into the spinal cord at the site of injury. “The most important thing we’ve learned is that surgery is not enough. It has to be accompanied by rehabilitation (exercise),” says Dr. Carlos Lima, a neuron-pathologist on the Lisbon stem cell team.

We now have come out with Ekso Bionics or e-legs, the first originally of its kind out of Berkeley, California. You can visit the page here: http://www.eksobionics.com/ekso Initially, these were used for soldiers carrying heavy cargo while going uphill. The solid legs and back helped them prevent injury. The problem is the device weighs 50 pounds, and adding that much weight, I don’t know how functional you can be. Or how much time you can spend on them during the day, I would imagine not much.

My physician of eleven years told me it would be hard for me to walk with one cane, when I told her my goal was to at least be mobile and get around everywhere with it. She said it was “possible” but not “probable” when I confronted her with why she had said that. I told her it was something I believed was very highly likely. I never accepted her proposition.

Today I’m walking mostly all day with two forearm crutches, and practicing with one cane. Something I was told I would never do. It took prayer, lots of exercise, and undying faith.

Some quick tips on how I heal:

Daily Prayer
Exercise and Physical Therapy
Logs (exercise logs can be great)
Listen to your doctor, but don’t neglect your “own doctor within.”

Daily prayer is crucial for me. I recommend at least 15 minutes a day of talking to God. I sometimes read bible verses, and short prayers in the morning. I often talk to him while at the gym on the walking machines, this really helps.

Prayer is the pathway that connects us to the heavens. No prayer is unheard although they seem unanswered. Trust that God has a plan for you. Even when you cannot make sense of things. In time, the answers will reveal themselves.

Exercise is something you should be doing at least a few times a week. Find a PT or trainer who can design a safe but challenging program for you. “Get up close and personal with yourself, get to know yourself,” Dr. Agus writes in his bestseller, The End of Illness. “It all starts with you.” Oh yeah, and find a PT who believes in you. Mine believes in me, it makes all the difference!

Keeping logs is great. An exercise log to track progress, i’ve even kept logs on how much percentage of the day I use a wheelchair. Logs are great because they help you see your progress.

LISTEN to and RESPECT your doctors, but don’t neglect your “own doctor within.” You know that inner voice. We all have it. The one that screams at you sometimes to take a left or right when you are lost and driving the wrong way, your intuition. It has something to say.

These are just a few ways I get better from SCI. I think they will be helpful for you. I believe these principles can apply to more than just spinal cord injury. Heart disease is the number one leading cause of death in the country. Stroke is the third. Cancer is another leading cause. I believe prayer and exercise, and getting to know your body can help all of us.

www.aapmr.org has great information on Rehabilitation of Central Nervous system disorders, like spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, and MS. If you click on the “Knowledge now” button, you can find lots of information. Best wishes in your recovery.

Suffering and Joy are interchangeable!

Life is hard enough. Imagine you could not walk? Imagine you could not move? Better yet, don’t imagine. It’s one of the worst things that could happen to you. Don’t imagine. It happened to me. I was hit by a car while crossing the street on my way to school, at only sixteen.

Paralysis is eye opening. Paralysis is real. Paralysis is undesirable, a nightmare to say in the least. I’ve woken up before and thought this was all a dream, more than once. Then I see my crutches on the wall, my wheelchair in the corner–tucked in my closet, as far away as possible. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Well, not really.

There is loss in life. Loss of friendships, relationships, divorce, accidents! Accidents, a Spinal Cord Injury— it can take everything but your life.

I was pretty. I was popular. I returned to school in a wheelchair my senior year. When everyone was excited for prom and spring break, I was learning to be disabled. There are things we live through only by God’s grace. And only God has kept me.

At sixteen I was healing, but how would life be in a wheelchair? Our home was not handicapped accessible. I knew when the dust settled the visits would lesson. The calls would start to fade. During my stay in the hospital, I would pick up my pencil with a flashlight in the dark at night and write letters addressed to God. I know he heard me.

I finished high school on time, even though I missed most of my junior year. I still made it to prom. My real friends stayed and I made new ones. I learned to drive, went to college, worked, and even walked! I’m walking everywhere with two forearm crutches, and learning how to walk with one cane. I’m still not walking as good as I’d like, but it’s better than using a wheelchair. I still have faith.

Thank God he replaces suffering with joy!

“Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.” John 16:20

“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.” Psalm 30:5

Moving improves our health!

“The human body is not meant to sit for long periods of time. During the day alternate between sitting, standing, and walking, or get up and stretch often,” says HealthCoach. David Agus, Lance Armstrong’s oncologist, wrote a best seller called “The End of Illness” and he agrees. He writes tips on how to prevent disease.“As Americans we don’t move around enough, most people go to the gym for an hour, go back to their office, sit at their desk jobs for hours, and they think that is enough.” “The problem is most people, when sitting at our desk jobs, sit for hours at a time and don’t move around enough,” Dr. Agus says. “Every hour you should move, even if for no reason, get away from your desk, find a reason to get up,” he advises. This was one of the first on his list to prevent illness such as cancer. He also talks about eating healthier, hard boiled eggs, fish, vegetable oil, the natural stuff.

What if you’re spinal cord injured? What if you can’t get up so easily? What if you can’t stand? What if you can’t walk? What if you can’t even sit for long periods of time, or get out of a wheelchair without someone assisting you? I believe any movement is good movement to start. Whether it’s a transfer from your wheelchair to your bed, or using the hand cycling machine at physical therapy, or standing for several minutes at a time in a standing frame, it gets your heart pumping, your blood flowing, and you’re moving. As you train your body to move with help, and hopefully eventually without, to transfer, to sit for longer periods, to stand, to walk, whatever you are able to do, it gets stronger. Over time you can become more independent.

Just be safe. When I practice with one cane, I’m almost always with my physical therapist. When I’m doing it at home, I try my best to be safe. I used to hold two canes, with the right one in the air just in case I lost my balance. Now I use one. It’s crucial for someone with paralysis to move, because they don’t do it easily on a daily basis. I believe it’s even more important for us, to get up. Dr. Agus’ advice applies to all of us, those with and without physical challenges.

For those who cannot move their hands, feet, or fingers even, it can be much harder to get up, or even feel motivated to move. My feet are weak because my s1/s2 nerves still have some damage. I can push my feet down, but that is a recent muscle that has come back the last couple years. It’s harder to pull my foot up against gravity. Throughout the day I’m wearing AFOs (ankle braces) to assist my walking.

With a spinal cord injury, you can exercise for years and years, and not fully recover. Or you can exercise for a few years, and gain a lot of recovery. It depends on different factors, your level of injury, the nature of your injury, and your faith. Exercise and movement not only improve health, but can help you regain function. The number one factor is you. It starts with you.

Now go get up!

Zina Hermez