Dawn's Notes
The Real Superman - July 2024
by Dawn Phelps, RN/LMSW
When actor Christopher Reeve wore a red cape in his Superman movies in 1979, he never would have dreamed that he would put his red cape away after May, 27, 1995. That’s when he was thrown from a horse and two cervical vertebrae were shattered. He was paralyzed from the neck down and would be confined to a wheel chair and dependent on a ventilator to breathe for the rest of his life.
First, a little background. Christopher Reeve was born in New York in 1952. By the age of nine, he realized his passion to act, and he studied acting at Cornell University and Juilliard. He made his debut on Broadway in 1976, and his acting career continued. He was in movies, Broadway plays, and won acclaim for the lead role as Superman in 1979. He married Dana Morosini, a singer and actress, in 1992, and they had a son named Will. Christopher already had a son and daughter from a previous relationship before marrying Dana.
After Reeve broke his neck, he was so depressed that he told Dana he wanted to “slip away” and die. But Dana told him, “You are still you” “And I love you.” She also told him she planned to be with him for the long haul. After that, he began to fight to recover. He received physical therapy for four to five hours a day to keep his muscles from deteriorating. He wanted to keep his body strong in case a “cure” could be found for spinal cord injuries.
By December of 1995, Reeve declared that he was glad to be alive “because life was worth living.” Figuratively, Christopher had put his Superman cape back on and was ready for the “fight,” not only for himself, but for thousands of others with spinal cord injuries! He had a risky surgery to repair his neck vertebras and secure the skull to the spinal cord. He traveled to Israel in search of more information about stem cell therapy. He had a stem cell procedure done, and by 2000 he had a little movement in his fingers, and he could feel hot and cold in 65% of his body!
He spoke to Congress and was instrumental in getting the insurance lifetime limit raised from 1 million to 10 million for those with spinal cord injuries. He traveled, he spoke, and he advocated for those who could not speak for themselves. He wrote two books—I’m Still Me and Nothing Is Impossible. What Christopher Reeve accomplished in his remaining years after his injury was nothing short of phenomenal! He no longer needed his red Superman cape—he did not have to pretend to be Superman. He had become a real Superman to many who were watching and hoping for his recovery. He received about 400,000 letters telling how he had touched their lives, through his movies and his heroic response to his disability. His wife Dana compiled some of the letters in a book.
The lives of Christopher and his wife ended too soon. Christopher died on October 10, 2004, after taking an antibiotic for an infection; he was 52. Dana, age 44, died on March 6, 2006, of lung cancer, even though she was never a smoker. Before Dana’s death, she made arrangements for her young son Will to live with their neighbors so he would not have to change schools after her death.
After his injury, Christopher established the Christopher Reeve Foundation for research and assistance for those with spinal cord injuries. It was later named Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. Will, who is an ABC News announcer, and his two siblings oversee their parents’ foundation. Research is continuing and strides are being made for those with spinal cord injuries. A quote from UC Irvine, a research university, says, “In the years following his injury, Christopher did more to promote research on spinal cord injury and other neurological disorders than any other person before or since.”
The real Superman used his time well after his injury—to speak, to act, to fight, to research, to write to help others who are struggling. How Reeve and his wife Dana lived their lives after Christopher’s injury mattered! Here is one of his quotes:
“Who knows why an accident happens? The key is what you do afterward. There is a period of shock and then grieving and confusion and loss. After that, you have two choices. One is to stare out of the window and gradually disintegrate. And the other is to mobilize and use all your resources, whatever they may be, to do something positive. That is the road that I have taken….”
If you are struggling with depression, illness, or loss, take courage. Choose hope and have faith that better times are ahead. “Use all your resources,” and you will discover you have a bit of real-Superman grit inside of you too!
“Once you choose hope, anything’s possible”
- Christopher Reeve
Call about the next "Living Life after Loss" Group at:
Meadowlark Hospice
709 Liberty, Clay Center, Kansas
(785) 632-2225
Dawn Phelps, RN/LMSW, Group Facilitator