12 Hours of Surgery. A Lifetime of Strength.

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Hi everyone, I’m Dr.

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Rita Roy, CEO of the National Spine Health Foundation and host of the Get Back to It podcast.

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Here we share real stories of healing and recovery from people who’ve overcome spine problems and returned to the lives they love.

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These success stories are powerful, inspiring, and sometimes unbelievable.

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Let’s dive in.

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At the Get Back to It podcast, our mission is to share the stories of spinal champions.

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individuals navigating spine conditions while striving for a better quality of life.

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Today’s guest is Lisa Marsh.

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At 41 years old, Lisa’s life changed in an instant when she was involved in a devastating motorcycle accident on a busy freeway in Southern California.

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The impact left her with a shattered T9 vertebra.

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compressed into fragments near her spinal cord, and it required a 12-hour surgery to stabilize her spine with rods and a titanium cage.

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What followed was a long and difficult recovery, months in a brace, nearly a year away from work, and the challenge of rebuilding her life after a traumatic injury.

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But what makes Lisa’s story so remarkable is truly what came next.

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In the years following her recovery, Lisa didn’t just return to normal life.

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She became an athlete, completing races, training for endurance events, and pushing her body in ways she never had before.

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Her story is one of resilience, reinvention, and discovering strength she never knew she had.

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Let’s dive into it.

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Lisa, I want to take you back to June 2, 2002,

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A day that clearly changed everything for you.

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Can you walk us through what happened?

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It was an early afternoon around lunchtime, I think, and traffic was heavy.

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Everybody going to Magic Mountain in Southern California.

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I live right nearby.

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And we, four others riding on two other motorcycles, me.

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but they were behind me.

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And we were all slowing down because traffic was, it merged right there and there was a lot of congestion.

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And we were slowing down, but we were still going about 60 miles an hour at least.

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So we were in a hurry to get back to the house because we had cold beverages waiting.

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And I was in the very slow, the slowest traffic lane because I hadn’t merged yet.

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And the person who hit me took a right hand turn clear across all lanes of traffic.

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And I saw him coming out of the corner of my eye and I grabbed all the brakes that I could grab.

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And I knew I was gonna, I knew it was gonna be a collision.

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I just knew it.

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And luckily the brain shuts down in times of trauma sometimes.

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And so I don’t remember

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anything after a grab on the brakes.

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And my friends say they thought I was dead.

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And they saw the truck hit me and they say I flew up in the air about 20 feet, then hit the truck on my way down.

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And that’s when my T9 vertebra basically compressed into powder, I was told.

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I broke off his side view mirror and then slid to the shoulder.

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Luckily for me, I always, it didn’t matter if I was just going two blocks away,

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or 100 miles away, I always wore my motorcycle safety equipment with my jacket.

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It had Kevlar in it.

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I had long pants, gloves, a jacket, my jacket and sunglasses and a helmet and long pants, jeans.

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I had jeans on.

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Luckily, that’s what I wore because otherwise I would have had a lot of Rd.

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rash.

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When I was laying on the side of the road, my friend Terry, who was with one of the other riders on the other bikes,

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And she was next to me.

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And she said, I said, what happened?

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And she said, you had a motorcycle accident.

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And I said, what happened?

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And I think, but then when I get to the hospital, I don’t remember the ambulance coming.

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I don’t remember anything after her saying, no, you can’t get up.

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I knew I shouldn’t get up anyway.

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She thought I was dead when she saw me up and fly up in the air.

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They’re like, they call you a freeway flyer.

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My gosh.

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I never even heard that before, but I’m a freeway flyer apparently.

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I remember the ambulance guys when they got there, I do remember that, they asked me like the normal questions, like who’s the president?

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Who’s, what year is it?

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What day is it?

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Blah, blah, blah.

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But I don’t remember what I said really.

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So just sitting there on the side of the road,

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trying to sort of piece together what has happened.

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Did you have any sense of how seriously you were hurt?

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Were you wanting to move?

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Were you able to move?

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Did they tell you not to move?

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What did that?

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What was that like?

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No, they didn’t tell me not to move.

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They didn’t at the time.

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I remember once I woke up and they had probably an intern because that’s about the time of the year that they start, right?

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And so they put you into the ambulance and they transported you to the hospital.

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To the hospital.

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Yeah, but I don’t remember the, I don’t remember any conversations in the ambulance at all.

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None.

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Do you remember being in the ambulance?

