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Patient Stories

As a national leader in rehabilitative care, Spaulding Rehabilitation helps patients find their strength every day. But it's the words and experiences of our patients that best describe what our services can really do.

Our patient stories provide a look inside the outstanding rehabilitative services available through our network of world-class providers. We invite you to read these compelling and unforgettable stories — and learn how our rehabilitative care has changed people's lives.

Don't bet against our patients' will and determination.
  • Andy outside of a pub
    “There is life after stroke.” That’s Andy Murphy’s message to patients who have found themselves at the precipice of a lengthy rehabilitation journey after experiencing a stroke. It’s a lesson he learned firsthand after his own stroke in 2021. Learn about his journey
  • Sierra getting therapy
    On a summer day in 2020, Sierra Longmoore was in a life-altering car accident. Learn how Spaulding helped her recover.
  • Joshua and his brother, two young Black men, on an adaptive bicycle for two.
    When Joshua experienced a traumatic brain injury and stroke at age 8, he went from being an avid footballer and lead in his school play to a child who doctors said would never walk or talk again. Learn how Spaulding helped him change that.

Gifts to Spaulding support our patients and families as they build new futures. Throughout Spaulding’s history, we have improved the lives of thousands of people. Together, and with your generous donations, we will continue to discover and deliver the best care possible — today and tomorrow.

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  • Patient Story

    Meet Robert Lewis, Jr. | A Spaulding Story of Strength

    COVID-19 survivor and Spaulding patient Robert Lewis, Jr. shares his journey: from diagnosis with the novel coronavirus through his rehabilitation at Spaulding Hospital Cambridge?and what it means to him to be back at work at the community outreach organization he founded in Boston. My COVID-19 Recovery?As Told by Robert Lewis, Jr. I?m not sure how I expected to feel when I turned 60 years old last spring, but I didn?t anticipate a trip to the emergency department. I certainly didn?t expect to be sedated, intubated, and wake up 12 days later. But on March 22?my 60th birthday? that?s what happened. It was the beginning of my COVID-19 journey. It was an intense and frightening time. When I was moved to Spaulding Hospital Cambridge for rehabilitation after three weeks of acute care, I had to relearn?everything: how to breathe without an oxygen tank; how to walk; how to touch my nose and tie my sneakers. I had to get my strength back. What struck me about Spaulding was the incredible treatment that I?and my family?received from everyone there, from the moment I arrived until I walked out just one week later. There?s a culture of love and compassion and excellence that radiates from every person. Trust

  • Patient Story

    Meet Paul C: Sharing His Strength

    Fall 2023 | Oct 19, 2023 Navigating a critical illness or injury gives you perspective ? and often, healing is buoyed by having a strong sense of purpose. Last fall, Paul Callahan needed surgery to address pressure sores that were not healing with the typical protocols for a person living with quadriplegia. He turned to Spaulding Rehabilitation Nursing and Therapy Center Brighton for his extensive recovery. Paul was highly motivated to complete the healing process ? and get back to his role running a therapeutic sailing program that serves more than 1,000 children and adults with disabilities. ?Although I had some idea of what to expect, it hit home when I came to Spaulding to attain the goal of physical healing, it would take a significant amount of mental fortitude, too,? Paul says. ?Spaulding?s caring, knowledgeable, and compassionate team was a critical factor in accomplishing my goal.? It took 10 weeks of bed rest, highly responsive care, and therapeutic rehabilitation to get Paul back to his power wheelchair again ? and most important to him, back to his role helping others in the disabled community. He credits the Spaulding team for bolstering his spirits through the dreary winter months on bed rest and for

