Jesse Malin.Photo:Robin L Marshall/Getty
Robin L Marshall/Getty
MusicianJesse Malinrevealed that he suffered a rare spinal stroke last month, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down.
In an interview withRolling Stone, the singer, 56, recalled the health emergency happening on May 4 while at dinner in the East Village. He suffered a spinal cord infarction — a stroke within the spinal cord or the arteries that supply it — and immediately felt a burning pain in his lower back that slowly migrated to his hips, thighs and into his heels before he collapsed on the restaurant floor.
“This is the hardest six weeks that I’ve ever had,” he said. “I’m told that they don’t really understand it, and they’re not sure of the chances. The reports from the doctors have been tough, and there’s moments in the day where you want to cry, and where you’re scared. But I keep saying to myself that I can make this happen. I can recover my body.”
At Mount Sinai, Malin underwent various spinal procedures before being transferred to a rehab center at NYU on May 18. Calling this “the hardest time of my life,” the rock musician — known for his high-energy performances — said he’s trying to stay optimistic about his recovery so he can get back on stage.
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However, Malin admitted that it can be difficult to keep the “P.M.A.” — positive mental attitude — that he’s often preaching about.
“It’s almost like a joke. Like, ‘You talk all this P.M.A.? Well, see how you deal withthis,’” he said, noting that he’s been recovering.
Rehab for Malin each day consists of three rounds of physical therapy and rehabilitation. He told the outlet that his doctors have a short-term goal of teaching him how to move his body without the use of his legs and do daily tasks.
He said he’ll be discharged later this month and will be in a wheelchair while he continues to recover.
“Just laying here and not being able to walk, it’s very humbling,” the guitarist said, which is why he initially didn’t share the severity of his condition with fans.
“I didn’t want to get into the extremity of it,” Malin said. “And now it’s just time to let people know. Even though I really believe it’s a temporary state, I’m not going to walk out of here tomorrow with a leather jacket and a cane and go hang out at the bar. It’s going to take a lot of work and a lot of being in a wheelchair.
“There’s something liberating about the truth, that this is what’s happening to me right now,” he continued.
source: people.com
