Road to Recovery |
| After his surgery in Reno, he was flown to Santa Clara where he spent six weeks in in-patient therapy. Therapy was three hours a day, six days a week. The focus was adapting to life in a wheelchair, as the Doctor's prognosis was that Sparky would never walk again. |
| While Sparky was in the hospital, friends worked to update his home for wheelchair access. After returning home, therapy was reduced to two hours a week. On May 19, 2008, at a party thrown for Sparky's homecoming, Sparky had his first breakthrough - his toes began to move on his left foot. |
| Sparky's positive attitude and overall determination would not let him accept the doctor's prognosis; He has far too much drive to give up. He was bound and determined to find a way to improve his life. With this in mind, Sparky decided he needed far more therapy then was being offered to him. He soon found SCI Fit in Pleasanton, a therapy center that specializes in spinal cord injury and pushes patients to reach their maximum potential. He also found the Locomat, a state of the art gait training machine at OHSU in Portland, Oregon. A weekly trip to Portland, twice a week at Pleasanton, and two trips a week to Valley Medical increased the time investment to nearly forty hours per week. |
| Santa Clara Valley Medical Center has been called the premier spinal cord injury clinic in the area. The staff there introduced Sparky to the FES bike. This is a machine that induces electrical stimulation to the muscles, a process rumored to have much success in the connection of brain to muscle. They have also been responsible for acquiring leg braces that have been instrumental in standing and walking with the help of a walker or parallel bars. |
| The average monthly cost for therapy and transportation is approximately $7000. Progress has been slow, but continuous. After four months of six day a week therapy from the various facilities Sparky has a few new tricks: he can lift both legs off the ground while sitting, ride a stationary bike at the "no resistance" setting, and do the "Sparky shuffle" with leg braces and a walker. Core, balance, and upper body strength have all increased. Sparky's long term goal is to leave his house without his chair for the day. Short term goals are numerous and all lead to more recovery. |
Getting to know Sparky |
Mark "Sparky" Muhn was born December 7, 1956, in Columbus, Ohio. He started, as he puts it, "bending nails" when he was fourteen years old. He continued to learn construction jobs and started framing in Ohio in the early 70's. He moved to California in 1974 and thought "he had made it" when he started making $5.00 an hour in construction. He started Muhn and Sons when he was 29 years old, focusing on construction of restaurants, office buildings and custom homes. Sparky also started on creating his large family. His children Sheena, Mark, Dustin, Nick, Alex and Donna have been one of his greatest joys. In 2002, Sparky found the light of his life, his wife Carol. They married and with the addition of her children Sara, Ryan, Scotty and Jason they moved to Morgan Hill where they purchased a 6 acre "fixer upper" ranch that was heavy on the fixer upper part. Improving the property was a family adventure, but this is not surprising as Sparky has always been the adventurous type. |
| Sparky has always led a full and bold life with activities including: hang gliding, white water rafting, gliding, skiing, and dirt bike riding. He is even a pilot. He loves to travel to new and exotic destinations. His love of family and adventure and his drive to be successful in all of his endeavors is what has helped Sparky with his current challenges. When I asked what he has learned most from his current situation, he said that when situations like this happen "you really find out who your friends and family are, and I am so grateful for the ones I have." |
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