  • Patient Story

    Meet Nick

    Spring 2023 Nick?s Boston Marathon journey began 10 years ago when he was a freshman at Boston College. The day before the race, he was inspired to be on the start line and managed to secure a bib through a club on campus. The next day, he found himself on a school bus en route to the start line of the 2013 Boston Marathon, having never completed a run longer than six miles. Despite his lack of preparation, adrenaline carried Nick through the first 13 miles past the Wellesley Scream Tunnel. His run slowed to a power-walk on his way up Heartbreak Hill, but he was determined to reach his classmates on BC?s campus at Mile 21. The euphoric stretch of high-fives and cheers from fellow BC Eagles carried Nick through miles 20 and 22, and before he knew it, he was approaching the final mile into Copley Square. As he approached the final stretch on Boylston St., excitement quickly turned to confusion when he saw a cloud of smoke and heard what sounded like fireworks behind the finish line. Nick was only a few hundred feet from the second explosion before he was stopped in his tracks and curled up on

  • Patient Story

    Meet Martha and the ?Spaulding Sisters?

    The self-titled ?Spaulding Sisters? made the most of 2020. The group of women met at Spaulding Boston over the past several years, bonding over their shared love of aquatic therapy. When the COVID-19 pandemic closed our community water fitness classes, the Sisters came together to support each other and their health in a whole new way. The ladies are avid participants in the Spaulding Adaptive Sports Program?s virtual classes (launched in response to the pandemic), ?meeting? several times a week to exercise virtually together from the safety of their homes. They are among the more than 1,000 participants who have benefitted from virtual classes like yoga, boxing, exercise for stroke and TBI, dance with Parkinson?s, and more. In 2020, donations were used to pivot Spaulding adaptive sports programming to be entirely virtual?supporting the health and wellness of an even broader community, when so many were isolated and unable to participate in their regular fitness and community activities. Martha Starr, ?Spaulding Sister,? patient, and volunteer, says the virtual programs have been a true lifesaver in 2020. And so have the Sisters? weekly Friday Zoom calls to check in on one another. They share resources and coping strategies, discuss their conditions, and laugh together. Martha

  • Patient Story

    Meet Lauren and Tracey: From Rehab to the Finish Line

    Spring 2023 Watch this special story of a mother and daughter who both underwent outpatient rehabilitation therapy with Spaulding, and recently achieved an incredible feat ? running the Boston Marathon on Spaulding's Race for Rehab Team. Their journey is a testament to the power of healing and perseverance. Join us in celebrating their

  • Patient Story

    Meet Ethan | A Spaulding Story of Strength

    Para leer esta historia en espa?ol, visite nuestra p?gina en el Internet. Who was by your side when you achieved a major life goal? For Ethan Wang, it will be a community of family, friends, and caregivers cheering for him (virtually) as he walks at his Boston University graduation this year. It?s a significant milestone for Ethan, who sustained a spinal cord injury while studying abroad?paralyzing him from the neck down and derailing his junior year of college. In Bali in March 2019, Ethan was critically injured while swimming in the ocean. He needed immediate life-saving surgery, followed by a medical evacuation and more surgeries in Singapore, before he could return home to Massachusetts. Then came the long journey of rehabilitation. Our donor community has been with Ethan on this journey, too. Gifts to Spaulding provide resources and support to help patients like Ethan achieve their goals. ?Our family?s main source of strength is the amazing support we have received,? says Ethan?s father, Willis. ?There is so much strength in community, and that is what has helped us.? Paralysis caused by a spinal cord injury (SCI) is an intense, life-changing event. Ethan spent 148 days as an inpatient at Spaulding Boston, achieving a new physical milestone

  • Patient Story

    Meet Clifton: Surviving Stroke: There and Back Again

    Spring 2023 Life often comes full circle. Clifton Singletary?s Spaulding Rehabilitation story began while he was serving our patients. When he returned to Spaulding as a patient himself, his desire to give back grew stronger. Clifton?s first visit to Spaulding was in July 2013 to escort the Boston Pops as they performed for survivors of the Boston Marathon bombings. Clifton, a decorated Boston police officer, was invited to Spaulding in recognition of his service that day, when he helped load the wounded into ambulances. Clifton never imagined that he would return to Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston almost 10 years later, following a hemorrhagic stroke. Unable to walk on his own and struggling with post-stroke coordination, sensory, and cognitive symptoms, he found that his Spaulding team was determined to get him back on his feet. ?This is beyond professionalism,? he says. ?There?s a level of dedication the people have here that is beyond comprehension.? Spaulding?s personalized approach to care has Clifton not only walking again but inspired to return to the hospital to help others. Part of his efforts include participating in a research study testing a virtual reality?linked treadmill to improve gait performance for stroke survivors like himself. One in four people will have a

