Stories of Triumph
Conditions of the brain and spine are complex, and symptoms can affect even the simplest daily tasks. Baptist Health Brain & Spine Care offers expert, personalized medical care. Our team is focused on helping you feel better so you can get back to doing the things you love.
We’re grateful to the many Baptist Health Brain & Spine Care patients willing to share their stories of life-changing treatments and comebacks they never thought possible.
Read their stories of triumph.
Competitive Bodybuilder Back to Champion Status After Minimally Invasive Spinal Fusion
Julia Buitrago, 53, is the epitome of physical fitness, a competitive bodybuilder and owner of the Body Concept by Julia gym along with her husband Mario, a boxing coach.
Retired Dolphin Kim Bokamper: Back Surgery ‘Gave Me My Life Back’
Retired Pro Bowl linebacker, Kim Bokamper, saw no other choice than to go through with the back surgery that would ultimately return him to a normal life.
Former Olympic Rower, 76, Rebounds From Sudden Stroke: 'I wasn’t Expecting This at All'
It was 50 years ago when Lawrence “Monk” Terry, now 76 and a resident of Coral Gables, won a silver medal with the U.S. rowing team at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany.
Marcus Neurosurgeon Saves Boca Raton Woman from Possible Permanent Disability
Darlene Beckett knew something was wrong the minute it happened. Her husband had fallen while they were on vacation in 2018 and needed help getting back on his feet. When she bent over and tried to lift him up, she felt a sharp pain radiating from her back to her neck.
‘I Basically Got My Life Back’ – How Experts at Miami Neuroscience Institute Defeated This College Student’s Tumor and Debilitating Disorder
In March 2020, college student Gianna Schembari, 23, began to battle an illness that she would later learn is an extremely rare disorder of the endocrine system, the body’s complex network of glands and organs which uses hormones to control critical functions...
Boynton Beach Man Back to Doing What He Loves After Surprise Brain Tumor Diagnosis
Dan Vismor has lived in South Florida for more than 30 years and loves being outdoors, whether it was surfing in his younger years, angling for fish on his boat, working in his newly landscaped garden or relaxing by the pool at his lakeside home in Boynton Beach.
‘Worst Headache of Her Life’ Signaled a Ruptured Brain Aneurysm for Miami Mom and Media Entrepreneur
What does it feel like to have a ruptured brain aneurysm? Ask Angela Sustaita-Ruiz, 51, who suffered a ruptured aneurysm earlier this year. “Literally out of nowhere, I got this massive headache, the worst of my life,” says the energetic and outgoing Hispanic entertainment media entrepreneur and mother of four.
Minimally Invasive ‘HiFU’ Beat Her Essential Tremor: ‘Be Brave Enough to Say You'll Do It’
Life with “essential tremor” — one of the most common movement disorders — is disruptive and debilitating. So much that just handling a glass of water is a challenging task. Nan Levy knows all about it. She had been dealing with her tremor for at least 12 years.
Complex Surgery Can Solve Debilitating Back Pain Safely
After years of debilitating back pain, Timothy McQuade could barely walk down his driveway to collect his mail. Now, however, he no longer worries about getting around. He’s planning a future filled with travel, thanks to life-changing spinal surgery.