New Jersey ? It will be agonizing, emotional and draining. Most of all, it will be painful.

New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine faces months of intensive therapy to recover from serious injuries suffered in an April 12 crash on the Garden State Parkway.

“It is a grueling course that he’s going to go through,” said Kathleen O’Donnell, an inpatient rehabilitation manager at Atlantic Health, which operates several northern New Jersey health facilities. “My heart goes out to him.”

Corzine has been in intensive care since breaking 11 ribs, his sternum, a leg, his collarbone and a vertebra in the crash.

Dr. Steven Ross at Cooper University Hospital said Saturday the governor has started talking with family members and doctors and is drinking some clear liquids.

Corzine showed signs of bronchitis and was being treated with antibiotics, Ross said. Doctors removed a breathing tube Friday.

Physical therapists said Corzine may face his toughest tests after he leaves the hospital. The 60-year-old man faces excruciating daily exercises designed to rebuild his strength, but they’ll also make it difficult for him to initially devote much time to being governor.