Hi, Conner here!

In supporting this fundraiser you are joining a global community of like-minded individuals in celebration of small victories that add up little by little to achieve huge results, while supporting me in my recovery from a spinal cord injury.

This recovery is physical and mental. The funds raised here go directly to helping me continue to pay off bills associated with my injury as well as work with movement professionals in progression towards my goals of recovery. Additionally, I am going back to school to train in a new career path.

Thank you so much for being here and all of your continued support. You are the reason I am able to keep striving the way that I have and I am so grateful.

My story...

January 22, 2020 started as a fantastic day. It was a month to the day before my 30th birthday, I was in Puerto Escondido in the south west tip of Mexico for a wedding and my biggest worry was if I had forgotten a collared shirt for the affair. The sun was shining, the weather was hot, and my girlfriend Jane and I decided to go to the beach for a couple of hours to work on our tans and splash around in the ocean.

But then, in an instant, everything changed.

While swimming, I was picked up by a wave and slammed down onto the beach. I clearly remember the unmistakable and never welcome sound of bones breaking as my C4 vertebrate fractured and my C5 invertebrate burst completely. My spinal column shifted and I was paralyzed from the neck down, floating helplessly, face in the waves unable to breath. I screamed the air out of my lungs, fully conscious of my need for more and my inability to get it myself. Luckily, Jane was nearby and saw my limp body in the surf. She flipped me right side up and pulled me out of the water to safety.

With the help of a bilingual couple on vacation from Guadalajara that saw the accident, an ambulance was called. Those same selfless individuals came with us to the hospital, translated medical documents, spoke on my behalf with the doctors, and got our bags from the Airbnb. This was the first of an incredible amount of love and support that has been instrumental in my continued recovery.

I spent the night shirtless, covered in sand, heavily sedated on the third floor of the open air hospital while a network of family and friends jumped into action to get me the best care possible. Calls in multiple languages were placed in multiple countries to surgeons, hospitals, medical flight companies, insurance companies and embassies. The next day I had a medical flight to Mexico City and surgery scheduled with one of the most experienced surgeons in the country.

The next weeks took me from the intensive care unit to the spinal cord specific rehab unit, from being attached to oxygen to being able to breathe on my own, from being completely immobile from my neck down to being able to move my shoulders and biceps. I was doing five hours of therapy a day and being shifted and rotated every two hours to fight pressure ulcers. The poking and prodding of tests was constant. This was a difficult time made better by the support of my family, friends and even the kindness of complete strangers.

Among those strangers was a man named Luis. I met him during physical therapy, watching him learn how to run and work on strengthening the fine motor skills in his hands. He later told me his story as to how he came to be where he was today. His journey started with a stroke that left him in the hospital unable to move anything but his eyelids. He spent four months in the hospital and then continued to come back for rehab every day for the next three months. He shared with me his philosophy of recovery, which was by working constantly throughout the day, everyday, “poco a poco”. It's so simple, so concise, so utterly manageable. Poco a poco...little by little.

A month later I was out of Mexico. The day before my 30th birthday I had the second medical plane ride of my life taking me from Mexico City to San Jose where I spent the next month and a half at inpatient rehab in Santa Clara. The coronavirus began to take hold across the nation and restrictions in the hospital clamped down. Eventually, no visitors were allowed.

Regardless, everyday brought an opportunity to work harder and get better “poco a poco”. And, slowly, the results of my hard work began to pay off. Some stability was coming back and with it, strength and mobility.

Eventually, I was well enough to go home. This time, by a rented wheelchair accessible van. I continue to recover, growing stronger all the time. It takes hours of stretching and exercise at home in addition to physical therapy, occupational therapy, personal training at an adaptive gym, and pilates to continue to get results. The results are astonishingly slow, but results nonetheless.

In the big picture, it's incredibly overwhelming. The time, money, and effort that has been expelled already is astronomical. And, looking forward, the task in front of me seems too big to conquer. But, broken down, everything becomes much more manageable. The body is an amazing thing meant to be used and enjoyed. It will take care of itself better than can ever be imagined. The milestones will continue to come one step at a time, “poco a poco”.

Celebrating the wins since my accident in 2020:

A lot of you may be asking about me and my physical improvements from last year. Equipment and workouts aside, what results were yielded from all of those funds raised?

Unfortunately, the progress is small, slow, and difficult to describe but rest assured, I am getting stronger and my goals are getting closer.

For example:

I can now army crawl
I can roll myself while flat on my side onto my stomach and elbows
While seated, I can use my arms to off weight my butt, even getting clearance of my body coming off of the ground

The wins outlined above identify the progress made since my injury in 2020. I can’t thank you all enough for all of your support in making the progress possible.

Setting goals for 2022:

The wins outlined above are the first step towards my goals for 2022, including:

Being able to transfer myself
Being able to roll from my back to my stomach and vice versa

These examples of strides that I have taken in the last year lead me directly towards my short term goals of being able to roll and transfer myself. Being able to do these two things opens up an entire world of opportunities and independence, and it is only made possible because of you.

Other goals for 2022:

I want to learn how to swim! It’s going to take a little trial and error and a lot of floaties but I’m getting in that water
To be able to push my wheelchair for a mile without a break

Huge thank you for the support in helping me reach these goals. You are the reason I am able to accomplish them Poco A Poco!

Poco A Poco: A Fundraiser For SCI Athlete, Conner Slevin

By Brawl for a Cause

Poco A Poco: A Fundraiser For SCI Athlete, Conner Slevin

In celebration of the small victories this past year and in recognition of SCI athlete, Conner Slevin, and his fighting spirit.