Five years ago I found myself laying face down on the blacktop of Austin’s Highway 360, after colliding with a parked SUV while riding my bike. The minutes following my accident dragged on like hours, filling my mind with every possible outcome, most of them horrifying. As an orthopaedic surgeon, I know spinal cord injuries, and I knew I was in trouble.
One week and one violent surgery later, in which my neck was fused in both the front and back and bone grafts from my hip were put in to help stabilize my cervical vertebrae, I called my wife from the hospital and told her to get me out of there because I could “smell death on me.” I went home and directed my own course of treatment – physical therapy combined with two forms of what are considered “alternative therapies” in most conventional circles: myofascial release and craniosacral therapy. For four to six hours a day I worked, drawing on my experiences as a world-class competitive swimmer, my own determined nature and my challenged but intact faith, as well as the support of family and friends.
Four months after my accident I reentered the operating room – as assistant surgeon, and began the long road back to my life.
In truth, my life would never be the same again. I am the survivor of a serious spinal cord injury, and as such, I still struggle with recurrent pain, clonus, body temperature issues and a number of other conditions common to spinal cord injuries.
But my life has changed in other ways as well. My spinal cord injury has proven to be one of the greatest of all my teachers. Over and over my recovery has been referred to as “miraculous,” and though I cannot disagree, what exactly that means is something I have given serious thought. My recovery from spinal cord injury has gone far beyond prediction or expectation. Why? How? There is an element in the answer to those questions that I acknowledge is beyond explanation. But, there is part of the “miraculous” that can be explored. Looking back over my recovery I can now pinpoint certain factors that played a significant role. Some of these factors I can speak to as a doctor, some as an athlete, some as a spinal cord injury survivor, and all as a human being.
Healing that is considered “miraculous” is that which transforms a condition into its highest possible potential.. Here I will share three principles that can help lead to transformational healing. These ideas are meant for those with spinal cord injury or any kind of chronic condition, and for anyone who desires to elevate their own level of wellness.
1. True health is achieved through integration. We cannot focus only on the body and treating physical symptoms if we are to activate all of the possible healing powers available. Healing comes through three distinct and interrelated prongs: Science, Self and Soul. When we take the best of Science and combine it with the innate strengths and healing capacities of the Self and the Soul, we tap into our part in co-creating miracles.
Examples of Science: integrating conventional and complementary medicines; harvesting your own stem cells, healthy balanced diet, quality supplements and exercise.
Examples of Self: cultivating attitudes of determination, focus, confidence, self-trust and intuition, seeking and creating positive support systems, asking for help when needed, engaging in pleasurable activity, laughing often and becoming your own greatest advocate.
Examples of Soul: cultivating qualities such as optimism, humility, gratitude, hope, mindfulness and generosity, being of service and strengthening your internal locus of control.
2. The nervous system is the highway of life. It is responsible for maintaining and regulating our most automatic systems, those that keep us alive. It manages the body’s stress and relaxation response, making it the great balancer of our internal system. The autonomic nervous system offers us one of the most direct examples of the need for balance in maintaining health and well-being. Healthy nervous systems keep our bodies in a state of homeostasis. Healthy lifestyles seek to do the same for all parts of our being and our lives – physical, mental, emotional and spiritual.
If it could speak the nervous system would tell us that these days stress is winning out over relaxation. Our fight or flight response – the body’s response to stress – is in overdrive most of the time. So what do we need? To begin consciously balancing our experiences. To take as much time for slowing down as we do for revving up, to learn practices for activating the part of the nervous system responsible for the relaxation response – the parasympathetic system.
Examples: deep breathing with focus on slow, long exhales, mind-body exercises such as yoga and tai chi, therapies such as massage, craniosacral and acupuncture.
3. When it comes to transforming our health and well-being, practice does not make perfect. It leads to progress. When we make the commitment to wake up and engage in the creation of miracles in our daily lives, we are making a promise to practice principles of integrated self-care. Practicing means taking part in, learning, and progressing at our own pace. It means understanding that perfection is not the goal; rather, we seek to tap into a deeper process of healing that comes together as we continue to take small and steady steps. We set goals and move toward them. We reevaluate our goals, change them as necessary and keep practicing. I suggest designing regular practices for exercise, for relaxation, for self-evaluation through journaling or counseling, for having fun and simply enjoying life. Keys to practicing healthy habits include: becoming aware of what you need and where you are out of balance, engaging in honest evaluation, setting goals that can be achieved through small steps, and taking action through conscious choices.
Whether you are facing serious illness, spinal cord injury, chronic pain or simply desiring to create a healthier, more balanced life, it is vital to understand that every day is a new opportunity to begin again, to make new choices and engage your innate, profound powers of transformational healing.
Scott Spann, M.D., board-certified orthopedic surgeon, former world-class athlete and recovered quadriplegic, is an innovator in the worlds of spinal surgery and clinical stem cell use and a proponent for the implementation of integrated health practices. Dr. Spann is a member of numerous medical organizations, a Diplomate of the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery (certifying body of orthopedic surgeons in the United States) and Chairman of Spine Surgery at Westlake Hospital in Austin, Texas.
A consultant and instructor for several medical device companies, Dr. Spann has been a part of numerous product design teams for spinal implants and holds more than a dozen patents for orthopedic products and procedures.
Always pushing the envelope of possibility, Scott Spann’s early research led him to become one of the earliest adopters in the world to use autologous (adult) stem cells in a clinical setting.
A championship swimmer during his years at Auburn University and the University of Texas, Dr. Spann broke five world records, including one of Mark Spitz’, and was expected to qualify for the 1980 Olympics before the United States boycott of the Moscow games. An active alumnus at the University of Texas, he was inducted into the UT Hall of Fame in 1999.
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