The Healing Begins Today: A Memoir of Paralysis, Recovery and Creating a New Life

When Randy Oates finishes the 2007 River Cities Triathlon in a fast time, it seems like all is right with the world. Just a few months away from turning sixty-four, he sees retirement as a succession of blissful years to spend time with his wife, sail, run, cycle-and win more races.

A few days later, a doctor diagnoses Randy's postrace leg cramp as the result of a slightly bulging disk. But when the doctor turns a "routine procedure" into a tragic accident, Randy wakes up a paraplegic. And doctor after doctor tells him he will never walk again.

This could be how his story ends. But it isn't.

Defying the odds, Randy chooses the challenging path of hope and rehab. And with a team of dedicated individuals-including therapists, personal trainers, acupuncturists, and the "Holy Trinity" of his wife, son, and best friend-he slowly moves toward the seemingly impossible task of putting one foot in front of the other.

It takes a village to rebuild Randy Oates, and his candid account in The Healing Begins Today of the people, procedures, and perseverance necessary to win back his life will inspire readers to seek their own "village" to overcome obstacles.