I've been paralyzed twice, the first time losing my legs and the second time losing my hands.

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When I was 15 years old, I broke my back in a dirt bike accident. I was life-flighted to Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, where I discovered I had broken 2 vertebrae, which resulted in paralysis from my diaphragm down as well as losing my bowels and bladder.

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I spent a few weeks at Vanderbilt Hospital and Stallworth Rehabilitation Center before moving to the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Georgia. I stayed at the Shepherd Center for a few months; then I continued my outpatient therapy there for another nine months.

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A few weeks after my injury, while paralyzed from the diaphragm down, I had a moment by myself and was praying. I said, “Jesus, please give me a sign to let me know that I will walk again so I can focus on getting better and not worry about it.” Within 60 seconds, I could move my toe, and I knew without a doubt that I would walk again; I just did not know how long it would take me.

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After many months in therapy at the Shepherd Center and several more miracles, I was able to progress from a wheelchair, to a walker, to crutches, then eventually to a cane. I walked across the stage for my high school graduation 2 years later and was eventually able to walk unassisted. My left leg had come back 100%, but my right leg was at about 50%, so I walked with a limp.

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11 years after breaking my back, I married the love of my life, and we started our family of what is now four girls. As the years grew, so did the advancements in medical technology. 25 years after my spinal cord injury, I decided to go out of the country to receive embryonic stem cells in my spinal fluid with the hope of regaining the function of my right leg.

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Just a few weeks after the injections, I started experiencing excruciating pain between my shoulder blades that I had never felt before. I went to the emergency room 4 different times, with the doctors saying I had a pinched nerve. Seven weeks after I had received the stem cell injections, I woke up and was unable to move my thumb, index finger, and middle finger on either hand.

I immediately knew something was going on with my spinal cord because of my previous injury. I went to a different hospital where they ran tests and discovered I had a life-threatening infection in my spinal fluid, which created an abscess in my neck flattening my spinal cord. They told me that if they did not do emergency surgery, I would be a quadriplegic in the morning.

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After I woke up from surgery, I did not have use of either hand, and I discovered I had two 18 inch rods and 14 screws starting at the base of my skull continuing to the middle of my back. An emergency room visit just turned into a six-week hospital stay, and my new battle had just begun. My wife never left my side as I started to learn how to use my hands again.

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This was an extremely dark period in my life because I embarked on a mission to improve my life, but what I had done resulted in my life being much, much worse, not only for me but also for my young family. I had kids ranging from 7 to 17, 2 exchange students, and I was a small-business owner with a demanding business.

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This spinal cord injury left my legs much worse than before I received the stem cells. My legs are now weaker, tighter, and I have much more spasticity than before. I was in a wheelchair again, progressed to a walker, crutches, and eventually to a cane that I continue to use today. If we go somewhere that requires a lot of walking, I must use my power wheelchair. I have daily pain because of the screws and rods that I did not have before I received the stem cells.

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I have learned to write left-handed, and it has become my dominant hand because it has approximately 95% of its original strength, whereas my right hand only has about 10% of its original strength. 

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God has performed many miracles in my life, and I now know that it is my purpose to share them with you.