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No.

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Wow.

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Okay.

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The next thing I, that’s all, I don’t remember any of that.

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And I don’t remember anything past flying up in the air because, and I don’t remember flying up in the air.

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I just knew I was going to.

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So when the doctors finally started explaining things to you,

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What did they tell you about the extent of the damage to your spine specifically?

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Like I know they told you about you’re going to have surgery, you could have an infection, you could, you know, all that stuff.

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As they started to talk to you about your spine, what, tell, talk us through.

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Yeah, they just told me that the T9 vertebrae was crushed during the impact and it was really just fragments left remaining and they had to take them out and that the neurosurgeon was going to insert

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titanium cage, and they were going to put bone fragments in it to help get the healing going.

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I had a chest tube on my left side, so they had to take that and they had to deflate that lung so they could get that.

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And then I guess they put the chest tube back in.

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So that must have been so freaky.

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Like you’ve been laying in bed for a week.

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You know you’ve had this horrible car accident.

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You’re still kind of processing that.

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Now you’ve been through this hugely long surgery.

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Were you aware how long your surgery was?

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No, not at the time, no.

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I had no idea.

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And now they say, let’s get up and walk.

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And you’re like, can I walk?

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I don’t even know if I can walk.

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So was it a relief to get out of that bed and put your feet on the ground?

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It was kind of a relief, but in another way it was, shoot, they’re going to make me walk every day now.

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because I hadn’t been.

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So how long were you in the hospital then?

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So you were a week before your surgery and then how long after?

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The surgery.

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And then I was in the work in the hospital a total of almost 3 weeks, like 2 days short of three weeks.

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I had a shower so I could get in the shower, but I had a chair, a shower chair.

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But I didn’t know if I was going to be able to walk.

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I knew I could talk.

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But I didn’t know if I was going to be able to walk, if I was going to be able to work.

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I have a really physical job.

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Will I be paralyzed after the surgery?

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I thought about that night too when he came in and said, oh, you could die.

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So when you think back to the first month or so after the accident and after the surgery, what stands out the most about what your daily life was like as you’re beginning?

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A struggle.

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A struggle.

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That’s

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That’s the word.

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I couldn’t even, I couldn’t even bend over to shave my legs.

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So I just couldn’t.

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Yeah.

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And you know, I didn’t want anybody doing that for me.

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Yeah.

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Well, it’s, and then, you know, it’s like, oh, I don’t have anywhere to go.

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Well, I guess I don’t have to do that.

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It’s like all those things.

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It’s.

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Right, I still was getting paid.

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So at least I didn’t, I wasn’t, you know, like, I had really good insurance, I’ll say that.

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Yeah, that’s cool.

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Yeah.

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But I just wanted to be able to do the things that I used to be able to do.

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That’s what I wanted.

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At the end of the day, that’s what I wanted to do.

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Yeah.

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And so you were fitted in the hospital with a plastic brace and you had to go home with that brace.

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Is that right?

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And what did they tell you about that?

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And how long did you have to wear that?

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I didn’t find out till after I was almost three months of wearing it.

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And at my appointment, my three month appointment is when I got to take it off.

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that I found out that day that it’s prevention of further injury.

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So it wasn’t like I had to wear it all the time, but I had to wear it all the time because that’s what they initially told me.

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Yeah.

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So

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I guess probably my second visit, post-op visit, he said, you don’t have to wear it if you’re just watching TV at home.

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So I didn’t have, I only had to wear it if I was up and moving around.

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That was the only time then.

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So for like 2 months, I didn’t do anything.

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I laid on the couch, watched TV, you know, hoping I was gonna get better.

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And yeah, it was a lot of uncertainty.

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And I thought about, am I going to have any, is there really going to be anything that I cannot do?

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That’s what I wanted to know because I’m pretty competitive and I didn’t want to not have that kind of.

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A lot of my co-workers, we’re all like family, right?

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They held a,

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root beer float fundraiser for me.

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I’m like, that just makes me cry.

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I was thinking about it.

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was so sweet.

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They didn’t have to do that, you know?

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So then my boss brought over the money.

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I forget how it was a few $100, but every little bit helps when you’re not working, right?

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And I didn’t really, other than that, I had a couple of friends that I stayed in touch with during that time.

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And I went to a

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luncheon where they were all going to be and they didn’t know that I was going to show up.

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So that was kind of nice to see everybody.

