Living a Great Life, Sitting Down

As the former Ms. Wheelchair Wyoming, Annmarie Kalbach’s platform focused on battling isolation and depression in the disability community.

“It’s so important for me to promote this platform because 10 years ago, I was laying in a bed at Craig Hospital, feeling like my life was over,” explains Annmarie, age 27. “I was paralyzed from the waist down and overcome with depression because I couldn’t do any of the things a 17-year-old should be doing. But then I saw Dr. Scelza [Craig Hospital Medical Director] zipping around in his wheelchair, and I thought about everything he was able to do. It was eye opening for me.”

She adds, “Today, a decade later, I am a single mom of two incredible girls. I have come to realize that my life is amazing, just without the use of my legs. And while working legs would be convenient, it’s not the end of the world. I have come so far and have a great life, just sitting down.”

Taking the Reins

A lifelong horse enthusiast, Annmarie was riding a new horse when she was suddenly bucked off in July 2016.

“As soon as I hit the ground, I couldn’t feel my legs and knew immediately that I was paralyzed,” she recalls. “I ended up shattering my T5 and T6.”

After being life flighted to a hospital in Casper, Wyoming, Annmarie was transferred to Children’s Hospital Colorado, where she underwent a spinal fusion. It was a nurse who urged Annmarie and her family to get to Craig as soon as possible for her SCI neurorehabilitation.

“Several days later, I was at Craig,” she says. “I remember telling my care team that I just wanted to be able to get myself to the bathroom and ride horses.”

For the next two months, Annmarie worked tirelessly to regain her independence. “I had just finished my junior year of high school and was planning to join the Marines after graduation or accept a rodeo scholarship to Central Wyoming College. It was very hard to come to terms with the fact that these were no longer options for me, but I tried to stay hopeful and focus on the positives.”

One of these positives came in Recreational Therapy.

“I remember feeling depressed and uninterested in doing anything,” she says. “And then I wheeled into my room and saw a pair of jeans and cowboy boots laying on my hospital bed. My recreational therapist took me to a nearby stable to spend the day doing therapy on a saddle and riding horses. On that day, she knew exactly what I needed. It was such a special day that I will never ever forget.”

Thriving Beyond Limits

After discharging from Craig in late September, Annmarie returned home to Wyoming. With the help of Laura Magnuson in the donor-supported School Program, she enrolled in online classes before being able to return to school full time in a wheelchair. She graduated with her class the following spring and went on to attend Central Wyoming College to study equine science and management.

Today, she is raising seven-year-old Huxley and three-year-old Oakley. Embracing her love of writing, Annmarie is returning to college to pursue a creative writing degree, while also coaching little league soccer and working at a local leather shop, specializing in horse saddles.

In addition, she continues to support the mission of Ms. Wheelchair Wyoming by advocating for disability awareness, accessibility and inclusion. “I also educate and raise awareness of isolation and depression by speaking publicly and privately,” Annmarie says.

She adds, “It definitely took a while to get where I am, but I’m happy with my life. Raising my daughters has shown me that life is worth living, and legs are not the most important thing. I first learned this at Craig, and I embrace the idea every single day.”

To learn more or donate to help Craig patients like Annmarie, please visit craighospital.org/foundation/donate.