  • Patient Story

    Together We Celebrate Spaulding Charlestown, 10 Years Later

    Spring 2023 From fragile first encounters to final goals achieved, rehabilitation is a team sport?and together we celebrate every milestone. This year our team marks a special milestone at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, which moved from our former neighborhood in Boston and opened at our new location in Charlestown 10 years ago in 2013. Since then, Spaulding has helped thousands of patients find their strength through their toughest moments. From recovering after the Boston Marathon bombings to a global pandemic that radically changed medicine as we know it, our commitment to our patients, their families, and the communities we serve has been unwavering. Together we celebrate: 10 years of compassionate clinical care and incredible recoveries 10 years of groundbreaking research and innovative treatments 10 years of disability rights advocacy through programs, partnerships, and universal design 10 years of training and educating future leaders in rehabilitation medicine Across Spaulding Rehabilitation, our goal is to help people get one day better, every day. And whatever triumphs and challenges await, our dedicated team will be there, with your support. Generous donors will help improve the quality of life for each person who comes through Spaulding?s doors in the decade ahead. Thank you for your

  • Patient Story

    Meet Lindsey

    Music helps us heal in countless ways. Our favorite songs lift our spirits, regardless of the challenges we are facing that day. For lifelong performers?even those who only sing in the shower?music is both a treatment and a goal during rehabilitation. The right song can give us the motivation to race one more mile ? or to take just one more step. At Spaulding, music plays a role in our approach to caring not just for the patient, but for the whole person.  When Lindsey Santiago was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) at age 25, she didn?t realize how much her life would change. While she has experienced happy milestones ? marrying her long-time boyfriend, giving birth to their now-3-year-old, Max ? Lindsey?s condition has also progressed and presented new challenges. Spasticity is a common symptom of MS, affecting her feet and legs and requiring Lindsey to use assistance to walk ? and to rely on others to carry her toddler son. ?I have balance issues,? she says. ?When you?re holding a child, you don?t want to fall.? After her stay at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Lindsey now participates in Spaulding?s outpatient neurologic music therapy program to gain steadiness on her feet. She works

  • Patient Story

    Conoce a Ethan

    Qui?n estuvo a su lado cuando lograste una meta importante en su vida? Para Ethan Wang, ser? una comunidad de familiares, amigos y cuidadores que lo animar?n (virtualmente) mientras camina en su graduaci?n de la Universidad de Boston este a?o. Es un logro importante para Ethan, quien sufri? una lesi?n en la m?dula espinal mientras estudiaba en el extranjero, paraliz?ndolo del cuello para abajo y descarrilando su primer a?o de universidad. En Bali, en marzo de 2019, Ethan result? gravemente herido mientras nadaba en el oc?ano. Necesitaba de una cirug?a inmediata para salvarle la vida, seguida de una transferencia m?dica a Singapur para m?s cirug?as, antes de que pudiera regresar a su hogar en Massachusetts. Luego vino el largo camino de la rehabilitaci?n. Nuestra comunidad de donantes tambi?n ha estado con Ethan en este viaje. Los donativos a Spaulding brindan recursos y apoyo para ayudar a pacientes como Ethan a lograr sus metas. "La principal fuente de fuerza de nuestra familia es el incre?ble apoyo que hemos recibido", dice Willis, el padre de Ethan. "Hay mucha fuerza en la comunidad, y eso es lo que nos ha ayudado". La par?lisis causada por una lesi?n de la m?dula espinal (LME) es un evento intenso que cambia

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