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But yeah, I still didn’t know if I was going to be able to do my job though.

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Right.

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And I was supposed to get a job inside as like an admin person, but the job came open and I wasn’t there because I was out.

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So it went to somebody else.

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So I had to go back to my old job.

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But it was okay.

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It worked out for the best.

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Yeah, no, that’s good.

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Well, sounds like you were slowly finding your way back.

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and doing what you could, gaining a little independence slowly over time, eight months before you could drive a car.

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That’s a long time.

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And even maybe beginning to start some physical therapy, right?

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So as your body began to recover, how did your relationship with physical activity begin to take shape?

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I wasn’t.

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When you said that in the beginning about being an athlete, I’m like, I still don’t even think of myself as an athlete.

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And so it’s hard.

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One of my most favorite shirts has athlete on the back.

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That was one of a proud day.

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But before the accident, I didn’t have a relationship with exercise.

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I really didn’t.

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I walked five to seven miles a day for work.

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Right, you had the physical job.

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And that helped during my recovery as well, if you’re staying active.

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And I was far from being an athlete though.

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I did go to a gym after the accident and after my doctor cleared me to go and I got a trainer and I still didn’t consider myself an athlete then either.

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I was overweight.

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I didn’t exercise except for work.

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It was all about having fun and exercise to me felt like work, not F-U-N, fun.

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Yeah, I didn’t really see that being a part of my life until something shifted about two years later at a doctor’s appointment.

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Okay, we’re at a turning point, Lisa.

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So there’s a real contrast coming here that how you saw yourself before the accident and the surgery versus what was about to come in your life.

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And so, you know, you did become athletic.

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And

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you never thought of yourself that way, but something changed.

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Let’s talk about what happened about two years after the accident.

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I have some friends that worked out and they competed in various sports.

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And one of my friends told me about CrossFit.

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And you know what?

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I drank the Kool-Aid.

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That’s what they say when you go there.

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Did you drink Kool-Aid yet?

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But I became very, I went from being like a couch potato to being super active.

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And it all started with training for 1/2 marathon and completing it actually in Houston.

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And that was pretty fun.

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And I was pretty proud of myself for finishing.

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You know, you got to train for like 6 months.

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And I thought, this canal, this hitting the ground, being good for my back, you know, the jolting.

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But it was fine.

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So yeah.

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And I started, I trained with that.

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And then my doctor said I had no restrictions and could do what I wanted and said, if he did his job right, I never have to have the rods removed.

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Over the past 20 years, I’ve completed multiple 5Ks and 8K and many obstacle races, including a Tough Mudder, down and dirty fun run and spent

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over seven years learning how strong I am and doing CrossFit and CrossFit competitions.

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And it all started with training for that half marathon in Houston.

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That’s absolutely incredible.

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Yeah.

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It is, I see it all.

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And now you’re doing something you’ve never done before and pushing your body in that way.

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I did the Cough Mudder in 2012.

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But yeah, I kept that and I didn’t quit.

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That’s amazing.

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What was it that inspired you to do that?

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How do you go from couch potato to marathon runner after making surgery?

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Oh, because he told me I was going to become diabetic.

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He said, you are becoming pre-diabetic.

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And if you don’t do something about it now, you’ll pay for it later because it comes with all the host of other issues.

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And so that was the impetus that got me to do a whole journey down the road.

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I wouldn’t wait to do that again.

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Not everybody who’s told they’re pre-diabetic begins to train for a marathon, half marathon, full marathon, any marathon, and complete it and then go on to do a whole bunch of more races.

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It was horrible, too.

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The Topmudder was horrible.

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It was freezing cold.

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Yeah, but.

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We didn’t talk about your physical therapy.

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So after your surgery, getting you from post-surgery recovery to the CrossFit gym, there’s a period of time in there.

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Somebody asked me if I was going to physical therapy.

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And I said, you know what?

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The subject never came up.

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What?

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Yeah.

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So my next visit when I went, I don’t remember the time.

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You have to wait for some period of time after a big surgery like that before you start physical therapy.

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So, but did you do physical therapy at all?

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I did.

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I finally went to the doctor and he told me, he said, I will write you a prescription to go have the physical therapy if you want, but you don’t need to have it.

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It’ll just heal just fine on its own.

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I was like, and it was shocking.

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So you could just begin to do more and more activities, however, whatever felt comfortable, and there were no limitations on what you could do at that point.

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Yeah, there was no limitations.

