Hi there new reader. First, a little bit about myself, as I find this a useful place to start when I'm reading blogs. But before that, why? Why add yet another blog to the very crowded blogosphere? Well, I've found very few blogs that deal with spinal cord injury (SCI). I enjoy writing. And a number of people have asked me to share my thoughts, learning and experiences about this new life. So, three reasons. Seems good enough to me. Let's launch!
OK, me. I'm in my earlier forties, married to Annika and with two gorgeous children: our son Griffin and daughter Arden. We live in Devizes, Wiltshire where I used to own a traditional, and wonderful, toyshop selling unusual wooden toys. And then on 4th July 2006 I fell about 30 feet from a tree and broke my back. More than that in fact. I shattered my vertebrae at T3, severed my spinal cord, damaged my right arm, broke my collar bone, several ribs and my chest bone.I've never broken anything in my life before. And now I'm a T2/3 complete paraplegic, which means I have no sensation or movement at all below the level of my injury (basically, no feeling below my armpits). I'm very unlikely to walk again, despite "pioneering techniques" revealed in the Guardian. I'll be a wheechair user for life I imagine. My chair is my legs - without it, I can't move. I don't need a carer. I'm completely independent, can drive, swim, get in and out my chair - on and off the sofa, in and out of a car... I spent 14 months in hospital, a lot of it on bed rest with pressure sores, MRSA and other assorted illnesses. I'd never stayed in hospital before. So a whole load of new experiences and a lot of learning done, with a lot more learning to come.
