Finding courage in recovery: Minnetonka woman trying to heal from spinal cord injury

Diane Lundmark takes a journey of courage.

“This whole thing has taught me so much about patience, humility and being present,” she explains.

In September, Diane, 59, of Minnetonka, and her husband, Kirk, were visiting their son in Montana.

In the bathroom, she fainted and hit her head on a counter, causing a spinal cord injury.

“Basically, her C5 (vertebrae) dislocated and extended over the top of C6, affecting the spinal nerve,” Kirk explained.

That impact left Diane, an active cyclist and former adaptive volunteer ski instructor at Allina Health Courage Kenny Rehabilitation Institute, paralyzed from the chest down.

Now she is back as a patient.

“I can only imagine what it took to get them to the ski hill,” says Diane. “And now I live that, that I know how long it takes.”

Now she receives five hours a day of physical and occupational therapy for five weeks, plus speech therapy to project her voice and train her diaphragm at the Courage Kenny Clinic at Allina Health’s Abbott Northwestern Hospital.

An electrical machine helps stimulate her muscles and nervous system.

“She’s doing really well,” explains Dr. James Spendley, a spinal cord injury rehabilitation specialist at the Courage Kenny Institute. “There are always speed bumps in anyone’s recovery, and that is why she is here at Acute Rehab Center Abbott.”

Diane says she still has no feeling from the chest down.

But she moves her arms more fully and feels muscle sensations as she stretches and in her abdominal muscles.

“We’re on this train with her,” Kirk declares. “She goes as far as she can, and we are here to support her 100%.”

Diane says she’s not sure how far her recovery will go, but she’s already making plans to be even more of an advocate for others with spinal cord injuries.

A tough journey, yes, but Diane, surrounded by her family and her care team, shows no signs of slowing down.

“I see the light at the end of the tunnel because I know I will get stronger. Maybe continue to become a little more independent,” she says. “But I know I have a journey to go before I get there.”

You can find out more about a crowdfunding effort to help with Lundmark’s medical costs here.