Chapter 13 - REHABILITATION AND REBUILDING
Three days after surgery, I was transferred by medical transport from Suburban Hospital to the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in Rockville, a specialized facility equipped to handle complex spinal cord injuries and neurological recovery. The weeks that followed were an unyielding physical and emotional gauntlet. Every morning at 7:00 a.m., physical therapists worked my deadened legs through passive range-of-motion exercises, slowly re-teaching my brain how to communicate with my lower extremities.
My mother moved into our guest room to help care for infant Sophia, bringing her nursing expertise, unwavering emotional support, and a titanium spine of protection that kept Marco firmly relegated to supervised, brief visiting hours. Slowly, agonizingly, sensation began to return to my feet—first as a painful pins-and-needles burning sensation, then as a dull awareness of cold and pressure. By week four, holding onto parallel bars with my knuckles turning white, I managed to take my first tentative, trembling step across the rubber gym floor.
