At 17, Jaquie Goncher suffered from a spinal cord injury and became paralyzed from the neck down. Her doctors said it was unlikely that she’d ever walk again.
Just a month after her injury though, Goncher was able to make the tiniest of movements in her legs, and half a year later, was able to stand up. Despite this progress, Goncher still spent more of her time in a wheelchair.
But she wasn’t letting the chair confine or define her.
Over the past eight years, Goncher forced herself to go to the gym and remain active, pushing herself physically further and further to improve her low blood pressure. “[My body pressure]’s what poops out on me before my body does,” Goncher explained.
Going to the gym, however, wasn’t easy. She confessed that many times, she had to force herself to stay and keep pedaling at the stationary bike, even when her legs were unable to move fast enough for the machine to register.
There were times when Goncher got so upset that she just sat on the bike, put her head on the machine, and cried because everything felt so hopeless.
At her low points, Goncher found inspiration and motivation from the people around her. Other gym-goers would go up to her and say, “You're inspiring me. I was complaining over there and then I saw you.” Their positive words encouraged her to keep pushing forward.
Every time she returned home from the gym, her husband was another huge force of motivation. Goncher recalled, “He was just there to keep me on it. ‘Did you go to the gym today? How was it?’ Actively asking how it was going.” He did everything he could to support his wife – both mentally and physically – through her recovery.
After months and years of continuously pushing herself forward, Goncher finally made it to the day of her wedding. She approached the aisle in her wheelchair with her mother on one side, her grandfather on the other.
Just before the aisle, Goncher stood up and walked down it herself. She’d kept her eyes on the ground the entire time, so she never noticed that all her guests had started crying.
Although Goncher was able to walk by the time of her wedding, she knows there’s still quite a way for her to go in regards to her recovery. She would like to be able to walk more without the support of her cane and still occasionally feels self-conscious of how she appears to others, but constantly reminds herself that it’s already “miraculous” that she’s walking.
“[The wedding] reminds me of what a miracle it is that I can walk now,” Goncher admitted.
