Shownotes
An aneurysm left Jeff paralyzed, but with miraculous perseverance he pushed himself daily to not only walk, but live life to its fullest.
Episode Discussion Points
- As a 5-year-old the aviation bug bit him as he watched planes take off and land
- You don’t get do-overs in life, so spend time with family and loved ones while you can.
- Live with no regret.
- The death of her father and sudden death of his cousin
- Lessons with friends who committed suicide
- Be kind to all
- Don’t always assume things are okay
- Tell them you’re there for them unconditionally, always.
- Also realize you won’t always be there
- If you are grieving
- First, go into the bathroom and smile again
- Remember God is always there
- There are also family members and friends who are there and can be with you—even grieving groups
- Get outside, look around
- Keep moving forward every day
- You are your own advocate—concentrate your energy on find something good or that will make you happy.
- When people are depressed, they project the same sorrow into the future.
- Remind them they don’t know the future.
- Focus on getting through today.
- The aneurysm that paralyzed him
- He took life one breath at a time—”live your life in every breath.”
- Be thankful for the grace God gives to give you each moment and breath
- The advice he gave to a diabetic in the hospital who lost part of his leg—coming from a man paralyzed from the neck down
- Always look to give something back—even in your worst moment you can give something
- Super-power of laughter: Jeff’s goal was to help people laugh when they came to visit him in the hospital. He realized he still had a lot to offer.
- When Jeff woke up paralyzed he wondered where the instruction book was for this. Then he said, “When there is no instruction book for your life, write it yourself!”
- He determined even though he was paralyzed that he was going to walk out of that hospital
- Doing PT he couldn’t feel his body. He had to learn to think differently and take a leap of faith and try.
- Focus on what you can do and use your energy in a positive manner
- He had to motivate the PT to have him work. He gave 100% and he demanded 100% of them.
- Set goals—ridiculous as they might me, and work for them.
- How he walked without feeling his feet
- What paralysis felt like starting from zero all over again—no matter where you are you can figure out miniscule steps to move forward.
- His new job became working on overcoming paralysis
- The funny story he had climbing the Notra Dame Cathedral stairs 6 months later
- There are always two components to trauma and recovery—the physical component and the psychological. You have to work on both.
- Remember while you are working hard that life is going on around you—pause and be thankful for the world around you. You can still breathe, smell, see a sunrise, feel the rain, etc. This ties into Jeff’s favorite Bible verse, Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know.”
- Thank God for your journey—the good and the bad
- It took time for him to allow patience and mindfulness back into his life.
- Pilates and neuromuscular massage therapy are some of the treatments that helped him the most.
- Don’t put a limit on the progress you can make. “Don’t let ‘I can’t’ into my vocabulary.”
- “Do things because you want to, not because you have to.”
Connect with Jeffrey
#tamarakanderson #storiesofhopeinhardtimes #podcast #hope #God #hardtimes #paralysis #stroke #aneurysm #gratitude #babysteps #determination #courage #livelife #BibleVerse #BeStill #Laughter #Behappy #humor
Transcription
You can find the transcription of today's episode here: https://www.tamarakanderson.com/podcasts/jeffrey-a-morse-finding-forward-after-paralysis
