Nurse chooses chiropractic to relieve pain, fuel her health
A typical workday for Keren Nobel is logging 15,000 steps – the equivalent of nearly seven miles. As a registered nurse at Mercy Health St. Mary’s Hospital, she’s on her feet for 12.5-hour shifts four days a week – longer and more often during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Keren’s also an athlete who […]
Mary Free Bed Spine Center patient Ann Ward: ‘They truly gave me my life back’
Ann Ward has a posse of grandchildren, great-grandchildren and a great-great-grandchild, and she doesn’t have time for pain. The retired Grattan Township paramedic suffered from near-disabling back pain and came to the Mary Free Bed Spine Center for treatment. In this video, Ann shares how Spine Center specialists helped identify the source of her pain […]
Kristy calls recovery from back pain ‘amazing’ with help of Mary Free Bed Spine Center
Kristy Reuss suffered with back pain for nearly two years. At one point, her pain was so debilitating she was unable to stand or walk and missed a month of work. Diagnosed with a disc herniation between the L5 and S1 vertebrae in her spine, Kristy’s course of treatment provided some relief but only for […]
Participants with traumatic spinal cord injury being recruited for new research study
Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital has been awarded a three-year, $400,000 grant from the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation to measure how physical activity impacts the lives of people with spinal cord injury. Researchers will focus on whether a positive impact can be made on people’s participation in physical activity over a year-long period, said Mary […]
Effective therapies for patients with spinal cord injury
A customized therapy plan is crucial for patients who have sustained a complete or incomplete spinal cord injury. The Spinal Cord Injury Team at Mary Free Bed collaborates to determine the most appropriate rehabilitation methods to promote motor recovery after a spinal cord injury. Mary Free Bed therapist Kristina Simpson, PT, MSPT, recently authored an article, “Promoting Motor […]
Fall prevention should be a year-round concern
Falls are a significant public safety concern, no matter the season. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, millions of Americans 65 years and older fall each year. Head injuries and hip fractures are among the most common types of injuries sustained in a fall. Here at Mary Free Bed, fall prevention is […]
Marcus’ message of determination: ‘Whatever you want to be, you can be it’
Congrats are in order for Marcus Fairfield and Liz Lauer! This week, the new parents welcomed a beautiful baby girl into their family. A rollover accident in April left Marcus with a paralyzing spinal cord injury. He graduated this fall from Mary Free Bed after months of intensive inpatient rehabilitation where he focused on maximizing his strength, […]
People + technology = a winning combo for patient with spinal cord injury [Video]
Dean McClellan, a patient of the Mary Free Bed Spinal Cord Injury Program, has made great strides in his journey to once again walk. Leading-edge technology — like the LokomatPro and ZeroG — plays an important role in physical rehabilitation. But the human factor is just as crucial for a meaningful recovery. The videos below demonstrate […]
Still hunting – and still walking
Ed Spoelma has three words of advice for anyone who hunts from a tree stand: Wear your harness. Three years ago, Ed was hunting from a tree stand near Remus, Mich. when he fell 20 feet, breaking his sternum and back. He suffered permanent nerve damage and now has two rods in his back. “I […]
Mary Free Bed Spine Center Gets Ballerina Back On Her Toes
Aurora Lewis decided at 16 she wanted to be a professional ballerina. She realized that dream as a freshman in college, but severe back pain soon followed and lead to her having to cancel her contract. The next two years were a mix of pain, confusion and disappointment as Aurora went to more than a […]
Man Overcomes Guillain-Barré Syndrome and Restores His Independence
Robert Clark, an avid tennis player, awoke with a severe backache after an exhausting match the day before. His condition deteriorated from there – loss of finger, hand, arm and leg movement until Robert was completely paralyzed. His diagnosis turned out to be Guillain-Barré syndrome, a serious disorder that occurs when the body’s immune […]
Robert Clark Defies Odds After Suffering Guillain-Barré Syndrome
Robert Clark’s morning seemed ordinary enough. He went through his normal routine and played tennis. It wasn’t until the backache set in that he thought something might be wrong. He went home and took some ibuprofen, something he rarely resorted to. The next day, his back felt better, but his fingertips tingled and one side […]
Horseback riding accident leaves competitor with spinal cord injury
Dr. Alice Gale has always been active. Last year, if she wasn’t at her dermatology practice, she was outside running, riding her bike or maybe at the gym. For as long as she can remember, she’s ridden horses, and for the past 20 years, she’s jumped horses competitively. Last February, Alice was in Florida for […]
Told he’d never walk again, Bob is back on his feet
For the second time that winter, Bob Dykstra and his friends jumped on their snowmobiles and shot into the woods. Always a fan of snow sports, Bob was eager to tear up the powder. They approached a hill that they’d gone over hundreds of times before. Bob flew over the pinnacle and instead of landing […]