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Meet Ignacio – a living embodiment of resilience, determination, and the unbreakable human spirit. His remarkable journey is not just a testament to personal strength; it’s an inspiration for millions facing adversity across the United States.

Ignacio was born in 1990 during Cuba’s oppressive communist regime. At the young age of four, he faced the devastating loss of his mother to leukemia – a defining moment that shaped his life. In 1997, fortune smiled upon his family when they won a visa lottery, offering them an escape from the shackles of Cuba to start anew in the land of freedom and opportunity – the United States.

Ignacio’s upbringing was defined by the values of hard work instilled by his father, the everlasting love of his late mother, and discipline from his stepmother. These values fueled his unwavering ambition to become a fighter pilot, with a dream of giving back for the newfound opportunities he now cherished and the dream of one day going to space.

In 2012, Ignacio’s dedication bore fruit when he secured a coveted spot in flight training after excelling in Air Force ROTC at Georgia Tech. However, just nine months later, his life took an unexpected turn. A severe motorcycle accident left him with a complete spinal cord injury, complete peripheral nerve damage to his right arm, traumatic brain injury, and more. This occurred just three weeks before he was set to embark on undergraduate pilot training at Sheppard AFB, Texas, instead he awoke at Shepherd Center in Atlanta, GA – a top 10 rehabilitation hospital in the country. Ignacio, however, refused the label of disability or let it define his outlook in life. Instead, he channeled his fighter pilot mentality into a new mission: to revolutionize the standard and continuum of care for paralysis through his own journey of self-experimentation and translational biomedical research.

As an apprentice research scientist, Ignacio attended numerous paralysis research symposiums and conferences, worked tirelessly at a paralysis recovery center, and earned a Master’s degree in Biomedical Innovation and Development at Georgia Tech. His focus was on learning, picking brains, making connections, and utilize existing biomedical technologies to demonstrate that even individuals with the most severe “complete” spinal cord injuries could regain some sustainable and valuable sensory awareness and function through an intensive, non-invasive, sensory-stimulating, weight-bearing maximized training regimen.

After five years of relentless 24/7 effort with a complete spinal cord injury to stand every day in a standing frame working on maintaining his bone density and eliminating all secondary medical issues that were deteriorating his health, Ignacio designed an innovative protocol using a Lokomat. For 12 months, he walked 2-4 hours a day with 100% weight-bearing, covering 655 miles, using this robotic orthosis suspended over a treadmill with variable body-weight support that was essentially at 0% while wearing a virtual reality headset that displayed a first-person view of a person walking on a trail. This journey resulted in the recovery of novel sensations throughout his body, primarily at the bottom of his feet and last sacral segment ultimately improving his neurological function from AIS A to AIS B on the neurological function scale.

Ignacio graduated top of his class and was recognized and commended by the Georgia House of Representatives in House Resolution 301 for his work. Ignacio’s passion and dedication led him to Los Angeles, where he participated in a groundbreaking 12-month experimental research protocol using non-invasive electrical stimulation at UCLA. Here he also met his now wife, who as a physical therapist selflessly shifted careers to become a research assistant and work with him on this quest for reversing paralysis. He pursued a second Master’s degree in Kinesiology at Cal State LA, focusing on the recovery and beneficial effects of sexual function after paralysis. His study revealed significant physiological and psychological improvements that translated into overall proprioception, bowel and bladder function, genital sensations, and restored sexual function. He is currently applying to begin his Ph.D. in Bio-kinesiology at USC where he hopes to merge his biomedical and kinesiology backgrounds to continue to demonstrate how to reverse paralysis through self-experimentation.

Ignacio’s work offers hope to countless individuals facing paralysis. Collaborating with renowned researcher Dr. Reggie Edgerton, Ignacio pioneers innovative approaches at Rancho Los Amigos Research Institute. His numerous presentations to the global scientific community at the Society for Neuroscience and personal achievements, such as taking over 500,000 steps in an exoskeleton with just 65% robotic assistance while receiving electrical stimulation on his spine, underscore his unwavering commitment.

In Ignacio’s own words, his mission is clear: “I aspire to contribute to the journey of reversing paralysis by using my experience to make space accessible to everyone, including those with physical challenges. As an ambassador, my aim is to redefine accessibility and inclusivity in commercial space travel by showcasing how biomedical innovations can restore functional independence and reverse paralysis, both in zero-gravity and on Earth.” He believes zero-gravity to be the best platform to demonstrate that seemingly insurmountable obstacles can be overcome, and dreams regardless of paralysis can be attained.

Becoming an accessible space ambassador holds profound significance for Ignacio. It represents an opportunity to illustrate that adversity can be conquered and dreams can be realized, regardless of the hurdles we face in life. From his early years in Cuba, living under the shadow of a communist regime, to the pivotal moment when a motorcycle accident altered the course of his very existence, Ignacio’s story has been marked by the pursuit of independence in every form. Today, that pursuit leads him to a quest for a unique form of independence – one from the pull of gravity itself.

