Wheelchair dancing treats spine injuries

After 45 days of rehearsal, 32 people with spinal cord injuries in the Ningxia Hui autonomous region performed a wheelchair dance in April, symbolizing hope and recovery through a regional rehabilitation program.

The wheelchair dancing team, established this year, is part of Ningxia's bigger plan to offer comprehensive life-reconstruction services to people with spinal cord injuries.

In 2021, Ningxia initiated a recovery program for people with spinal cord injuries. As of May, the program, organized by the Ningxia Rehabilitation Center for the Disabled, has held 16 sessions of training, benefiting some 420 people, said Zhao Hong, who is in charge of the center's rehabilitation assessment department.

After systematic instruction, nine people have returned to school and finished their study, eight people have got married and 72 have won hundreds of medals in regional and national sports events, according to Zhao.

After a traffic accident in November 2022, 40-year-old Liu Wei from Yinchuan, the capital of Ningxia, suffered a spinal cord injury, resulting in paraplegia of both his lower limbs and complete loss of sensation below the waist.

"I had a job that I like and a family that I love. But everything changed after the accident. I have to rely on others to get up, dress up and have lunch. I often get strange looks from others and am reluctant to go outdoors," he said.

Luckily, in 2023, he was told that the region was offering a recovery class for people with spinal cord injuries. After a brief visit, he realized that he needed professional guidance.

During a 45-day course, he followed the program's recovery and training plan. Not only did he improve his physical fitness, but he also became more confident.

"After the recovery program, I can walk for 5 minutes with a mobility aid. And wheelchair dancing provides us a chance to make new friends. We no longer feel lonely. Now despite my physical disability, I feel no difference between me and ordinary people," Liu said.

After joining the wheelchair dancing team in 2025, Liu recalled feeling a tremendous sense of achievement when their performance was held, with some team members crying in excitement.

Liao Yurong, who teaches wheelchair dance, said it is a unique form that combines the art of dancing and a wheelchair's function. For people with spinal cord injury, it provides a new method of art expression and physical recovery.

"When the music starts, what I see is no longer the obstruction of the wheelchair, but the graceful rhythm of the dancers. This kind of simultaneous recovery of both body and mind is the most touching transformation," Liao said.

Caused by trauma, inflammation and tumors, spinal cord injury is damage to the spinal cord structure and function, resulting in dysfunction of movement, sensation, sphincter and autonomic nerves below the injured part. Post-injury, people often face multiple obstacles, complications and treatment challenges, leading many to experience feelings of mental distress and a limited lifestyle.

Zhao said they will help more people with spinal cord injuries in the future.

"We hope that with such a profound transformation, they will help other people with disabilities with unshakable courage, unwavering hope and relentless joy," Zhao said.