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And so were you in California still at that time?

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Yep.

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Yeah.

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Okay.

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Yeah, I went to Texas.

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That’s where I did the marathon, half marathon.

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And then I moved here in 2010 in Virginia.

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And that’s when I, at the CrossFit

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bug because a co-worker of mine also used to do CrossFit.

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And she said, she told me what all the workouts were.

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And I’m like, I can do that.

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You’re inspiring me.

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I’m afraid to do that.

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That’s good.

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Yeah.

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And the first time I picked up 100 pounds, man, I thought I was the king of the world.

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That’s amazing.

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Yeah.

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So.

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Now we know so much about, building bone mass, building muscle mass, the importance of that to your general wellness, but also your bone health as you age, especially as women, as we approach menopause.

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And, that weight-bearing exercise is so, important.

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You’ve been doing that for all these years.

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So one of the other things when I was in the hospital that they told me was that there was a fireman on

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the floor where I was, and he had the same injury that I had.

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And he’s up and walking around already.

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I’m like, he’s not gonna beat me.

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Competitive.

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How competitive I am.

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Yeah, good though.

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Yeah, I hope he, I hope he got okay.

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I never did see him or I wanna talk to him.

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So Lisa,

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you’ve made this big transformation after your surgery to becoming, a competitive athlete.

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That’s what you are, you are doing it now.

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What has helped you stay consistent with that over the years?

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How are you able to keep doing that?

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I took pictures.

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When I took pictures when I first started CrossFit and I have them, I had them like

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Every so often, every, when I first started, I took them every month.

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And then as time went on, I got, used to my body and I didn’t take them every day.

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But I lost a bunch of weight from doing it.

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I’m not advocating everybody should do CrossFit because then it comes with its own host of injuries as well.

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But just be mindful.

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So when you think about what your spine has gone through,

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and how critical it is, your spine, to everything that we as humans can do from movement to stability.

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It makes what you’re describing even more remarkable because over the years, you have adapted the way that you train to protect your back while staying active.

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Can you talk with us about that?

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I’ve tried to let my trainers know first.

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When I first got there, I told them, listen, I have this.

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my back.

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I told them all about it.

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And they would always make sure that I had the correct form.

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Because if you have the correct form, you can, you’re using your body more efficiently.

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I never did have an issue doing any of the things there.

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I started to learn more about nutrition, what my body needed, and how I could improve it.

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When I started CrossFit, I became, not only was I more confident, I was also more competitive.

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And so that was a driver for me.

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But then pandemic came and most of the CrossFit places closed.

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Yeah.

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What’d you do during the pandemic?

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I got a Peloton.

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Like many people did.

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Yeah.

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And I I’m almost at 2000 rides and yeah, I’m like 14 away or 16 away from 2000 rides.

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Yeah.

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And I do yoga and meditation and all that because I

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I don’t think it’s really smart at my age to, I mean, I could still lift heavy, but is that what I want to do now?

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How about that?

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We can just say that.

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So describe to us, to me and to our listeners, what is your daily and weekly exercise routine like now?

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I usually do a lot more on the weekends than I do during the week because I work

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10 hour days for four days a week.

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So I’m off Saturday, Sunday, Monday every week, which is great in itself.

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But during the week, I probably don’t do a whole lot.

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I might do some yoga.

00:21:13 Speaker 2

I always do meditation every night before I’m going to sleep.

00:21:17 Speaker 2

30 minute meditation because I get out of my head and I can just focus.

00:21:22 Speaker 2

Yeah.

00:21:23 Speaker 2

And then otherwise, I would get up, ride my bike, and maybe walk the dogs, for sure walk the dogs.

00:21:31 Speaker 2

And

00:21:33 Speaker 2

I just am more careful.

00:21:36 Speaker 2

Just more careful.

00:21:38 Speaker 2

When I would come home sometimes if I have enough time in my day between work and getting home and taking the dogs out, I want to have a little bit of time at home.

00:21:51 Speaker 2

And I don’t want to just come home and just ride the bike every day.

00:21:54 Speaker 2

Because I want to read and there’s other things that I want to do too.

00:21:58 Speaker 2

But I do like to stay physically active.

00:22:01 Speaker 1

Yeah.

00:22:02 Speaker 1

and it’s so important to do the stretching and flexibility component along with the, weight training and other cardio, cardio exercises that you do.

00:22:14 Speaker 1

So it’s like you’ve got this nice cornucopia of things that you’re doing to take care of your body and mind.