In every instance, Ignacio has transformed these challenges into stepping-stones for growth. His journey serves as a testament to the incredible potential residing within each of us, showing that resilience, determination, and the indomitable human spirit can surmount any obstacle.

Ignacio’s narrative encapsulates the very essence of hope, courage, and an unwavering drive, echoing his belief that “with love, faith, and perseverance, nothing is impossible.”

February 3, 2023 by Lisa Elijah

The 118th Congress is officially underway, and the House and Senate have a lot of work to do. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has long been a leader in providing specialized healthcare services and long-term care for veterans with spinal cord injuries and disorders. Paralyzed Veterans of America’s (PVA) 2023 legislative priorities are aimed at not only protecting access to these specialized services, but also increasing access where needed. We also support priorities that will ensure veterans with significant disabilities have equitable access to the same opportunities as other Americans. 

We are proud of the progress made in the 117th Congress. Through your support, PVA was able to help pass H.R. 4794/S. 2533 MAMMO Act, which requires the VA to implement and improve breast imaging services for veterans. Additionally, H.R. 7939, the Veterans Auto and Education Improvement Act, became law and allows the VA to provide an additional automobile allowance to certain eligible veterans. The passage of these bills was a step in the right direction for supporting our nation’s veterans and we hope to continue the same momentum through 2023. 

Our 2023 policy priorities focus on increasing funding for veteran health care, modernizing VA facilities, and improving access to opportunities and freedoms available to all Americans. These efforts will help protect veterans’ access to the specialized health care services they need, while also expanding their access to VA long-term care, including home and community-based services. Congress must also take a hard look at how it can better protect the civil rights of individuals with disabilities. This includes ensuring an improvement in how air travel is handled for people with disabilities, particularly wheelchair users, by reforming the Air Carrier Access Act to add standards for aircraft accessibility and improving enforcement of the law. 

An exhaustive list with more detailed goals is outlined in our 2023 policy priorities. By creating legislation from our 2023 legislative priorities, Congress can ensure that our nation’s veterans receive the support they deserve. 

If you are passionate about a specific issue, make sure to reach out to your legislators in PVAction Force through our campaign and add your own story to share how much it means to you. Also, check out the full list of legislation of interest to PVA and our stance on each bill.

PVA is dedicated to improving the lives of veterans with disabilities and their families. We hope to make a lasting impact on the lives of our members. This call to action is an opportunity for us all to help be of service, and it is a chance for us to join together and make sure that our government is doing all it can. We must ensure that our legislators are working toward legislation that will benefit our nation’s veterans, so that they can live their lives with dignity, respect, and independence. Hearing directly from you helps legislators understand what is important to their constituents, and holds an immense amount of power over how they lend their support. Join us to make our goals a reality. 

Hello everyone, I am Jose Reynoso your newly appointed Vice President for the Paralyzed Veterans of America California Chapter in Long Beach. In this short article I want to pass information over to you all about the exoskeleton robotic legs. Not only does it sound pretty awesome but for those who qualify it also allows you to do the impossible which is to stand up and walk with this assisted device. There are certain restrictions to be eligible to participate in this device as it is for everything else available for us, I’ll include the personnel contacts in charge of this research program at the end of this article so anyone interested can get a hold of them.  

This device, the exoskeletal robotic legs was able to grant me the impossible which I thought would never happen again. That experience was to stand tall and see the world differently again, as my former self did, standing up and walking. It was a little challenging at first getting the rhythm of how to use the device, concentrating on not stalling the machine and having it stop on you mid step but that’s part of the experience trial by error. Being able to stand up to my actual height and seeing how everything looks as it did really feel incredible and not only did it felt incredible but I was also able to stand next to my family and seeing how short they really are.  

The exo suit gave me and my family a lot of good memories and beautiful moments that will forever cherish. I was able to walk basically almost anywhere I wanted to go, take a stroll at the park, go to the movies, go out to eat dinner anywhere you’d want to go that the device will allow you to go if the terrain permits. Not only does it consist of you walking again, but it also provides a really good workout as if it’s a gym of its own. You’re constantly having to keep yourself balanced so it makes you exercise not only your body but your mind as well. Having to focus on how you step, and where to step, how to move a certain way, and to turn a certain a certain way. Its incredible what this device allows you to do and that sense of freedom that it brings upon you as if you have lost nothing. I would highly recommend this device to everyone since it keeps you active and brings back a portion, we all have lost and have longed for since day 1 and builds beautiful memories you’ll never forget.   I thank you for taking the time in reading this article, and also here is the research team you can get a hold of to get all the information you need and the restrictions for the device and what is required to participate in them.