The fight of his life: The Adam Taliaferro Story
It was a beautiful Saturday in September. The Penn State Nittany Lions had traveled to Ohio to battle one of its longtime rivals, the Ohio State Buckeyes. As the fourth quarter began to wind down, Penn State was preparing to face its worst loss in history. There was a little over a minute left in the game when the Ohio State quarterback handed the ball to his running back. As the Ohio State player rounded the corner, Penn State freshman Adam Taliaferro poised to stop him with a head-first tackle he had used to down hundreds of opposing players before.
This time was different. Was it the angle? Was it the force? Was it the speed? No one will know for sure. But as the two collided, this fight over a couple of yards quickly turned into the 19-year-old's fight of his life. "I just remember lying on the field not being able to move," said Adam.
Emergency personnel rushed Adam to a hospital in Ohio where he underwent emergency surgery. Adam had shattered his fifth vertebrae. Surgeons removed the vertebra and its fragments that pressed against his spinal cord. They replaced the vertebrae with a cadaver bone and a metal brace. Doctors couldn't say whether he would ever walk again.
The recovery begins
Warm water therapy helps
A year later
The recovery process
As he recovered from surgery, Adam was transferred to a hospital that specializes in spinal cord injuries. He began weeks of intensive rehabilitation. This vibrant teen now faced the possibility of life without walking. "I just knew I had to get out of that wheelchair," says Adam. Then, right before Christmas, it happened. Adam took his first steps. Adam amazed his family, his doctors and the nation.
Although Adam walked again, he still had a long way to go. He needed continuous physical and occupational therapy to regain some of the strength and coordination he lost in the accident. Once he completed his sessions at the hospital, Adam wanted to continue his therapy, so he started looking for a place where he could get the medical attention he needed, close to home. That's when he discovered Virtua Health's William G. Rohrer Center for HealthFitness, a medically integrated fitness and wellness center that offers state-of-the-art equipment, steam, sauna, and whirlpool, aquatic center, cushioned walk/jog track and heart healthy Virtua Café.
After the therapists and trainers at the Center for HealthFitness talked with Adam's doctors and evaluated his condition, they immediately started Adam on a two-phase approach to rehabilitation. He would undergo personal training on the fitness equipment to build strength and endurance as well as aquatic physical therapy in the warm water therapy pool to build flexibility, coordination, and balance.
"I remember when we met the first time," said Glenn Jones, Center for HealthFitness operations manager. "I was showing Adam around and we just clicked. You can't meet Adam without getting emotionally attached." Adam and Jones worked five days a week on strength training and cardiovascular exercises. "Adam approached his workouts with the same intensity he had on the field," describes Jones.
Warm water therapy
When not working with Jones, Adam was in the warm water therapy pool. "Aquatic therapy was perfect for Adam," says Alli Soowal, MPT, Virtua Health physical therapist. "We can do things in water that would be impossible on land. The water allows Adam to work on key areas aggressively, while taking pressure off his joints."
Warm water offers the benefits of performing physical therapy treatments in a weightless environment. It's a good way to work on strength, movement and balance problems. Aquatic therapy is a great alternative for people with spinal cord injuries, arthritis, balance problems and knee or back surgery.
"I've improved greatly since coming here," says the inspiring teen. "People come up to me and congratulate me on all the hard work. I can't understand it. I feel I owe my recovery to the hard work of the people around me."
A year later
Nearly a year after Adam suffered his injury and with 80 percent of his mobility back, he is spending the summer at State College taking courses and planning a deserved come back. "I got chills the first time I ran through the tunnel to play football at Penn State," describes Adam. "It's a feeling I will never forget. I plan on reliving that feeling as I run through the tunnel with the team on opening day. Although I won't be playing, this time it will mean even more."