Getting Back on the Horse
After sustaining a traumatic brain injury when she fell from a horse, Cassie Kahle made it her goal to ride again.
When Cassie Kahle, currently working on a horse farm in The Netherlands, returned briefly to the United States last year, she made sure to stop in Atlanta to visit her friends at Shepherd Center.
“I wanted to walk through those doors and say thank you to the people who gave me a second chance and who gave me my life back,” Cassie says. “I am so grateful to everyone at Shepherd Center.”
On January 29, 2022, Cassie was competing in a national horse jumping competition in Ocala, Florida, when she fell during a jump. She sustained a traumatic brain injury and remained unconscious for 18 days. She initially went to UF Health Shands Hospital in Gainesville, Florida, and then was airlifted to Shepherd Center a week later.
When Cassie emerged from her disorder of consciousness, she could not move her left side. She spent the next four weeks learning to walk again as well as regaining strength, balance, and mobility. She continued her rehabilitation at Shepherd Pathways, Shepherd Center’s comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation program for people recovering from brain injury, and was soon walking with the aid of a walker. When she graduated from Pathways, she could walk independently.
Before the accident, Cassie’s life revolved around horses. She began riding and competing at a young age. She was working as a horse trainer and rider for farms in New Jersey and Florida. She competed nationally, hoping to make it to the Canadian Olympic Team.
So it’s no surprise that during her recovery, she made it her singular goal to return to horseback riding.
“All I could think about was getting back on the horse,” Cassie remembers. “I’ve done it my whole life – that’s all I knew.”
To help her achieve that goal, therapists at Pathways incorporated elements of horseback riding into her therapy. Six months later, she was indeed back on a horse.
“It was the most amazing, emotional experience,” says Cassie, who now has her sights set on returning to competition, but on a smaller scale.
She is very appreciative of how far she has come.
“The doctors tell you that they can’t predict your recovery with a brain injury because everyone is different,” Cassie says. “But I feel fortunate that after two years, I am doing better than ever.”
Written by Sara Baxter
With five decades of experience, Shepherd Center provides world-class clinical care, research, and family support for people experiencing the most complex conditions, including spinal cord and brain injuries, multi-trauma, traumatic amputations, stroke, multiple sclerosis, and pain. An elite center ranked by U.S. News as one of the nation’s top hospitals for rehabilitation, Shepherd Center is also recognized as both Spinal Cord Injury and Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems. Shepherd Center treats thousands of patients annually with unmatched expertise and unwavering compassion to help them begin again.