KRISTAL, Minn. – Life can change in the blink of an eye – Jen Kelly knows that firsthand.
Kelly started riding when she was just 8 years old. As an equestrian with years of experience, she has tumbled a few times – until a fall in September 2020.
“It happened quickly and I landed on my face,” Kelly said. “I was instantly paralyzed from my back down.”
Kelly broke three vertebrae in her neck and shattered her spinal cord. Faced with the fear of never walking again, five words from her doctor kept her going: “You’re going to walk again.”
“Those were literally and figuratively my marching orders from then on,” Kelly said.
Kelly spent months at North Memorial and then spent rehabilitation at the Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute.
“Walking is exceptionally complex,” said Dr. Mandy DeRasmi of Courage Kenny. “It’s a lot of coordination, balance and strength.”
At Courage Kenny, Kelly had access to cutting-edge technology and top neurosurgeons. Day after day, Kelly committed to the work.
“She always wanted to try new things,” DeRasmi said. “She did her own research and came to me and said, ‘Oh, what do you think about this? What do you think about this? What do you think about this? Should I try this? Should I try this?’ “
Through it all, it was Kelly’s mentality that caught the doctors’ attention.
“You can see a difference with the patients who have a little grit,” DeRasmi said.
Kelly had both courage and gratitude.
“I really pushed hard and I really expected a lot from myself,” Kelly said. “And I wouldn’t let myself down, let alone the others who support me. The new normal is about being grateful for the ‘yes moments.’ When I first recovered, something as simple as holding a toothbrush was amazing.”
Those little yay moments led to big ones.
“To see my horse again, to pet him, to talk to him, and to be in the stable and smell the hay and smell the horses,” Kelly said. “Year, that was a real milestone moment for me.”
While Kelly is walking now, her recovery will be a lifelong effort and healing process. She said she will continue to focus on her mobility, balancing and strengthening strength.
“There are really two paths you can take,” she said. “You can take me to the discouraged, depressed place and that’s really self-pity, or you can look outward and that’s about gratitude. So I chose the gratitude path.”
Kelly hopes her story affects just one person, then it will all be worth it. One day she wants to write a book.
Beret Leone
