In a special episode of our podcast, RJ and Lou bring on a good friend of theirs, Frank Guirlinger, to tell his story.

In 2005, Frank was living the American dream, working with in real estate development, building a seven-figure nest egg for he, his wife, and their two children.

One day, he started having neck pain, which he attributed to long hours and hard physical work.  Then, one morning he collapsed and couldn't move.  He had a spinal cord infection, an abscess in the C3 area of his neck.   He ended up at DMC Hospital in Detroit.  He later found out that, at the time, doctors gave him a 25% chance of surviving surgery.  And they believed if he did, he'd be paralyzed and never even be able to lift a finger.

But as he's always done, Frank kept fighting.   This included being unable to move, having to be intubated with pneumonia, and spending 40 days feeling like he was drowning.   But he improved, and was able to be moved to a facility in Ann Arbor.

After being released, Frank went through more rehab, eventually running out of money.  He didn't want to ask for help, but was left with no choice.   But he continued to improve, weaning himself off of narcotics, and treating his pain and injuries with more holistic methods.  Today, he's able to move around, drive, and has most of his motor function back.   

The last step in Frank's recovery is a trip to Panama for a stem cell transplant, which he hopes will alleviate more of his chronic pain.  He has a website where you can learn more.

https://helphopelive.org/campaign/16189/