The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1513610
42 ■ THE WOLFPACKER On Oct. 25, 2019, Abraham woke up in a Chapel Hill hospital. His last cogent memory was from the day before, when he took his dog out for a walk. He was surprised to find he had been rushed to an emergency room in Raleigh, then transferred to the burn unit of UNC Hospital. His injuries were not caused by burns, however. Doctors discovered that Abra- ham had a rare blood disorder in which proteins in his system were attacking his body from the inside out. It also caused severe clotting in his legs. "I didn't know why I was there," Abra- ham said. "I saw the doctor and my wife sitting there, and that's when they ex- plained to me that the protein in my blood was attacking me in my arms, in my ears and in my legs." He was even more surprised when he looked under the covers of his bed to dis- cover that both his legs had been removed from just below the knees. "I've always believed God only gave me what he thought I could handle," Abra- ham said. "He easily could have taken me that night four years ago, but I'm here for a reason. He knows what that reason is. I've been trying to tackle it head-on every step of the way. "It just makes sense to me to keep going." The blood disorder is so rare that it doesn't have a name, and doctors aren't 100 percent sure how to treat it. They have made Abraham's plight a study in medical journals. Six years ago, Abraham's life seemed fairly perfect. The former NFL linebacker had a good job as a Raleigh insurance agent, he was remarried and expecting a child with wife, Josephine. Then he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, undergoing chemotherapy treat- ments that sent the cancer into remission. His daughter Mya was born in 2019. Just as he was learning to be a parent again (Abraham's first child, Matthew, was born in 1996), he was rushed to the hospital with his life-threatening blood disorder. If anyone has reason to ask "Why me?" it's Abraham. Yet there is no hint of re- morse, bitterness or self-pity. In fact, when asked what the toughest part of the past five years has been, he was quick to answer. "I think the hardest was seeing what my wife was going through," he said. "And what my daughter and son were going through. I didn't want them to be bur- dened." He even told Josephine to stop coming to the hospital — not because he didn't want her to be part of his recovery, but because he saw the toll her constant at- tention was taking. "She was just doing too much," he said. "She was working a regular job. My daughter was in daycare. She would pick her up from daycare, and then she would come see me knowing that she had to get up the next morning early and do it all over again." He eventually left the hospital after two months of recovery, rehabilitation and reeducation on how to become mo- bile in a wheelchair. Recently, he was fitted for his first prosthetic legs, both including microchips that are pro- grammed to help him stand up, sit down and relieve pressure on his walk. "I call them my bionic legs," he said with a laugh. "They help me a great Abraham (bottom left) was on hand at the Raleigh restaurant Amedeo's in September to help celebrate the induction of his former teammate Bill Cowher into the Carter-Finley Stadium Ring of Honor. PHOTO BY TIM PEELER