Jessi is Walking (Again) Into His Adult Life After Two Months at Northwest Transitions Inpatient Rehabilitation

9/3/2026

At only 18 and recently graduated from high school, Jessi was unusually young to be a patient at Northwest Transitions Inpatient Rehabilitation – but he spent two months there after sustaining a spinal cord injury during scoliosis surgery.

“I was an incomplete quadriplegic, which means paralyzed from the chest down,” he explains.

Jessi, who was suffering from blood pressure issues and muscle spasms in addition to immobility, needed to relearn even the most basic of skills, including transferring from his bed to a wheelchair.

“Once I was able to do that with help, I knew they were going to get me up and moving,” he says, “I’d been very active before surgery, and I told myself I was going to change my attitude and leave Transitions with a goal – to walk out.”

Jessi credits the staff – particularly therapists Kendra, Kirsten, and Ed – for helping him build that new positive attitude.

“Every day, I felt my whole body getting stronger, my balance getting better, and the muscles in my legs and core reactivating,” he says. “I got used to my therapy schedule and never said ‘no’ to anything they wanted me to do. I had a lot of fun.”

Jessi, who is now walking, driving, going to the gym, and covering his share of family housework, plans to start college next year – with a major in exercise physiology.

“I’m grateful I went to Transitions – and grateful for my life,” he says.

Congratulations to Jessi on his hard work and inspiring recovery, and thanks to the staff who made it possible.

To learn more, including viewing a virtual tour, visit Northwest Transitions Inpatient Rehabilitation.

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