[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2025\/09\/spencers-story-brain-injury-rehab\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2025\/09\/spencers-story-brain-injury-rehab\/","headline":"Spencer’s Story: Inpatient Rehab After a Brain Injury","name":"Spencer’s Story: Inpatient Rehab After a Brain Injury","description":"

Spencer Bowens just graduated high school. He has a bright future after completing a month of inpatient rehab at UPMC Williamsport for a serious brain injury. <\/p>","datePublished":"2025-09-01","dateModified":"2025-08-29","author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/rehab","name":"UPMC Rehabilitation Institute","url":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/rehab","sameAs":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/upmc-rehabilitation-institute\/","parentOrganization":"UPMC"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"UPMC HealthBeat","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2153939578-e1756479304688.jpg","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2153939578-e1756479304688.jpg","height":866,"width":2000},"url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2025\/09\/spencers-story-brain-injury-rehab\/","about":["Health Topics A-Z","Neurosurgery and Brain Health","Rehabilitation"],"wordCount":1035,"articleBody":"Amy Bowens will never forget the day her teenage son, Spencer, finally opened his eyes in the intensive care unit at UPMC Williamsport.It was nearly two weeks after a car accident on Feb. 13, 2024, had left him with severe injuries. Along with a brain hemorrhage, Spencer also had a broken pelvis, seven cracked ribs, two collapsed lungs, a laceration of the spleen, and a bladder contusion.\u201cIt was the sign we needed,\u201d Amy says. \u201cOnce I saw his eyes, it was the first time I thought things might be okay.\u201dSpencer, now 18, doesn\u2019t remember the accident or being in the ICU. He barely remembers his time in the inpatient rehabilitation unit, where he was discharged to after spending more than three weeks in the ICU.After months of hard work, he made a full recovery. But if not for the care team at UPMC Williamsport, his mother says, he wouldn\u2019t be where he is today.\u2018He Needs Time\u2019Over and over, that\u2019s what Spencer\u2019s doctors, nurses, and therapists told Amy and her husband, Robert, about their son.\u201cAs a mom, you want things to happen quickly,\u201d she says. But traumatic brain injuries (TBI) play by different rules.The impact of being hit \u2014 Spencer missed a stop sign and a truck hit him on the driver\u2019s side \u2014 had caused several issues. He had bleeding in the right frontal lobe of his brain. He also had a diffuse axonal injury, a type of TBI common with car accidents that can cause neurological damage.Andrea Sann, CRNP, thought Spencer\u2019s axonal injury was mild. \u201cShe said that his body had a great shot at reconnecting the nerves,\u201d Amy says.But because Spencer was on a ventilator and kept sedated, his family didn\u2019t know for sure. All they could do was wait. In the meantime, Spencer had surgery to reconstruct his pelvis, and his other injuries, including his ribs and bladder, began to heal.And then finally, he opened his eyes.Daily Improvements, But a Long Road AheadEven with a feeding tube, Spencer had lost nearly 30 pounds. He was weak and couldn\u2019t sit up by himself.While he was sedated, a physical therapist and an occupational therapist had been doing mobility exercises with him. Once he became alert, they assessed his needs.The good news was that he still had his motor skills. But his voice was a whisper, his mother says, and he struggled to find the right words.He would need extensive inpatient rehabilitation, the care team told Amy and Robert.The Bowens researched all of their options and ultimately chose the UPMC Rehabilitation Institute at UPMC Williamsport.One thing that helped convince them was when Melissa Michaluk, DO, came to see them in the ICU. At the time, Spencer was agitated, and Dr. Michaluk offered suggestions about medication adjustments.\u201cI just felt comforted by her,\u201d Amy says. \u201cHe wasn\u2019t even her patient yet, but she was that committed to his care.”On March 5, 2024, Spencer was admitted to the institute\u2019s traumatic brain injury unit.They had cleared one hurdle, but the journey was just getting started.A Month of Physical Therapy and RehabAs Spencer began getting stronger, he kept trying to get out of bed. Because of his short-term memory problems, he didn\u2019t remember that he wasn\u2019t allowed to. \u201cWe were constantly trying to redirect him so he didn\u2019t reinjure his pelvis,\u201d Amy says.One day, Spencer was so restless that Robert took him on a two-mile \u201cwheelchair walk\u201d around the hospital.The unit staff made a point to learn about Spencer and what he liked. He\u2019s a big history buff, so therapists incorporated that into exercises. \u201cHis speech therapist was always relating things to history facts,\u201d Amy says.They also brought the therapy room to him, because the main therapy room was too stimulating for him. \u201cThey adapted to what he needed,\u201d she says.Spencer has flashes of memory from his time there. \u201cI remember things like showering,\u201d he says. But he can\u2019t always be sure what\u2019s a real memory and what he\u2019s reconstructed from hearing his family talk.\u201cI definitely remember the day I got out,\u201d he says of April 3, 2024. \u201cWe went to the Olive Garden!\u201dThe Bowens family can\u2019t imagine having gone anywhere else for Spencer\u2019s rehabilitation.\u201cIt\u2019s such a hidden gem in our rural community,\u201d Amy says. \u201cHaving it close to home meant family and friends could visit, which was so important in his recovery process.\u201dAmy also adds, \u201cHaving this type of care right in our community allowed for Spencer\u2019s sister, Hannah, to visit on a daily basis. They have a special bond and her presence comforted Spencer, particularly during his recreational therapy \u2013 he often wouldn\u2019t participate unless she was participating, as well.\u201dA Bright Future AheadSpencer\u2019s care team wanted him back in school and around friends as soon as possible. He went back after about a week of being home.\u201cThe neuropsychologist said that was so key for his recovery,\u201d Amy says.Spencer says that it took nearly a year to feel \u201cnormal\u201d again. For example, he struggled with math until one day, it all clicked again.Amy says the doctors told her that\u2019s a typical recovery time. Some things come back fast, and others more slowly.Spencer was able to start driving again last summer, and he completed outpatient therapy in February 2025. He has now graduated high school \u2014 on time \u2014 and is looking forward to starting welding school in the fall.He says he still struggles to find the right word sometimes, and he has some short-term memory and balance issues. But he has no physical restrictions or limitations and currently works in landscaping. \u201cMy phone showed that I walked 8 miles the other day!\u201d he says.For his mother, there\u2019s nothing like seeing her son back to being himself. He worked remarkably hard to get here, but she also credits UPMC Williamsport.\u201cThe whole team did everything right, from the EMT to the trauma unit to the ICU, to the inpatient and outpatient rehab,\u201d she says. \u201cI can\u2019t thank them enough.\u201dSources"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2025","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2025\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"09","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2025\/\/09\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Spencer’s Story: Inpatient Rehab After a Brain Injury","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2025\/09\/spencers-story-brain-injury-rehab\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]