A Burlington, Vermont-based foundation is supporting a Capital Region resident’s recovery from spinal cord injury.
It’s New Year’s Day 2020, and Chris Lysogorski is leading a snowmobile train in New York’s Lewis County when a tree comes down across the trail.
“I hit it probably about doing 60… sent me flying,” Chris said.
That accident broke his neck at the C6-C7 level, right above its base, setting in motion a long rehabilitation journey.
“I was in Upstate Hospital for two months. And then in rehab for two months. I finally made it home June 8, 2020. And it's been just day by day getting better and better,” Chris said.
26 now, Chris lives with his family in Guilderland. Before the accident, Chris was an active outdoorsman and a gearhead.
“I used to race cars at Lebanon Valley when I was a kid. And then from there on, it's been working on cars, friends, cars, you name it. Dirt bikes, snowmobiles,” Chris said.
Although getting back to that might not be possible, he still wants to be outside:
“We were doing active sports through SunnyView. And Kathy, she does the adaptive kayaking. And I was showing up to everyone. I enjoyed it. I was getting good at it. And she was like, ‘oh, you should sign up for this grant.',” Chris said.
The grant, through the Burlington-based Kelly Brush Foundation, is meant to support adaptive technology for spinal cord injury victims. It’s helping Chris and his family outfit an adaptive kayak, which will have outriggers, a handle for the oars, a chair specially fitted for Chris, and wheels to roll into the water.
In addition to his parents, Chris’s family includes three dogs: Chief, a chocolate lab, Blue, a silver lab, and Maggie, a chihuahua.
Chris says his experiences have opened his eyes to new possibilities.
“I'm still trying to figure that out. I do want to go back to school, and maybe try psychology or something like that,” Chris said.
He says he’s considering becoming a therapist himself.
“There’s really not many people who can relate, being in a wheelchair and everything.”
Since he doesn’t have the kayak yet, that doesn’t mean he’s not exercising:
“Wake up, stretch. And then I do overlap bars. I like to do at least five sets of 10 and then I get on the bike for at least 15 minutes,” Chris said.
That keeps his tendons from tightening.
Ralph Lysogorksi, Chris’s dad, says although he’s glad to care for his son, it’s a challenge.
“Any aides are very hard to find. We thought we had a good one. And yeah, no, it didn't work out so well,” Ralph said.
But that might be changing as New York lawmakers push for more aid for spinal cord injury sufferers. Chris was among attendees who gathered at the state capitol recently to call for it.
Again, Ralph:
“Christopher has come a long way. He's had nerve transplants, tendon transplants, where he's actually got his arms. He's got his thumb, which we'll call it, which will help them do it the kayaking you know, to help them do all that kayaking. He loves being outside, you know, he's always been an outside kid,” Ralph said.
Which is where the Kelly Brush Foundation steps in. Brush says, as a spinal cord injury sufferer herself, she understands Chris’s situation.
“I was an athlete my whole life, I love to be outside and active and I became a ski racer. And I went to Middlebury College, I was on the Alpine Ski Team there. And when I was at Middlebury, I had an accident, I fell and hit a lift tower,” Brush said.
That was 18 years ago, and says she thought the break, at the T7 level in the middle of her back meant she was never going to be active again.
“When I realized that wasn't the case, and I learned about adaptive sports, it really sort of opened my eyes up to what my life could still be like,” Brush said.
Brush says there’s a variety of adaptive equipment the foundation will help cover, such as a bike, a chair for tennis, or a handcycle, among others.
Recipients are chosen through an application process, and are supported through grants from the foundation’s Active Fund. Brush says two grant cycles are done every year, and she adds about 300 have been awarded so far in every state in the U.S.
Brush says the foundation doesn’t directly supply the equipment. Instead, she says, recipients get quotes from vendors, and then the foundation will send money directly to the vendor once the recipient has paid their portion of the cost.
Her foundation also runs camps to bring together those with spinal cord injuries.
Dr. Jennifer Miller, a physiatrist with Albany Medical Center who specializes in muscle, nerve or tendon problems, says, while every case of spinal cord injury is different, there is a process, and says the severity depends on the level and completeness of the injury.
“When there's a complete injury, everything lower than the area of injury is both paralyzed and not receiving sensation. And other organ systems in the body are affected significantly as well. Whereas in an incomplete injury, the signaling is interrupted, but some of that signaling is still passing through the body and getting to those structures,” Miller said.
Miller says recovery involves seeing what areas and body systems need the most help.
“We'll look at things like whether muscles are too tight and they're not able to control spasms within muscles related to their tetraplegia. We'll talk about those strategies that they're using to empty their bladder and whether or not they are agreeing with their day-to-day routine, or if they need to try something different,” Miller said.
Chris says as soon as the kayak comes, he’ll be back outside.
“My parents own a place up on Great Sacandaga Lake. So I will be bringing it up there,” Chris says.
More information can be found here.
