CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — A Bay Area woman who is paralyzed is able to get around on her own again. It’s thanks to breakthrough technology that is allowing her to take steps.

• Paralyzed woman learning to walk again due to technology
• Kelly Thomas, 23, was injured in a car accident in 2014
• Stimulation device implanted in back allows her to relearn to walk

Her steps may seem small but they’re a huge leap from where Kelly Thomas, 23, was four years ago.

“Now being able to walk is incredible. I feel normal again,” Thomas said.

A car accident in Homosassa left the Lecanto native paralyzed in July of 2014.

A wheelchair was the only way she could get around but she was determined to change that.

“I don’t remember the moment I realized I was paralyzed. But I do remember the moment where I said to myself I’m going to walk. I don’t know when, or how, or how well, or how long it’s going to take, but I will,” Thomas said.

Never giving up hope, she volunteered for research at the University of Louisville.

A stimulation device was implanted in her lower back that can allow her to control movement of her legs, a major medical breakthrough that only few have tried.

“What this means is that the spinal circuitry has the capacity to relearn how to walk in certain conditions,” said Dr. Susan Harkema, director of Kentucky Spinal Cord Injury Research Center. 

That’s where Kelly lived for a year, training every single day, learning how to walk with a walker. Every step takes intense focus.

“It’s a mental physical battle. Every single step is a battle. It’s not easy for me, like somebody who isn’t injured,” Thomas said.

She’ll have to continue with physical therapy but one day hopes to not even need the walker anymore.

“This is my path. My way to inspire others. My way to help,” Thomas said.

Kelly’s treatment was part of research that included three others with spinal cord injuries. She and one other were able to walk again.

She is currently taking online classes at UCF studying criminology and hopes to go to law school. She’s received national attention during her recovery.