00:22:21 Speaker 1

And that is so awesome.

00:22:23 Speaker 1

So I’m going to move along here with your spine story is not completely over because many

00:22:31 Speaker 1

years after your recovery and becoming an athlete, you began to feel a lump in your back near your fusion site.

00:22:41 Speaker 1

Can you talk to us about that part of your story?

00:22:46 Speaker 2

After 21 years, I felt lumpy.

00:22:52 Speaker 2

That’s what I named him.

00:22:54 Speaker 2

And I hadn’t gained any weight.

00:22:59 Speaker 2

Basically since my

00:23:00 Speaker 2

Since I started becoming active, I’d stay pretty normal, same weight all the time.

00:23:07 Speaker 2

When I went to the doctor and told him that I had a big lump in my pushing out my back, of course they had me do X-rays and so on.

00:23:17 Speaker 2

But the X-rays, when they took them, showed the upper part of the rods were coming up detached from the

00:23:29 Speaker 2

my spine, where they had them hooked.

00:23:32 Speaker 2

And they were pushing out.

00:23:35 Speaker 2

And so was T9 was coming out because of that as well, because they were also like that on the bottom.

00:23:42 Speaker 2

So I was told that I should have some surgery sooner rather than later, because if I was in an accident, it would be very bad.

00:23:50 Speaker 2

So.

00:23:51 Speaker 1

They took the rods and the screws out.

00:23:53 Speaker 2

Yep, all the rods, all the screws, everything but the cage out.

00:23:57 Speaker 2

And they put in

00:23:59 Speaker 2

medical cement in the places where.

00:24:02 Speaker 1

They spackled it up, right?

00:24:04 Speaker 1

They spackled it up.

00:24:05 Speaker 2

Yeah.

00:24:05 Speaker 2

I was just fascinated by that.

00:24:07 Speaker 2

I was in the hospital for one whole day and one night, the night before or night of the surgery.

00:24:14 Speaker 2

And then the next day I got released.

00:24:16 Speaker 2

That’s it.

00:24:17 Speaker 2

Back to work in about 6 weeks.

00:24:19 Speaker 1

Wow.

00:24:19 Speaker 2

I know it was crazy.

00:24:21 Speaker 2

No brace, nothing like that.

00:24:24 Speaker 1

Amazing.

00:24:25 Speaker 1

And I think that all that activity and exercise and strength building that you’ve done over those 20 years made it possible for you to easily go in, have that surgery, which was maybe a little bit bigger of a surgery than you thought, get that stuff out, patch it up, and you bounce back because you’re in good shape going into it.

00:24:46 Speaker 1

Well, other lessons learned from your story as we’re winding down here, finding the right doctor,

00:24:52 Speaker 1

Having a support system in place.

00:24:54 Speaker 1

You had your mom with you in those early days of that big surgery.

00:24:59 Speaker 1

You had friends and their support sort of all the way through.

00:25:03 Speaker 1

You know, we need those things as we’re going through this difficult journey, whether it’s from a traumatic accident like you had or it’s degenerative conditions that are resulting in some condition for your spine, having that support system around

00:25:21 Speaker 1

is so important.

00:25:23 Speaker 1

And you were so lucky to have that with your mom and getting through that.

00:25:31 Speaker 1

I think another lesson to learn from your story, Lisa, that’s just so impactful and inspiring is the life transformation that happens when you go through something like this and realizing that your mobility

00:25:47 Speaker 1

is a gift.

00:25:48 Speaker 1

I loved what you said about exercise was work, it wasn’t fun, but something changed in your brain and it became this competitive, fun thing that you have embraced.

00:26:01 Speaker 1

And that’s a lesson for all of us to learn.

00:26:05 Speaker 1

It’s that when your doctor says take a walk, you’re lucky you get to take a walk.

00:26:10 Speaker 1

There are people who can’t walk, right?

00:26:12 Speaker 1

and realizing that exercise is a gift.

00:26:14 Speaker 1

It’s not a chore.

00:26:15 Speaker 1

It’s something you get to do.

00:26:19 Speaker 1

That was something you embraced in your mindset here.

00:26:21 Speaker 1

Lisa, as we wind down, what words of wisdom do you want to share with our listening audience?

00:26:27 Speaker 1

What would you say to people?

00:26:30 Speaker 2

I would say reach out to someone who has your best interests at heart.

