'Keep going and never give up': How a quadriplegic's determination is inspiring others.

TIVERTON — Six years ago, Linda Lambert Pestana fell from a kitchen stool in her Tiverton home and suffered a severe spinal cord injury that left her a quadriplegic.

The day of the 2017 accident, doctors painted a grim outlook of her future. The surgeon told her family if she survived two days, she was going to have a trach and feeding tube for the rest of her life and never move anything below her neck.

"Linda looked at him and said 'you don't know me,'" recalled husband Lou Pestana.

The journey since has not been an easy one. But six years later, Linda is still here, she never needed that trach, and she forges ahead with unshakable optimism, seeing what was undeniably the worst moment of her life as also the best moment.

"I've been through a lot," said Linda, who was 69 at the time of the fall and has since undergone 14 surgeries in all. "So many people look at me and say, ‘Linda, this must have been the worst thing in your life.’ ... It's probably the best thing that's happened to me because I got a second chance at life."

Project Walk: An accident at home left Linda Pestana in a wheelchair. Now she has plans to walk again.

"(Doctors) keep telling me to get my life in order and I keep saying, no I'm not ready yet," she said. "I have too much to do."

Among them is sharing her story to help others find hope and healing. Over the years, Linda has written two books — “It’s All About You and Me," about the accident and her life since, and “Voices of the Heart,” where she details her childhood, experience as a nun and marriage to Lou.

From the page to the stage

Now, Linda's inspiring life story will be taking center stage, as friend and playwright Jayne Hannah adapts it into a play.

A staged reading will be held Tuesday, Oct. 10, in Providence for "Because of Linda," which Hannah intends to be "an evening of inspiration, of thought, and celebration of Linda's purpose."

Hannah collaborated with Linda on her second book "It's All About You and Me," but their friendship extends beyond that.

Linda, who grew up in severe poverty in Dover, New Hampshire, was a nun for 23 years and then served as a bereavement facilitator. The two met in 2013, when Linda helped a widowed Hannah through her loss.

So, for Hannah, the play is in part a show of her appreciation.

Linda and her husband were not involved in the process of writing the play, so Tuesday will be their first glimpse of it.

"I feel overwhelmed by her doing this," said Linda. "This is such a special gift to me."

Quadriplegic sets a goal of walking

On Aug. 1 2017, Linda took a nitroglycerine tablet because she was having chest pains from an existing medical condition. The new medication made her dizzy, and when she tried to sit down at her breakfast bar she fell back and hit her head on the wall behind her and broke her neck.

Linda has encountered many bumps on the road to recovery since her accident. But Lou, who Linda called "her hero," noted his wife was making great strides.

She was going up to New Hampshire for physical therapy at Project Walk, which is described as an “ability center” that works with various conditions such as spinal cord injuries, amputations, traumatic brain injuries and cerebral palsy.

Early last year, Linda had set a goal of taking her first step on Aug. 1, 2022. 

"I was determined to show the doctors and nurses that I didn't die and that I wasn't going to die in my chair. That I was going to go beyond," she said.

'Voices of the Heart': Former nun writes book about leaving church, finding path to happiness

However, after some setbacks, including additional surgeries and a pandemic that limited her ability to do as much physical therapy as before, that goal was not reached - and Linda realized it may never be. Though this was difficult to accept, Linda remains as optimistic as ever.

"I've had to swallow hard and realize that maybe I won't walk, but that I still have a mission and a purpose because God hasn't taken me yet," Linda said.

Update on Linda’s life post-accident

It's been a tough year, Linda said.

"I've had many surgeries and the healing process was really long ... I had two shoulder replacements put in and had to have the two of them taken out because my body didn't acclimate to the hardware that was in my body."

Linda's last shoulder was taken out in May of this year. She also had to undergo surgery on her neck because her spinal cord was causing her problems.

In March, she was in the hospital for a month and ultimately ended up getting a feeding tube, which until then she hadn't needed, because she had achalasia, a rare disorder in which your esophagus is unable to move food and liquids down into your stomach. Now, she's getting enough food and protein, and things are "going in the right direction," said Lou.

While it can be easy to be overcome with depression and hopelessness with each new medical hurdle, which at times Linda said she struggles with, she chooses instead to be filled with gratitude.

"I can't scratch an itch. I can't feed myself. I can't brush my teeth. I can't comb my hair. I can't use my iPad. I can't use my phone to dial. I can't wish away a bug that's on the wall that looks like it's going to fall on my face. But what I can do is still breathe," she said. "I can still talk, God didn't take my voice away from me. I can still laugh. I can still look at people I love and tell them I love them."

What is Linda Lambert Pestana’s new mission?

In fact, Linda now has a new goal: lifting others up by sharing her story.

Linda said she loves talking to people about her journey, from where she was to the obstacles she's faced where she is now. Her advice to anyone struggling is to "keep going and never give up."

"No matter what we go through in life ... it can make us either bitter or better and I'm hoping that my journey makes me better and not bitter,” she said.

Oprah Winfrey Network series: Swansea resident, former nun to be featured on TV show

What is the play about?

According to Hannah, the play is based on true conversations she's had with Linda and Lou "about life, about attitude, about how to approach life when it's challenging." But the play adds just a "splash of fiction."

The Providence playwright said that seeing the difference Linda has made in Hannah's life and the lives of others is what prompted her to take on this project.

"I wanted to do something that could get her message out there but that also she could sit and experience and enjoy," Hannah said.

"As much as this is talking about the difficult side of her life or the challenge that she has, I want everyone to be lifted by this, most of all her," she added.

When can we see 'Because of Linda'?

Hopefully soon. But the Oct. 10 reading is really just the first step in the process of getting the play on stage, Hannah said.

It will be followed by a special talk back, which serves to help Hannah gauge the audience's response and see what worked and what didn't. From there, it will undergo revisions and rewrites before being pitched to local theaters.

The reading of "Because of Linda" will be held Tuesday, Oct. 10, at 7 p.m. at The Wilbury Theatre, 475 Valley St., Providence, inside WaterFire Arts Center.

The event is free to the public. Doors open at 6:45 p.m. Free parking and wheelchair access is available.

To learn more about Linda, or to purchase her books, visit her website at http://www.LindaPestana.com.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Linda Lambert Pestana's story from nun to paraplegic is now a play