I was discharged on March 12th and flew home to Dallas with my mom. When I got back to my apartment, we quickly learned that my wheelchair and my apartment did not mix, but I was denied admittance to an assisted living facility.

Apparently, I wasn’t broken enough.

The chair wouldn’t fit into the kitchen or my bedroom, so I stayed with my friend Kayla and her family.

I needed help with the basics, from cooking and cleaning to using the bathroom. Once back in Dallas, I started physical therapy, three days a week for three hours a day. I took an Uber back and forth until the insurance ran out.

In September of 2016, I was back in Florida for a wedding and went to see Dr. Shenkman. He took x-rays and remarked that my right leg had little muscle and that I couldn’t even think about a walker.

This is the tough love part.

He took me into the hallway of his office and told me to get up and walk. I was beyond nervous. I thought my leg would crumple as soon as I stood up. He assured me that the titanium rod in my leg would hold me up. I slowly hobbled a few steps and went back into the wheelchair.

Dr. Shenkman knew my insurance had been exhausted and suggested I try yoga to continue my rehabilitation and to gain strength.

One more thing I think you should know about me – I was not taking pain pills during this time. There is a history of abuse in my family, and I never wanted to touch anything remotely close to a narcotic level prescription drug.

You can imagine the pain and discomfort.

I took an Uber to my first yoga class. I wheeled myself into the studio and sat in the back of the room. The warmth of the room immediately soothed my pain! It was amazing. I was hooked and started going five days a week. In the beginning, I would sit in the back and try to make a fist with my left hand, straighten my leg and make other basic moves from physical therapy.

After the first week, I was feeling better and stronger.

After two weeks, I was using a walker.

After four weeks, I was using a cane.

It was a remarkable turning point in my recovery. I loved yoga and my teachers.

One year after the accident, I ran a 5k in California with my mom, sister, and cousin.

Yoga made me unbreakable.

I believe it is a perfect marriage of helping and healing, and I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. That is why I started Titanium Yoga.

Let’s become unbreakable together.