Christian author and speaker recovering from paralysis after serious fall

Dr. Christopher Yuan on Wednesday regained some movement in his hands, arms, and toes following a surgery Tuesday, according to a post on his social media pages. Paramedics rushed him to a hospital Monday after he fell upside down while using an inversion table at his home with a heavy swing. Inversion tables are cushioned machines used to reduce back pain. Yuan was paralyzed from the neck down after the fall and a surgeon planned to insert a rod to treat the injury, according to Yuan’s mother. He was scheduled to be transferred to rehab later this week where he will receive treatment for about a month before continuing rehabilitation from home.

Who is Yuan? After living as an openly gay man and drug dealer for years, Yuan became a Christian while in prison. He then completed his undergraduate studies at Moody Bible Institute, received a master’s degree in Bible exegesis from Wheaton College Graduate School, and in 2014 received a doctorate of ministry from Bethel Seminary in Minnesota.

He is well-known for writing and speaking about faith and sexuality and recently produced a video series designed to equip parents and grandparents to teach teenagers about Biblical sexuality. He also teaches at Moody.

Dig deeper: Listen to Emily Whitten's report on The World and Everything in It about Yuan's sexuality series.