How to learn to walk again
It made me
sublimely happy 
"It was the hardest thing I've ever done, but it made all the difference."
How I did it: It took the better part of five years. My lower extremities were crushed by a tractor trailer plowing into my tiny four door sedan. Though I wasn't paralyzed, the doctors said my bones had been hurt beyond repair. They said the nerve damage was too far gone and the damage just too great.
Well, that wasn't good enough for me. If I wasn't paralyzed that meant I could walk. I spent five long years in excruciating pain, pushing myself through hours and hours of physical therapy. I used a walker, crutches, and finally a cane. It took a strength and determination I didn't know I had. But now, here I am, five years later and I walk. There's a slight limp, but I walk. And that is good enough for me.
Lessons & tips:
- Don't attempt any of this without the guidance of a physical therapist or doctor
- Practice in the pool. Get strong doing water aerobics and water walking
- Journal about your progress. Having that journal will keep you motivated and inspired
- Make smaller, more achievable goals so that you will feel you've accomplished things. i.e. taking ten steps with a walker every day for a week, then twenty the next week, etc. etc.
- Reward yourself for completing goals.
- Have friends videotape your progress. It will be a great keepsake in years to come.
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