Back in 2013, there was a Big Thompson River flood in Drake, CO. That is where Leroy Rady, 87, and his spouse, Marge, have lived for the past 20 years. Since the flood, Leroy has been rebuilding his home and fixing up the yard. He and Marge are very active and enjoy spending time with their three daughters and two grandchildren. He and Marge owned a telephone business and retired in 1997.

One June day, Leroy fell in his kitchen and hit his face, injuring his spine in the process. His diagnosis was an incomplete central cord syndrome secondary to a spinal cord injury at C6 with severe spinal stenosis. Unable to feel his arms and experiencing extreme pain, Leroy underwent surgical intervention.

Inpatient rehabilitation would be important for Leroy’s recovery. He chose Northern Colorado Rehabilitation Hospital due to his daughter living close to the facility.

Leroy couldn’t be happier with the decision. He had praise for all the staff and the impact they had on his recovery. “The therapists influenced my recovery the most and made me work really hard,” he reflected. “I wanted to get home and they wanted to get me home!”

“The nurses were great,” he continued. “The CEO and director of nursing greeted me when I arrived and were very welcoming. I loved how the CEO would help in the kitchen and deliver popcorn every Friday to patients and staff. At other facilities, you don’t see this.”

Having made great progress, Leroy was ready to discharge home. That day would be an emotional one for Leroy. “The best part of my experience at NCRH was the standing ovation at the end of my stay,” he said with tears in his eyes. “Everyone I worked with was wishing me well on my journey ahead. I am so blessed to be doing as great as I am and to have worked with such a wonderful staff.”

Leroy also credits his family for their support, especially Marge.

Back home, Leroy is excited to get back to working on the house and the yard. He still has to wear a neck brace for a few more weeks but he is walking around the house and doing great!

 

Strength is more than a physical trait according to Rick Ybarra. When faced with the unexpected amputation of his right leg, Rick learned it was a strong mind that allowed him to get back to his life.

Rick was working at a recycling center when a 27,000 pound container dropped on his legs. He was able to get his left leg free, but not his right. After emergency services picked him up, the next thing he remembers is waking up in the hospital after surgery to save his limb. Unfortunately, the physicians soon realized that it was not possible and Rick would need an amputation.

Rick expected an amputation below his knee, but that was not possible. To save Rick’s life, the physicians needed to amputate much higher than expected. When Rick woke up from surgery, he was angry and frustrated. Rick has never cried much in his life, but this time, Rick cried.

Rick spent over a week in the hospital before he chose to go to Northern Colorado Rehabilitation Hospital for intense therapy. Rick wanted to get his life back.

One of the first things Rick was determined to do was go to the bathroom without assistance. Rick recalled the support of Isaiah, one of his physical therapists. “He believed in me,” Rick said. “He knew I could do it.” And he did within three days. That was Rick’s first step in getting his life back.

“I had to learn how to do everything over again,” Rick said. Rick’s wife, Candy, added: “we taking walking for granted.”

The combination of Rick’s strong mind and the expertise of his therapy and nursing teams would produce great results. After several weeks in the hospital, Rick returned home with his wife. Rick continued with outpatient rehabilitation at Northern Colorado Rehabilitation Hospital. While his first prosthetic was a “dinosaur” according to Rick, “it felt so good to stand up again.” Even after a year, the therapy team continues to work with Rick to assist him in getting his independence back.

Rick attributes his success to being positive and not secluding himself. “Anyone going through this is bound to have ups and downs,” he said. “It is a different path for life, but one that can be positive if you listen to your therapists and have a strong mind. Don’t quit!”

The support of Rick’s family has been key to his success. They each showed their support by getting a tattoo of a bear claw. The bear claw signifies the strength that Rick had to overcome his injury.

Rick now has a new prosthetic with a custom Raiders logo on it to replace the tattoo from his amputated limb. Rick is able to drive again and has returned to activities he used to do alone. His strong mind got him where he is now, saying, “I can do it!”

   

Jim Peterson is a retired ENT physician who lives in Greeley, Colorado. Jim, 80, loves to read, walk, cook (especially bread), listen to music, and play the banjo. Jim also finds joy in being with his family, including his wife of 57 years, Sylvia, his children, and five grandchildren.

After undergoing back surgery (an elective L4-5 fusion), Jim entered a skilled nursing facility for rehabilitation. While there, he suffered a cerebrovascular accident (CVA), or stroke. This led to weakness on his right side, known as right hemiparesis.

Both his friends and the staff at the acute care hospital told Jim that Northern Colorado Rehabilitation Hospital has the best stroke program. Trusting their recommendation, Jim admitted to NCRH to his recovery.

“Day-to-day this has been a rollercoaster ride,” Jim said of his recent medical issues, “but it is so important to turn a negative experience into a positive one. It takes gradual baby steps that you notice over time to see improvements.”

Jim also recognizes that Sylvia’s support and setting goals were critical in staying focused. “My recovery was most influenced by my wife and my desire to continue my hobbies,” he noted.

Sylvia explains further, “his motivation for recovery is his philosophy in life. That means his hard work ethic, hardly complaining, and knowing as a physician that there are consequences if you stop trying.”

“At Northern Colorado Rehabilitation Hospital, I felt I was working with a team and not for them,” Jim said, reflecting on his stay. “The staff was wonderful. They developed rapport with me and this was helpful in many ways.”

“Success is all about achieving modest goals,” Jim stated. “Those goals for me are to get back to playing the banjo again, becoming more ambulatory, standing for longer periods of time to cook, and of course making bread again!”

“Jim never stops working hard at improving,” Sylvia said, adding, “he even does exercise in bed!”

A talkative, social and funny guy, Blake Whitsell played defensive tackle for South Dakota State University. Then, the 20-year-old suffered a concussion during football camp. After that, Blake couldn’t even carry on a meaningful conversation.

The concussion was the third one Blake suffered during camp — and the 9th in his lifetime. The team doctor recommend he retire from football.

A history and political science major, Blake could no longer remember anything he studied. “I couldn’t read one line and remember it,” he said. Blake moved home and returned to college the following semester. But his troubles continued.

Blake and his parents continued to look for help. Eventually, a neurologist recommended Northern Colorado Rehabilitation Hospital, where he began receiving speech therapy on an outpatient basis.

“I had no idea what I was getting into,” Blake recalled. “I understood what physical and occupational therapy was, but not speech therapy. I just had to trust the process.”

Blake now realizes the importance of understanding concussions. “Looking back, I wish I would have known more about concussions,” he said. “Maybe I would have stopped football earlier. But, I have to say, my football training is what got me through my therapy. It was tough.”

Blake worked for three months with speech therapist, Callie Halstead. She provided him with meta-cognitive strategy training, which involves “thinking about your thinking” in context of attention, memory, and reasoning exercises.

“I also provided Blake with an extensive home exercise program to help him generalize what we did in our sessions so he could apply it to his daily life,” Callie noted. “He was a fantastic rehabilitation candidate. He did everything I asked him to do, and he quickly saw positive results.”

Six-to-eight weeks into therapy, friends started to notice Blake’s focus was much better. He was able to once again build relationships and connections with others. As he progressed, Blake began beating people with “normal” brain scores. He went from a self-proclaimed “C” student to an “A” student, even getting a 97% on his final spring paper.

“I know I wouldn’t have gotten better without therapy,” Blake said. “Therapy has given me my life back. It’s helped me in every aspect of my life. While at the hospital, I was treated like a friend, not like I was a patient. I was sad to see therapy end. I call Callie my brain teacher – she gave me a super brain! She’s my hero.”