program ended, Mike got an email from Marshall. He was able to
stand at his high school graduation – which had been a personal
dream for him – and he continues to do sit-skiing and sit-biking. But
the most surprising part of all: He is now able to walk about 100 feet
with a walker.
Mike’s response to all of this is not only interesting, but also
the whole reason he’s involved with Paradox. “How much longer
would he have been in that frame of mind that he couldn’t stand up
if it wasn’t for these action sports. Being able to do it gave him the
motivation to do it, and that took his therapy to the next level. All of
these sports, we consider them therapeutic adventure activities,
and I think that therapeutic word is key.”
Can action sports be therapeutic? Could being a high sensa-
tion-seeker actually have protective and restorative powers? Is it
possible that adventure skiing is what gave Marshall the hardiness,
will, and fortitude needed to take his therapy to the next level? It’s
hard to know for sure, but what I have discovered is that there is
a connection between high sensation-seekers, their chosen activ-
ities, and their mental and physical health.
Do you remember Wes, the cyanotic mountain climber
from thelast chapter?I caught up with him a little over a year
after our first interview. He had some bad news.
“It was December 27th, I was heading home at night around
7:30, 7:45. I’m driving, and then, all of a sudden, I see a flash –
something coming toward me. It was a guy who was more than
twice the legal limit, and he was driving on the wrong side of the
road. He came at me head on. His lights weren’t fully on. He hit me
just head on. I have two herniated discs in my neck, some joint
issues in my neck, some nerve damage in my foot, some back issues
and stuff like that.”
Because of his accident, his doctor said he couldn’t lift more
than 20 pounds and for quite some time he was unable to engage in
the physical activities he so loved. His dreams of being a fire fighter
are shattered. He used to do Taekwondo, not anymore. No more
CrossFit. He suffered a deep depression as a result. But things are
changing for him and he knows his limits. “I think I’m much more
conservative. You won’t see me doing any skydiving, you won’t see
me doing any BASE jumping or stuff like that. But I still want to live
my life, you know what I mean?” Once he did, his mood started to
improve. He’s shifted from thrill- and adventure-seeking and has
embraced his experience-seeking side. “It’s the best way to refresh173 / Super Power or Super ProblemDownloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. Access paid by the UCSF Library, on 11 Nov 2019 at 14:18:43, subject to the Cambridge