00:26:35 Speaker 2

Whether it’s a family member or a really close friend, it’s important to keep those relationships.

00:26:41 Speaker 2

Even, as you get older, it’s even harder to make friends, I think, sometimes.

00:26:48 Speaker 2

It’s hard to keep those connections when you’re further away as well.

00:26:51 Speaker 2

However, you know, you have your people.

00:26:53 Speaker 2

I have my people.

00:26:54 Speaker 2

And all I have to do is call them out.

00:26:56 Speaker 2

Make sure you keep those people in your life.

00:26:59 Speaker 2

Because you may need them.

00:27:00 Speaker 2

They may need you.

00:27:02 Speaker 1

What do you hope, what were you excited about when you reached out and wanted to come join our spinal champion community?

00:27:09 Speaker 2

I want to be a spinal champion, spinal health champion, because I’ve known people who are just so frightened of having a back surgery.

00:27:19 Speaker 2

I’m not saying they shouldn’t have a back surgery, but sometimes it helps them or helps someone who’s facing a choice like that.

00:27:28 Speaker 2

And just to talk to somebody who’s had

00:27:31 Speaker 2

at specific surgery done to share the experience, what they might be having questions about and don’t know anybody to ask besides their doctor, how to approach them.

00:27:47 Speaker 1

Lisa, that is so beautiful.

00:27:48 Speaker 1

That is what we are here to do.

00:27:50 Speaker 1

That is the heart of our mission.

00:27:52 Speaker 1

is giving hope to others by sharing stories like yours.

00:27:57 Speaker 1

And we say all the time, it’s not a straight Rd.

00:28:00 Speaker 1

right?

00:28:01 Speaker 1

It’s not necessarily a straight Rd.

00:28:03 Speaker 1

or an easy journey.

00:28:04 Speaker 1

And there are bumps along the way.

00:28:07 Speaker 1

And so, you know, you got to do your part, find a medical team that’s going to do their part.

00:28:14 Speaker 1

And it’s a partnership.

00:28:17 Speaker 1

for sure.

00:28:18 Speaker 1

But what a journey it is worth doing when you do it right and you get the kind of life benefits that you have had, that you have shared.

00:28:28 Speaker 1

And I share that with you also.

00:28:30 Speaker 1

And that’s why I’m so inspired to do the work that I do after a very successful spine surgery that I put off for a long time and got my life back.

00:28:39 Speaker 1

And so we’re here to let people know.

00:28:41 Speaker 1

High five.

00:28:43 Speaker 1

You know, you’ve got to have the right diagnosis, the right

00:28:46 Speaker 1

surgeon, the right care team, the right treatment for what you have.

00:28:51 Speaker 1

Make sure you have that constellation of things in place and then…

00:28:57 Speaker 1

and then go for it, right?

00:29:00 Speaker 1

Get your life back.

00:29:02 Speaker 1

Lisa, thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing your story.

00:29:05 Speaker 1

You are a spinal champion and you are an advocate.

00:29:08 Speaker 1

And so we’re so delighted that you’re joining our community.

00:29:12 Speaker 1

You’re going to be available as an advocate in our program.

00:29:16 Speaker 1

And you know, it’s like I said, it’s the heart of our mission.

00:29:19 Speaker 1

It’s what we live to do and meeting people like you.

00:29:24 Speaker 1

It’s just it’s the wind in our sails as an organization.

00:29:27 Speaker 1

of who we are and what we hope to achieve.

00:29:31 Speaker 1

you’re just an inspiration.

00:29:34 Speaker 1

And what you’ve been through is extraordinary.

00:29:37 Speaker 1

The strength you’ve built both physically, emotionally, mentally is incredibly inspiring.

00:29:44 Speaker 1

And your journey shows that recovery isn’t just about returning to where you were.

00:29:50 Speaker 1

It can be about becoming even better and stronger than you were before.

00:29:54 Speaker 1

At the National Spine Health Foundation, we believe deeply in providing hope through shared stories and trusted education.

00:30:02 Speaker 1

Millions of people live with spine-related pain and conditions, and it can feel isolating, but you are not alone.

00:30:09 Speaker 1

To hear more spinal champion stories and to access spine health resources,

00:30:13 Speaker 1

visit us at spinehealth.org.

00:30:16 Speaker 1

If you’d like to contribute to our show financially, you may do so on the donate link on the website.

00:30:22 Speaker 1

Thank you for listening.