Darryl Tillman Pursues His Passions After Leg Amputation

Darryl Tillman

Darryl Tillman, 43, describes himself as fun, creative, and athletic. He loves sports, spending time with family, music, and last, but certainly not least, cooking.

In July 2024, Darryl was in a motorcycle crash that resulted in the amputation of his right leg below the knee. After 12 days at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, nine of those in the ICU, he transferred to Shepherd’s Comprehensive Rehabilitation Unit (CRU).

“Before starting rehab, honestly, I didn't know what life was going to be like,” says Darryl, who lives in Covington, Georgia.

Darryl and his care team got right to work, starting with the basics, like practicing transfers to his wheelchair using a slide board, and building skills from there.

“The most rewarding was when I was able to go to the gym on the third floor, and I stood up for the first time. Carol [Ardanowski, PT, Darryl’s physical therapist] also took me down to the garden,” Darryl recalls. “We were outside, and I just started crying. I was like, ‘I haven't seen outside in two weeks, and I'm normally outside all the time.’"

As Darryl grew stronger, his occupational therapist, Jena Kelly, OTR/L, asked him about things he did before his injury that he’d like to do again. Cooking was at the top of the list. So, Darryl wheeled his way to the grocery store with Kelly by his side, and shopped for ingredients for chicken alfredo, which he prepared in Shepherd’s I Can Studio adaptive kitchen. Darryl’s wife was able to join them for the meal.

“That was definitely rewarding because that's like one of my love languages,” Darryl says. “When I cook, I like to see the expressions on people's faces. I like to hear people say, ‘Oh, man, this is good.’"

Darryl recalls Kelly’s response when he expressed doubt about returning to another of his passions, being a DJ.

“She was like, ‘You can do everything that you used to do before. It's just going to look a little different.’"

Soon after, Darryl was DJing for the patients in the CRU gym.

“Everybody was just having a blast,” he recalls.

After discharging from inpatient rehabilitation, Darryl got fitted for a prosthetic leg and returned to Shepherd for outpatient therapy.

He also served as DJ for Kelly’s wedding and later for an event at Shepherd Center.

“Now, I just put my leg on, and I walk around the house. I cook, I cut the grass … I think I heard a mentor say, ‘Your condition is not your conclusion.’ So you have to give yourself grace and just continue to work hard, and every day it's going to get better, but it all starts in the mind.”

To hear Darryl’s story in his own words, check out his video in the “Stories of Hope” video series.

Written by Ruth Underwood