Tyrell Staley: Making Progress
Article by Valerie Sliker, courtesy Wagener Monthly
When Tyrell Staley became a quadriplegic after an auto accident, the doctors predicted that Tyrell would never again have controlled movement from the neck down. During his second trip to The Shepherd Center in Atlanta this past August, he continued to exceed doctors’ expectations, this time by maneuvering his wheelchair frontwards and backwards with no assistance. (See WagenerSC on Facebook for videos.)
This functionality is yet another step towards independence, another step doctors initially presumed Tyrell would never achieve when he first damaged his spine at the cervical 5 and 6 levels in an auto accident at the age of 21.
Tyrell’s mom, Vicky Staley was exuberant. “Each time we go back to the Shepherd’s Center, there is something different they can have Tyrell train to do to become more independent.” Staley called me from Atlanta, praising God and practically singing, “I used to walk and push him to the elevator and punch the buttons, you know. All I have to do now is open the door to his room. He gets where he needs to go (at the Shepherd Center) all by himself now.
“When Tyrell is at the Shepherd Center, his whole mental state is totally different than when he’s home. It’s a whole new world down there. The people there are awesome.” The Shepherd Center provides intense therapy rehab for those with brain injuries. It is entirely handicap accessible and provides physical therapists, recreational and exercise instructors and more, but improvement depends on how strong Tyrell is and where he is physically during his stay there.